The provincial government has outlined the first steps it will take to make the eastern Prince Edward Island community into a non-emitter.

Premier Dennis King says he is removing a PC MLA from all legislative standing committees indefinitely after comments made Wednesday. King says the statement made by Summerside-Wilmot MLA Tyler DesRoches at a legislative committee meeting was inappropriate, wrong and won’t be tolerated.

A new strategy was released Thursday that will guide the work of the PEI Public Service Commission over the next three years.

The People Strategy 2023-2026 provides strategic direction for the Commission PSC with a focus on four key goals —  retention, development, talent acquisition, and modernization.

The goals and priorities of the strategy were developed based on contributions provided by employees, managers, senior management and executives.

Abegweit First Nation Chief Junior Gould and Murray Harbour Mayor Terry White say a councillor in the village should resign immediately over a sign posted on his property they consider hurtful to Indigenous people.
The wording on the sign on Councillor John Robertson’s property was eventually removed.  Community officials are reviewing the community’s options regarding possible actions that could be taken under the Community’s Code of Conduct for Councillors, such as a fine, suspension or apology.

Holland College and Saint Mary’s University have signed a degree pathway agreement.  It enables graduates from the Environmental Applied Science Technology diploma program to receive credit toward a Bachelor of Science degree.

The Holland College graduates must meet SMU’s admission requirements and have obtained an overall average of 70 percent in their courses to be granted up to 60 hours in one of the university’s 120-credit hour science degree programs, which include Environmental Science.

Summerside-Wilmot Progressive Conservative MLA Tyler DesRoches has taken to social media to apologize for comments he made Wednesday during a legislative committee meeting.  The comments were made during questioning of the director of operations for Medavie Health Services, which operates the province’s ambulance service.  The comments were in regards to female paramedics and calls for lift assist.   In his online apology, Desroches says that he made a statement that he wholeheartedly regrets – that it was insensitive, inappropriate, and wrong.  He says he fully understands that someone’s gender should never be a determining factor when evaluating someone’s knowledge, skills and abilities to do their work.

First Nations leaders on P.E.I. are excited about the prospects of Wab Kinew, the Manitoba NDP leader who won the election in that province this week and will be Canada’s first Indigenous premier.

Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Heather Morrison is strongly recommending that Islanders get vaccinated to protect themselves and others from respiratory illnesses this fall.  Health officials say that respiratory viruses such as influenza typically increase in the fall and winter months, and COVID-19 continues to circulate in PEI.  COVID-19 vaccines have been updated this fall to be a better match to the more recently circulating Omicron variant.  Dr. Morrison is recommending that Islanders get both vaccines this fall: a dose of the updated COVID-19 vaccine AND a dose of the seasonal influenza vaccine.

The Provincial Government is working with UPEI’s Canadian Centre for Climate Change and Adaptation and Faculty of Sustainable Design Engineering to assess Georgetown as PEI’s first net zero community.  The first step is to understand how Georgetown uses energy for homes and buildings, and then perform comprehensive simulations to assess energy consumption and emissions. Georgetown residents may be asked to take part in surveys to support the research, and theft may see some drones flying in the area as researchers collect data about the buildings in the town.

Canadian Hurricane Centre meteorologists are tracking tropical storm Phillippe.

The storm could merge with a larger low-pressure system over Quebec and New England this weekend.

Environment Canada has issued a Special Weather Statement for PEI.   Rain and strong winds are expected Saturday night through Sunday morning. Maximum wind gusts of up to 80 km/h over some areas are possible.

The storm is expected to approach Bermuda late Thursday and Friday.

Friday marks the beginning of Operation Impact 2023, a national public awareness campaign aimed at making Canada’s roads the safest in the world. The RCMP and other police agencies across PEI will be taking part in the campaign, promoting safe driving and looking to prevent collisions, save lives, and reduce injuries on our roads.  This long weekend, police will be focused on behaviours that put drivers, passengers and other road users at risk: impaired driving due to alcohol, drugs or fatigue, as well as aggressive driving, distracted driving, and driving without a seat belt.

CBC P.E.I. meteorologist Jay Scotland says P.E.I. should expect some windy weather as Philippe arrives on P.E.I. late Saturday into Sunday.

