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In the province’s third quarter fiscal report the government promoted their transformation of the healthcare system.

Local MLA Brad Michaleski stresses that the even with a projected reduction in the deficit they are still working hard to reform the system. “The services aren’t being compromised by this fiscal discipline. When we talk about spending for families and healthcare, education, the spending has been increasing through time.”

Finance Minister Scott Fielding says per capita health spending continues to exceed the national average and the money invested in health continues to increase every year.

Michaleski says the province is currently undertaking the most substantial health-care transformation in a long time. “We’re looking at the health departments, how they operate, how they function, and that can be said across a number of departments. So it's about spending money wisely and making sure that our frontline services are maintained and if not enhanced.” He continues, “It’s not impossible to do. If you apply sound management principles to how departments operate, you can effectively reduce deficit spending.”

All provincial government departments, except for healthcare, are projecting to be within budget.

In the government’s report, they say the Department of Health, Seniors and Active Living is projecting to be 3.5 per cent below budget.

Manitoba Liberal Leader Dougald Lamont says for the past two years, the Federal government has increased health care transfers while the Pallister government has decreased its share of spending. He says federal health funds have increased by $56-million dollars, while the province’s health increase is at $50-million. That means six million dollars is being re-directed to general revenue.

In terms of myths that there are health care cuts, Michaleski says that is completely false.

A potato farmer from Carberry was front row for a recent episode of The Price Is Right.

The episode aired March 1st and viewers could see Gregg Reynolds wearing his custom t-shirt that read “I dig Manitoba Potatoes.”

“You don’t get to pick where you sit. They just usher you down, and you sit where they tell you to. We just got lucky.”

Reynolds says it’s a lot different being on set then what you see on TV.

“It’s a lot smaller in there then it looks on TV. There’s not that many people there. It’s really loud; you can’t really hear anything that’s going on. You can’t hear Drew, or the bidding, or anything like that. and other than that it’s really cold in there too!”

Reynolds knew he was going to a taping before he left Carberry, for vacation in the States. They were going to visit his girlfriend’s family in Las Vegas. So he got a custom shirt made at home before leaving.

Reynolds was one seat away from going up to Bidder’s Row. The lady sitting beside him was lucky enough to be called.

Their family and friends in Carberry gathered on March 1st to watch the episode and Reynolds says everyone was excited. 

The taping was on January 7th.

China has cancelled Richardson International’s registration to ship canola into their country.

The Winnipeg based company is the largest canola exporter in Canada.

At this time it’s not clear why China decided to end the registration.

Canada exported around five billion dollars of canola last year. Half of those exports were heading to China.

Portage RCMP officers attended a local business just before 2 am this morning to arrest a suspect on outstanding warrants for Assault, Theft Under $5000, and Failure to Comply with a Recognizance.

The 20-year-old, Mateo Roulette attempted to flee the premises when the officers showed up.

The officers told him he was under arrest and ordered him to stop, instead, he started to run away and drop items from a backpack he was carrying.

The 32-year-old female he was with attempted to assist him in his escape.

While Roulette was running from the police, he got rid of a loaded firearm which police immediately retrieved.

In the backpack, a machete, prohibited firearm, various ammunition, prescription drugs not belonging to Roulette and multiple cell phones were found.

More ammunition was found on Roulette when he was searched.

He has been charged with Possession of a Weapon for a Dangerous Purpose as well as several related firearm charges. He is also facing charges of Resist Arrest and multiple Failure to Comply with charges. He remains in custody.

The female was also arrested and will be charged with Obstruction as well as Possession of a Controlled Substance for a baggie of powder believed to be methamphetamine. She has been released on a Promise to Appear.

The investigation continues.

Only minor injuries are reported after a plane crash on Family Lake, near Little Grand Rapids.

Yesterday, around 2:30 in the afternoon, a Cessna Grand Caravan landed short of the runway by around 3 to 5 kilometres.

The plane had seven people aboard, including the pilot. They were taken to the nursing station in Little Grand Rapids, located in the eastern part of Manitoba.

The Transportation Safety Board and the RCMP continue to investigate.

The Strive program is helping people who are out of school and out of work get a job in the labour market in the Dauphin area.

Gabe Mercier, director of the Assiniboine Community College Parkland Campus, says the program has run 19 times since April 2008. Out of the 163 participants, 78 per cent of the job-ready participants have found work or returned to school within 90 days.

