Provincial and Territorial Update – May 16, 2026
An overview on Provincial and Territorial updates for the week of May 16, 2026. Written by Wes McLean.
New Brunswick
- The escape of a Shediac jail inmate who was on the loose for more than a month could have been prevented, according to an internal review by the New Brunswick government. On Friday, a news release from the Department of Justice and Public Safety said the review looked into what happened and how additional safeguards could be added.
- The federal government is rewarding eight municipalities in New Brunswick that got on board with a national housing program by handing them money clawed back from communities that didn’t play ball. Ottawa announced Wednesday that the eight communities, including Moncton, Riverview, Caraquet, and Edmundston, will get a total of $2.9 million in additional money from the Housing Accelerator Fund.
- The Holt government is tightening the rules around lobbying, making it easier for an independent commissioner to investigate and punish people who seek to influence government decisions without registering. The changes to the legislation, introduced Tuesday, would force more people to register as lobbyists and broaden the definition of lobbying to cover more events. The amendments fulfil a 2024 election promise.
- A curriculum for the use of artificial intelligence in schools is scheduled to come out this fall, New Brunswick Education Minister Claire Johnson told the legislature Wednesday. She didn’t provide much detail but said the government will be “looking at how those tools can be used in an ethical and responsible fashion.” Asked later for examples of how AI might be used in schools, Johnson said, “learning how to read and write, establishing patterns in the way that a student can spell, read or write and do math.”
Nova Scotia
- The federal agency in charge of regulating complex industrial projects will not do a full assessment of two proposed natural gas power plants in Pictou County, N.S. The Impact Assessment Agency of Canada (IAAC) released two identical decisions on Friday for the controversial power-generating facilities. While the projects “may cause adverse effects,” the agency said it believes those effects would be limited or addressed by existing laws and regulations.
- The union representing some school social workers in Halifax says its members are facing stress and uncertainty after being told their jobs will change this fall. The Halifax Regional Centre for Education (HRCE) paid $1.5 million for 17 full-time social workers this school year through a municipal supplementary fund. On Wednesday, Halifax said a new five-year agreement for the fund would see money for these social workers and librarians “transitioned out” to focus funding on fine arts and music programming.
- The Nova Scotia government will not provide details about layoffs across the civil service called for in its current budget until it tables the next budget sometime in 2027. The 2026-27 budget calls for a five per cent reduction to the civil service, the first of four such cuts included in the Progressive Conservatives’ four-year fiscal sustainability plan. CBC News contacted representatives for all government departments for an update on the process. A response on Monday on behalf of all departments said that many have already started eliminating vacant positions and, in some cases, issuing layoffs, but no numbers were provided, and it appears none will be coming any time soon.
- Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston thinks a decision on the next step of a process that could lead to exploratory drilling for onshore natural gas in the province is “pretty imminent.” Last week, Dalhousie University confirmed that it forwarded to the province’s Energy Department its analysis of seven proponents that submitted expressions of interest to drill.
Prince Edward Island
- Pharmacists in Prince Edward Island will soon be able to offer treatments to people with ear and sinus infections. Health and Wellness Minister Cory Deagle made the announcement in the legislature on Friday after backbench Progressive Conservative MLA Susie Dillon asked about expanding the scope of practice for pharmacists. Deagle said his department is working with the P.E.I. Pharmacists Association to do just that.
- Two major credit rating and finance agencies which evaluate the Island’s ability to repay debts have lowered P.E.I.’s outlook, downgrading it from “stable” to “negative.” Moody’s Ratings and S&P Global Ratings have both made their adjustments to P.E.I.’s outlook in light of the record-breaking $410 million deficit in the provincial budget, combined with growing debt. “It’s disappointing, but we understand and of course we’re seeing all our colleagues across the country going through the same process,” said Finance Minister Jill Burridge.
- P.E.I. will partner with Ottawa to spend $110 million to expand an aerospace company in Slemon Park, near Summerside, creating up to 120 well-paying jobs on the Island. The funding will go toward a $213-million facility and equipment expansion for MDS Coating Technologies, an aerospace facility that develops protective coatings used on commercial, military and industrial aircrafts.
- An affordable housing program that was supported by all parties in the P.E.I. Legislature is now on pause, but there’s also bipartisan hope that it will one day return. The Community Housing Expansion Program, or CHEP, saw the province buy rental units from the private market so non-profits could operate them as affordable housing. But during question period in the legislature on May 1, Housing Minister Kent Dollar said there would be no new funding for the program this year as the province grapples with a record budget deficit.
