The College of Registered Nurses and Midwives has issued a disciplinary order against the final member of a trio of Queen Elizabeth Hospital staff who took an ambulance for a drive last year.

A group of researchers wants to look into how making testing for sexually transmitted and blood-borne infections (STBBIs) more accessible can impact the health of Prince Edward Islanders.

PEI Crime Stoppers has held its annual Officer of the Year awards event, recognizing Municipal Police Officers, RCMP Officers and Department of Public Safety Officers who have given exceptional performance in the line of duty. PEI RCMP Corporal Travis Gallant was presented with the RCMP Police Officer of the Year Award; Sgt. Dale Corish of Summerside Police Services was awarded the Municipal Police Officer of the Year Award; and Constable Trent MacSwain, a member of the Department of Justice and Public Safety – Conservation Enforcement team, was presented with the Peace Officer of the Year Award. 

The Adventure Group has received an $8,500 grant from the Bell Let’s Talk Community Fund to support Cognitive Behavioural Therapy training. The Adventure Group says Cognitive Behavioural Therapy training allows it to build capacity and increase supports within the organization to the most vulnerable populations within the community. It says that, in addition, it allows front-line staff to help improve mental health and wellness coping strategies.

Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland will table the fall fiscal update on Tuesday, which is expected to focus on housing and affordability. 

The outlook comes as the Liberal government struggles to regain favour with Canadians feeling overwhelmed and angry about the rising cost of living. 

But, ahead of any announcement, and with little money to spend, Freeland has tried to temper expectations. 

The finance minister has been relatively tight-lipped on any details but has repeatedly said measures will be geared toward addressing housing and affordability. 

P.E.I.’s environment minister says the province will look to expand its own single-use plastics ban now that a Federal Court of Canada judge has ruled a ban Ottawa wanted to impose is 'unreasonable and unconstitutional.'

A P.E.I. man is hoping to convince 100 of his neighbours to join him in a radon testing challenge. It's part of a national initiative raising awareness about the radioactive gas while gathering data on radon levels across the country.

A dance class in Charlottetown is pairing volunteers with people with Parkinson's disease. It gets them to move their bodies in an effort to alleviate some of the symptoms of the disease.

P.E.I.'s chief veterinary officer is advising horse owners to take precautions after an outbreak of equine herpes in Nova Scotia.

Maxime Bernier, the leader of the People’s Party of Canada is visiting PEI today. He will hold a meet and greet in the Upton Room in the West Royalty Community Centre from 5-7 this evening. There will be a question period where the audience can address the leader.

Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chyrstia Freeland will provide a fall fiscal update on Tuesday as the cost of living dominates Canadian politics.

It’s expected her address will focus on housing and affordability as Canadians continue to struggle with high prices.

The federal Liberals caution there is not much money that can be spent.  Freeland says they won’t be able to do everything to rectify the situation.

The GST has been lifted on charges for rental developments and in Atlantic Canada including PEI, the carbon tax has ended for the next three years on home heating oil.

Conservative leader Pierre Pollievre has called on the government to scrap the carbon price and bring down interest rates and inflation by balancing the budget.

Last Wednesday morning, about 9:15 a woman walking on the Confederation Trail in Summerside between Greenwood Drive and South Drive was bitten by a medium-large size dog. 

The dog mostly dark in color but with some white colored fur. The dog was leashed and was being walked by an unknown woman.

The woman who was bitten received minor injuries as a result of the bite and police are interested in speaking with the owner of the dog involved.

Anyone with information in relation to this incident is asked to call Summerside Police Services.

The QEH Foundation Yuletide Gala raised over $363-thousand on Saturday night.

The funding will be used to help purchase priority medical equipment for the hospital.

The Gala was held in the ballroom at the Prince Edward Hotel. Presenting partner Cavendish Farms announced continuing its sponsorship for the next two years. 

Over 250 attended the event.

A wet and windy Saturday saw Charlottetown and Kings County receive 35 mm of rain.  Summerside was even higher at 38 mm.

More rain is forecast for Wednesday. 

The Confederation Bridge had a wind advisory in place most of the day.  Traffic is running smoothly this morning.

Members of the trans, two-spirit and non-binary community and their allies will gather at the Beaconsfield Carriage House in Charlottetown on Sunday to support and celebrate transgender people.

Summerside Police are trying to find a missing person.