Liberal Opposition Leader Hal Perry says the King government’s announcement to cap rebates on new rental builds is nothing short of a missed opportunity to help Islanders.  Perry says that as Islanders drown in a housing crisis, Government chose to cap development rebates for new rental housing builds. He says the restrictive policy will strangle the very development desperately needed in the rental housing sector. The Opposition Leader says adding a cap for PEI will make the province less attractive for new rental developments.  Perry is calling on the government to remove the cap so that the province can be competitive with its neighbours.  

Tyler DesRoches, the Progressive Conservative MLA for Summerside-Wilmot, has issued an apology for comments he made about women paramedics during a legislature committee meeting.

Ophthalmologists at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Charlottetown are urging Islanders to get their eyes checked to prevent serious health problems that could lead to vision loss.

Abegweit First Nation Chief Junior Gould and Lennox Island First Nation Chief Darlene Bernard are offering their congratulations to Manitoba Premier-elect Wab Kinew.  This week, Kinew was the first First Nations Premier elected in Canada’s history.  Chief Gould says that over the past number of years, First Nations in Canada have worked extremely hard to create a new relationship with the settler communities and demonstrate the valuable contributions made to Canadian society, and the election result helps to validate that work.

Summerside’s Senior Management and Technical Services Department staff have presented to council a reimagined “East-West Housing Corridor” official plan – as well as updates on the construction for Phase 1 of the corridor set to begin later this fall. Tuesday’s presentation marked the first step in a month-long review process where council will consider the adoption of the updated plan as part of the City of Summerside Official Plan. The East-West Housing Corridor will open 345 acres of land with the potential of 2,000+ new housing developments to follow.  Officials say it would also provide additional benefits from a traffic flow perspective.  Work on the project is set to commence later this fall and be completed in late fall of 2024. 

On the heels of an increase this past weekend in PEI’s minimum wage, the province has announced there will be two more increrases in that minimum wage next year.  The Province says it’s accepted the annual minimum wage recommendations of the Employment Standards Board.  So, the minimum wage will increase twice next year from $15 to $15.40 per hour on April 1, 2024, and then once again from $15.40 to $16 per hour on October 1, 2024.

Prince Edward Islanders are looking ahead to a wet and windy weekend.

Renovations are almost complete on the exterior of a 181-year-old former church in Georgetown, P.E.I., but work continues on the interior. The community's former mayor hopes it will soon become a thriving new commercial space.

Calls to P.E.I.’s mobile mental health service have doubled over the past year. It's still not fully staffed and the Green Party's leader says 'people have died' because they didn't get the help they needed.

A councillor in the village of Murray Harbour, P.E.I., is being asked to step down after a sign on his property carried a message offensive to residential school survivors.

An arbitration board has ruled that UPEI was in breach of P.E.I.'s Occupational Health and Safety Act two years ago when it didn't tell staff details about how international students would be self-isolating on campus at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

A new neighbourhood with the possibility of more than 2,000 homes is in the works for Summerside, P.E.I., as the first stage of a long-discussed east-west connector goes out for tender.

The provincial government is expanding grants for Family Home Child Care Centres in PEI. Licensed FHCs can receive financial support to reduce parent fees, fund wages and professional development opportunities, and purchase materials, equipment, or supplies. Current unlicensed home child care providers can also receive funding to help cover costs associated with seeking licensing from the province. With an estimated investment of $1.5-million over the next two years, the grants will help to promote licensing, and improve the quality, affordability and accessibility of licensed home-based child care across the Province.  FHCs on PEI are regulated and licensed by the Early Learning and Child Care Board. There are currently 15 licensed FHCs in PEI, compared to only four in 2021.

An arbitration board says UPEI violated the province’s Occupational Health and Safety Act when it failed to take reasonable steps to protect campus workers during the pandemic.   

The university’s faculty association says the board ruled that in 2021, UPEI failed to tell maintenance and security  staff that campus residences were being used as a COVID-19 isolation facility for students arriving from out-of-province. 

The Board also ruled that in 2021, UPEI failed to timely provide the results of a campus-wide ventilation study to the UPEI Joint Occupational Health and Safety Committee.  It says that instead UPEI waited until early 2022 to release the report, which found that many campus spaces did not meet even pre-COVID ventilation standards.  

