A letter arrived in my inbox recently from a Winnipeg physician. Dr. Lynn Stevens has practiced medicine in our city for 33 years. Her message was not political. It was personal. And it should concern every Manitoban. Dr. Stevens wrote to the provincial government about what happened when she needed medical care herself. Years ago, she developed pain in both hips during an exercise program. She needed an MRI. The wait time in Manitoba was two years. Instead, she flew to Calga

Winnipeg residents who take the time to stand before city council deserve one thing above all else: respect. They are not lobbyists. They are not paid consultants. They are citizens who care enough about their city to show up at City Hall, often during work hours, to speak about decisions that affect their neighbourhoods, their taxes, and their future. Yet more and more, those residents are being treated as an inconvenience. Last week’s Executive Policy Committee meeting prov

What kind of country fines its citizens for expressing an opinion about biology? What kind of government inserts itself into everyday language and declares certain words mandatory? Canada is moving closer to that line. This month alone, two human rights tribunal decisions made national news. In Quebec, a Montreal salon was ordered to pay damages after its online booking system offered “men’s” and “women’s” haircut categories. In British Columbia, a former school trustee was o

In the private sector, there is a simple rule. If you do not return your customer’s call, someone else will. In public office, that rule should be even stricter. Taxpayers are not customers by choice. They fund the operation whether they like it or not. The least they deserve is a response. A Winnipeg resident recently wrote to Mayor Scott Gillingham and every member of council with a series of direct questions about zoning authority and municipal oversight. The questions wer

Recently, we asked readers a simple question: What is holding Winnipeg back? The responses were consistent. Business owners, professionals, tradespeople, seniors on fixed incomes and young families all pointed to the same five concerns. Crime and public safety. High taxes and rising fees. Social disorder and visible addiction. A weak economic vision. Political division and short-term thinking at City Hall. These are not abstract complaints. They affect daily life, investment

Kevin Klein has an adult conversation with Pete Hoekstra, Ambassador of the USA to Canada.

Canada faces a troubling moment when the federal government claims to be fighting hate, yet directs its energy toward policing faith instead of confronting the violence already happening on our streets. Bill C-9 was supposed to deal with genuine threats. It was meant to ban public displays of swastikas and terrorist insignia, and create stronger penalties for intimidation. Most of that is already covered by existing law, which tells you this bill is more political show than r

There is a moment, every so often, when a government makes a choice that tells you exactly how it sees itself. Winnipeg just had one of those moments. The city’s leadership is signalling that it believes it can effectively overrule the provincial government, ignore the authority of a provincial board, and do so on the advice of its own public service rather than independent legal counsel. That raises a question residents and businesses deserve to ask out loud. Who does the ci