Kahleel Williams, a 27 year old man was last seen on Monday morning in the Jennifer Street area.  He is 5-11 and 180 lbs.  If you have any information contact Summerside Police Services or PEI Crime Stoppers. 

A wind and rainfall warning for Queens and Kings counties  for Saturday beginning around noon and continuing to midnight. 

Wind gusts to 70 or more possible this evening though midnight.

Up to 50 mm of rain which could cause flash floods and water pooling on roads and localized flooding. 

There is a wind advisory on the Confederation Bridge that goes until about 11.00 Sunday morning.

Northumberland Ferry sailings are on time this morning. 

A signature was discovered scrawled on a hidden beam during the renovation of Province House National Historic Site. Descendants of the building's architect, Isaac Smith, had a chance to see it themselves and match it to historical documents.

Organizers of some of Prince Edward Island's famed pre-Christmas craft sales say there has been an increase in the number of people selling their wares — lots of them getting into it for the first time.

Vendors across the province say 2023 was one of the busiest years yet for Island weddings, and they're expecting the trend to continue in 2024.

The town council of Stratford, P.E.I., has taken the first step toward allowing stacked townhouses in the community.

With Health P.E.I. planning to recruit hundreds of internationally trained nurses in the next year, the agency is also on the hunt for places for them to live.

Families can use the Charlottetown facility from 12 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. on the third Sunday of every month until June 2024.

Prince Edward Island's ombudsperson is now investigating the province's mobile mental health services, after a committee of MLAs grew concerned about how a lack of co-ordination may have contributed to the death of Tyler Knockwood.

A Liberal MLA wants to know why, as people struggle with high food prices, the government didn't use the entire budget of a seniors food pilot program.

The province's Community Outreach Centre in Charlottetown continues to spark debate inside and outside the legislature. CBC's Cody MacKay explains why that is — and what the government hopes to do with the outreach centre.

The P.E.I. government says it's been harder than anticipated to develop a new program to provide caregiver grants that could let many Islanders age at home rather than need a bed in a care home or hospital.

P.E.I. needs to reconsider some of the provisions in its new Mental Health Act, says a Western University psychiatry professor.

East Prince RCMP say one man was seriously injured in a two-vehicle collision on route 20 in Springbrook on Thursday at 11:00am. Police say it was a head-on collision involving a dump truck and a pick-up truck.  Island EMS, New London Fire Department and the Provincial Department of Transportation also responded to the collision. The investigation is ongoing.  The section of Route 20 was closed for several hours as the RCMP conducted their investigation.

Familiar addresses usually crop up when you're a firefighter in a small place like Charlottetown, but Jamie Lewis was a little taken aback by one that came up on an alarm on Oct. 3.

A 44-year old Charlottetown man has been charged with Possession of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking; and Possession of unstamped tobacco for the purpose of sale. The charges stem from the search of a home on Barbour Circle at about 5:45pm Wednesday night, led by the Charlottetown Police Street Crime Unit. That search resulted in the seizure of a quantity of cocaine, several boxes of contraband tobacco containing more than 46,000 cigarettes, drug paraphernalia and over 80,000 dollars in cash.

Police say the man is also facing charges that were laid after a targeted traffic stop in September that resulted in 43 grams of cocaine and a replica firearm being seized.

He has been remanded in custody and will soon appear in Provincial Court.

BIOVECTRA is celebrating the completion of a more than $90-million biologics expansion at the company’s new state-of-the-art Biomanufacturing Centre in Charlottetown.  The expansion was announced by BIOVECTRA, together with the federal and provincial governments, in November of 2021.  BIOVECTRA’s CEO says the expansion places BIOVECTRA at the forefront of supporting the next generation of treatments for today’s rare and incurable diseases and producing vaccines to tackle future pandemics.  The expansion was part of a national effort to expand domestic capabilities to manufacture mRNA vaccines and therapeutics.

Malpeque MP Heath MacDonald has announced a federal investment of $650-thousand for the Tourism Industry Association of PEI to support new and diverse product development in PEI’s tourism industry. The money is being administered through the PEI Events Innovation Fund, and it’s supporting more than 30 projects that will help expand PEI’s tourism offerings during all four seasons. TIAPEI CEO Corryn Clemence says the PEI Events Innovation Fund allows TIAPEI to work closely with festivals and events across the island to strategically enhance and grow the festival and event offerings.