Once the program is completed a person would have good knowledge of the industry where their work experience was, they would have a plan for employment or education, they would have set goals and explored careers, they would feel an improved self-esteem, and they’d be left with at least three certificates, Food Safe, WHMIS (Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System), and First Aid, that will allow them to access opportunities in many industries and businesses around Dauphin.

The next program runs from April 18th to June 7th.

The Strive Program is free, if you are interested, let the ACC know by March 30th and they will meet with you.

You can call the Parkland Campus at (204) 622-2222 or email them at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

On Saturday a fire started in the electrical room of Philomene Chartrand School in Camperville.

It didn’t spread too far beyond that but it did leave the school with water damage and some significant smoke damage.

Reg Klassen the Chief Superintendent of Frontier School Division, says students won’t be able to come back for a month to six weeks as they clean up.  

Students will be attending class in Minegoziibe Anishinabe School Pine Creek until repairs are completed. Their teachers will still be teaching the students.

Information has gone out to the parents informing them of the situation. 

On Saturday, March 2nd, Dauphin RCMP responded to a home invasion on 2nd Avenue NE in Dauphin.

At around 2:30 in the afternoon a 55-year-old female was unlocking the door to her apartment when someone came from behind and pushed her into the apartment.

The intruder grabbed a knife, cut the phone line and forced the victim into a bathroom. The intruder then fled after taking several items.

An arrest was made to a 29-year-old female around 8 that evening. Charges of Robbery, Forcible Confinement and Break and Enter are pending.

The Dauphin RCMP and Forensic Identification Unit are continuing the investigation.

We've reached out to the RCMP for additional details.

Rural Crime Prevention, clubroot, and your farm’s financial future are some of the topics covered at this Thursday's Farm Outlook 2019. 

Jim Kaleta says they are bringing something for everyone including farm management, agronomics, and information about where commodity prices are heading.

“I think when we sat down as a committee talking about issues that have been going on out in the rural areas there wasn’t just the marketing side and everything else. We kind of looked at the things that affect us day to day.” Kaleta continues, “There has been a noticeable increase in some crime and issues that have happened on farms. Farms have gotten larger and stuff is scattered around a little more.”

Neil Townsend, the Senior Market Analyst with Farm Link Solutions, is giving the 2019 Market Outlook.

“I think the one biggest thing that we do try to say out there, we do provide unbiased information to the grower,” said Kaleta. “We’re not personally selling them anything. We’ve tried to avoid having people that, we’ll call it commercial interests, giving the presentations.”

“So we try to get it right from the actual research people.”

The Dauphin Ag Society is holding their annual event on Thursday. It starts at 8:30 and runs until 4:30 in the Aspen Lodge at the Parkland Recreation Complex.

Tickets for the event cost $20 each and can be picked up at the door.

The budget for the Mountain View School Division for the 2019-20 school year has increased 352,142 dollars to 42, 366, 055 dollars.

The increase will help the school division avoid making significant cuts in any area.

The idea heading into creating this budget was to make a responsible budget that maintains the programming they have in the division.

After the difficulty with decreases for the 2018-19 budget, this budget was a lot easier to make.

Last year they had to reduce 4 or 5 staffing positions, 3 teaching, and non-teaching positions as well.

This year no reductions of that source will be made.

Bart Michaleski, MVSD Secretary-Treasurer, says the budget is one piece of an overall discussion that’s going to happen this year on education.

“There’s a large systemic review that’s going to be starting in the next month or so. So we want people to know and understand the budget, but we want to ensure they’re engaged in the broader conversation that’s going to go on provincially.”

The taxes have increased this year. MVSD Special Levy increased 2.75% which will bring in 16, 992, 673 dollars and the MVSD Mill Rate is up 1.82% to 15.63.

The budget has increased in the areas of staff professional development by 5, 000 dollars, field trip budget by 2, 078 dollars, and technology/software licensing by 16, 000 dollars. Reductions have made to the school instructional and supply budgets by 37, 753, and the total materials/supplies budget by 38, 394 dollars.

There is a projected growth of 13 students for the division in the next school year.

The province's budget deficit is expected to be $51 million lower than expected.

The Manitoba government released its third quarter report for the 2018-19 fiscal year, this afternoon.

Finance Minister Scott Fielding announced the province is tracking towards a budget year shortfall of $470 million, down from $521 million projected in last year's budget.

Fielding noted all government departments except for one are projecting to be within budget.  The Department of Health, Seniors and Active Living is projecting to be 3.5 per cent below budget.