The faculty association says it has asked for clarification on who the university intends to hold accountable for these violations.

The Home Hardware store on St. Peter's Road in Charlottetown should be able to reopen soon following a structure fire at the store Tuesday evening, according to Charlottetown fire Chief Tim Mamye. 

The P.E.I. government has announced two more increases to the minimum wage for the coming year.

Did you know P.E.I. has been operating its own targeted basic income pilot program, with more than 600 people taking part? Here’s what you need to know.

P.E.I.'s growing population has led to increases in the student population at the province's French-language schools, and left some classes feeling the squeeze.

Employees and customers at the Home Hardware in Charlottetown were evacuated Tuesday evening after a fire at the store.

Charlottetown Police advise that Charlottetown District 2 Fire Department is at Charlottetown Home Hardware on St. Peter’s Road responding to a working fire. The road has been shut down to allow emergency vehicles to respond. Police ask that you avoid the area until a further update is given.

P.E.I. harness racing driver and trainer Marc Campbell has had his indefinite suspension lifted, thanks to a ruling by the Atlantic Harness Racing Commission.

RCMP on P.E.I. have put out a call for information on a woman who was last seen in mid-June, after receiving a call from someone they describe as "a concerned citizen."

The City of Charlottetown must allow four-unit buildings to be constructed in any neighbourhood before it will receive federal funding to address its housing deficit, the federal housing minister says.

Prince District RCMP is asking for the public’s help in locating 30-year-old Élora Patoine, who was last seen in Borden-Carleton on June 17, 2023.  Patoine is described as 5-foot-10, 140- 150 lbs and has curly brown hair. She speaks French and English and has connections to PEI and Quebec. She was reported missing this week.  The RCMP Prince District and RCMP Major Crime Unit are investigating.  Anyone with information on the whereabouts of Élora Patoine is asked to contact Prince District RCMP at 902-436-9300 or Crime Stoppers.

Incentive programs for installing heat pumps in P.E.I. homes are having a big impact, and the government says it is a long way from slowing down.

The provincial government has announced an HST rebate program for new rental builds in an effort to help create more housing for Islanders.  The program will provide a full rebate of the provincial portion of the HST (10 per cent) on qualified rental housing projects up to a maximum of $35,000 per unit. The construction must have started on or after September 14, 2023 and must be completed by the end of 2028 to receive the full rebate.  Projects that reach completion after 2028 will qualify for only a portion of the rebate until 2035. The tax rebate will be capped on the first $350,000 in value per unit.  The province says the program will be reviewed in three years to determine if it is addressing housing challenges.

The P.E.I. government is removing the provincial portion of the HST for new rental builds, hoping to help spur new developments and address the demand for housing on the Island.

A 24-year-old man from P.E.I.'s Kings County is dead following a single-vehicle accident in eastern New Brunswick.

A PEI man has died after a single-vehicle crash in New Brunswick in Saint-Louis de Kent.  At about 5:20pm on Saturday, Richibucto RCMP detachment responded to the collision involving a pickup truck.  The driver, a 24-year-old man from Albion,PEI died at the scene as a result of his injuries. A 28-year-old man, and only other person in the vehicle, was taken to the hospital with what are believed to be minor injuries.  Police say it appears that the vehicle went out of control and entered the ditch.  An RCMP collision reconstructionist is assisting in the investigation.  

Saying Islanders can't wait for government to act, P.E.I.'s Opposition Liberals will introduce their own bill requiring mandatory paid sick leave this fall.

The Islanders made a comeback late but it wasn’t enough as they lost Game 2 of the New Brunswick Senior Baseball League Final 9-7 to the Fredericton Royals.  The series is now tied 1-1.  Game 3 is Wednesday night in Charlottetown at 8:00pm.

The Toronto Blue Jays have announced their starting pitchers for the first two games of the best-of-three American League wild-card series, which starts Tuesday against the Minnesota Twins. Kevin Gausman will be on the mound for Game 1 at Target Field, while Jose Berrios will start Game 2 on Wednesday.  Game 1 is at 5:38pm ADT Tuesday afternoon.  The other games Tuesday  have Texas at Tampa Bay, Arizona at Milwaukee, and Miami at Philadelphia, 

Game 4 of the Kings County Baseball league Final is set for Tuesday night at 7:00 in Stratford.  The Morell Chevies are leading Peakes Bombers 3-0 in the best-of-7 series.