Saturday may be a night for settling in at home with a game or a movie rather than going out on P.E.I. this week.

Prices for gas, heating oil and diesel were all up Friday morning.

The 33rd Annual Stratford & Area Food Drive – Drive-Thru is set for Saturday from 9:00am to 2:00pm.

Organized by Our Lady of the Assumption Parish, the Food Drive is in support of The Upper Room Hospitality Ministry.  There are five drive-thru locations with volunteers on-site, ready to accept non-perishable food items or monetary donations.  Those drive-thru locations are:

– Our Lady of the Assumption Church

– Stratford Town Hall

– Mike & Andreea’s NoFrills

– Sobeys Stratford

– Pownal Sports Centre

Demand for Food Bank services is at an all-time high. Food Banks Canada released the annual Hunger Count report in October showing that Food Bank usage in PEI was up 27% in comparison to 2022 and a 42% increase since 2019.

Route 20 in Springbrook was closed for about 4 hours by the RCMP on Thursday as a result of a two vehicle collision.  The RCMP advised of the closure at about 11:30am and it was about 3:45pm when the Mounties announced the road was re-opened.  Island EMS and New London Fire Department also responded to the scene.  No further details have been released.

Health Minister Mark McLane faced questions from the opposition Thursday in the legislature about the need for formalized agreements between Health PEI and health authorities in neighbouring provinces — giving Islanders guaranteed access to out of province care.  The issue has come to the forefront after Saint John Regional Hospital refused to accept cardiac patients from PEI last weekend.  Liberal MLA Gord McNeilly questioned Minister McLane about how close PEI is to signing formalized agreements — saying it’s something that needs to get going now.   Minister McLane says Health PEI CEO Dr. Michael Gardam has been clear that these formalized agreements are needed, and work is being done to get such agreements signed and in place.

Charlottetown-based pharmaceutical company BioVectra is getting ready to open up new facilities in P.E.I. and Nova Scotia.

Environment Canada has issued a Special Weather Statement for all of PEI, advising of heavy rainfall and strong winds expected Saturday night.  We could see upwards of 40 to 60 mm of rain, combined with maximum wind gusts of 70 to 80 km/h.

The Island Regulatory and Appeals Commission has approved an increase of 2.5 cents per litre in the price of gasoline.  The price of furnace oil went up overnight by 4.0 cents per litre, and the 

price of diesel increased by 4.0 cents per litre.  As for propane price adjustments, they ranged from decreases of 0.8 to 1.0 cent per litre.  

Including taxes, pump prices for regular self-serve gasoline now range from 161.5 to

162.6 cents per litre, and diesel costs between 207.5 and 208.6 cents per litre.  The maximum price for furnace oil is 146.0 cents per litre.

Propane prices range from 80.8 to 82.2 cents per litre.

The services are being added, include new services in health, education, transport and infrastructure, said Acadian and Francophone Affairs Minister Gilles Arsenault.

Prince Edward Island's health minister says he wants formalized agreements signed quickly with health authorities in other provinces so Islanders can get guaranteed access to out-of-province care.

The contract with Nye Fanafjord AS will see the passenger and vehicle ferry replace MV Holiday Island, which was scrapped after an engine fire last year.

The P.E.I. and federal governments are pitching in to help build a new water tower in Cornwall.

It’s not easy for anyone on P.E.I. to find the kind of housing they are looking for these days, but people with extra challenges face additional obstacles.

PEI Crimestoppers is hosting it’s annual Officer of the Year Awards Luncheon on Thursday.  The event is held to recognize Municipal Police Officers, RCMP Officers and Department of Public Safety Officers who perform their policing duties here on PEI.  Three will be receiving awards in the different categories to recognize and honour them for going above and beyond in their duties.  There’s an RCMP Officer of the Year Award, Municipal Police Officer of the year Award, and Peace Officer of the Year Award.

In an address to Health P.E.I.'s AGM Wednesday, CEO Dr. Michael Gardam called the issues facing the organization "a perfect storm."

P.E.I. Housing Minister Rob Lantz says the use of illegal drugs was at one point condoned on the grounds of the Community Outreach Centre in Charlottetown before the policy was reversed this summer. 

Health P.E.I says formalized agreements with health authorities in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia have become an even more urgent priority after the Saint John Regional Hospital refused to accept cardiac patients from the Island last weekend.