Live harness racing is set for Tuesday night on a special program at Red Shores Racetrack and Casino at the Charlottetown Driving Park.  The capital oval has a 15-dash presentation getting underway at 6 P.M. 

SCOREBOARD

Monday’s Scoreboard

NFL

Seattle 24 N.Y. Giants 3

—

NHL Pre-Season

Montreal 5 Toronto 4 (OT)

Ottawa 3 Pittsburgh 0

Calgary 5 Winnipeg 4

Edmonton 4 Seattle 1

New Jersey 6 N.Y. Islanders 5

Columbus 5 St. Louis 3

Philadelphia 3 Boston 1

* * * * * * * * * *

Tuesday’s Games

(All times Eastern)

MLB Playoffs

American League

Wild Card

Texas at Tampa Bay, 3:08 p.m.

Toronto at Minnesota, 4:38 p.m.

National League

Wild Card

Arizona at Milwaukee, 7:08 p.m.

Miami at Philadelphia, 8:08 p.m.

NHL pre-season

Florida vs. Tampa Bay at Amway Center, 7 p.m.

Washington at Boston, 7 p.m.

Colorado at Dallas, 8 p.m.

Detroit at Chicago, 8:30 p.m.

Anaheim at Los Angeles, 10 p.m.

San Jose at Vegas, 10 p.m.

—

(The Canadian Press)

The Province has released a new five-year culture action plan.  It aims to build a sustainable arts, culture and creative sector through four key areas: 

• Creating Access and Belonging;
• Achieving Excellence and Professionalism;
• Stewarding Heritage and Traditions; and,
• Investing in our Future.

As part of the renewed plan, the PEI Arts Grants will be doubled to $100,000 during each call for proposals to help support more local artists. Innovation PEI will also be launching the new Prince Edward Island Arts Award program to celebrate artistic merit and excellence. Nominations are open online and will be accepted until October 25th.

Charlottetown Liberal MP Sean Casey and Green Leader Elizabeth May are among those indicating they’re interested in being the next Speaker of the House of Commons.
M-Ps will vote today on a replacement for Anthony Rota, who resigned last week for inviting a veteran who served in a Nazi unit during the Second World War to the House during a visit by Ukraine’s
president.
All M-Ps, except for party leaders and ministers, can put themselves on the ballot.
A handful of Conservatives, Liberals and New Democrats are interested in the job. 

A new chemical analyzer machine at the Western Hospital in Alberton, P.E.I. is helping physicians do more complex tests while also providing faster results.

Children on P.E.I. got the opportunity to learn about Mi’kmaw art and engineering during an event at STEAM P.E.I. on Monday.

Premier Dennis King issued a statement Monday regarding Mi’kmaq History Month in October.  King says Mi’kmaq History Month is an opportunity for all Islanders to learn more about the history, culture and lived experiences of Mi’kmaq peoples on PEI.  He says it’s also an opportunity for each of us to become more aware of the impact and enduring effects that colonization, assimilation, institutionalization, and discrimination had, and still has, on Indigenous peoples in PEI and throughout Canada. The Premier says that on this 30th anniversary of Mi’kmaq History Month, it’s important to recognize the importance of education to move reconciliation efforts forward. He adds that in order to advance reconciliation, we must acknowledge the truths from our past; and that truth can only come from education and learning. 

A 52-year-old man has died after two vehicles crashed Sunday evening in Murray Harbour, P.E.I.

One person has died after a two-vehicle collision in Murray Harbour.  On Sunday at about 5:45 p.m. Kings District RCMP responded to the collision on Main Street in Murray Harbour. A 52-year-old man, who was a driver in one of the vehicles, was pronounced dead at the scene. The driver of the other vehicle was treated for non-life-threatening injuries and transported to hospital.   An RCMP collision reconstructionist and the PEI Coroner’s office are assisting with the ongoing investigation.  The Murray Harbour Fire Department, Murray River Fire Department and Island EMS also responded to the scene.