Newfoundland and Labrador
- Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Tony Wakeham previously promised the people of the province they’d hear directly from the three men he tasked with reviewing the Churchill Falls memorandum of understanding — but that’s not happening. “I thought it was important…that the independent review committee themselves be the ones to present this report to the public of Newfoundland and Labrador,” Wakeham said on May 4. “That will happen on May 19.”
- Hydro-Quebec fought to hide decades-old correspondence about a proposed aluminum smelter, saying its details could derail ongoing energy negotiations with Newfoundland and Labrador. The provincially owned utility made these arguments with Quebec’s access to information commission in 2024, as it waged and lost a battle with a university professor to keep the records from the 1960s a secret. The dispute illustrates the high stakes and sensitive nature of energy negotiations between Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador — talks that remain unresolved.
- While there have been some growing pains with the rollout of its newly adopted electronic health information system, the head of the Newfoundland and Labrador health authority says any inconveniences will be worth it in time. CorCare was implemented by Newfoundland and Labrador Health Services on April 25. It was touted by NLHS officials to provide health-care professionals and patients with a single shared digital health record, and support safer care for patients, smoother transitions between services and better continuity across hospitals, clinics, continuing care and community care.
- A company in Labrador wants a piece of the offshore northern cod fishery — five per cent to be exact. The Labrador Fishermen’s Union Shrimp Company, or LabShrimp, made its pitch at a press conference aboard the Nain Banker docked in St. John’s on Tuesday. As crab and shrimp stocks continue to deplete, the new president and CEO, Dwight Russell, said coastal communities would benefit from the company having a five percent stake in the cod fishery’s total allowable catch.
Quebec
- The Fréchette government tabled the “Gabie Renaud” bill on Wednesday to better protect women from domestic violence. It is hoped it will be adopted before the end of the parliamentary session. The legislation aims to allow anyone who fears for their safety or that of their child to obtain “information concerning the history of domestic violence of a current or former intimate partner.”
- Premier Christine Fréchette says she will bring back the fast-track immigration program known as the PEQ but Québec Solidaire is calling for it to be done before the end of the spring session. Québec solidaire had urged the CAQ to stop stalling and finally bring back the program. “Every single day, there are Quebecers being impacted. There are workers, there are students, whose permits expire. It’s been the same for the last year since the PEQ closure,” said Guillaume Cliche-Rivard, Québec Solidaire’s House Leader.
- Quebec Premier Christine Fréchette has responded to pressure from the agriculture sector, promising to reimburse millions of dollars to farmers for fuel taxes linked to the province’s carbon market. Starting in July, more than 15,000 farmers will begin receiving reimbursements for fuel taxes. The government has pledged to transfer a total of $87 million to farmers to cover the taxes they will pay in 2026 and 2027, with the funds drawn from Quebec’s climate change fund.
- A new poll shows the PQ and Liberals in a neck-and-neck race with the provincial elections on the horizon. With just a few months to go before the provincial election, two polls released Wednesday morning point to a tight race between the Parti Québécois (PQ) and the Quebec Liberal Party (PLQ). All the same, the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ), under Premier Christine Fréchette, could still shake things up. A Pallas Data-Québec125-L’actualité poll shows the CAQ gaining five points compared to the last survey. The increase comes at the expense of Charles Milliard’s Liberals, who have lost four points. As a result, the PQ and the Liberals are neck-and-neck with 29 per cent and 28 per cent of voting intentions, respectively. The CAQ is in third place with 19 per cent.
Ontario
- About half of Ontarians say their impression of Premier Doug Ford has worsened in recent months and 56 per cent believe the province is headed in the wrong direction, according to a new Postmedia-Leger survey. The poll also found Premier Ford to be a polarizing figure in the province, simultaneously having the highest favourability (33 per cent) and unfavourability (59 per cent) rates among the political leaders mentioned in the survey. He was followed by NDP Leader Marit Stiles (31 per cent favourability) and Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner (25 per cent).
- Ontario’s opposition leaders say taxpayers should not be on the hook for an extra $200,000 in costs associated with the province’s scuttled $28.9-million private jet purchase, calling on Premier Doug Ford or the Progressive Conservative Party to foot the bill. The government late Wednesday released long-awaited documents and receipts for its purchase of the used 2016 Bombardier Challenger 650, which sparked fierce criticism when it became public. Mr. Ford decided to resell the jet two days after that revelation in April.
- Ontario’s premier and Toronto’s mayor are making another push on the city’s bid to serve as headquarters for a new international defence bank. “There’s only one city in Canada that can truly provide everything the bank needs, and that city is Toronto,” said Premier Doug Ford during a Tuesday morning appearance at Toronto Metropolitan University. Late last month, it was confirmed that Canada would host the multinational Defence, Security and Resilience Bank (DSRB).
- Premier Doug Ford is urging the TTC and its electrical and signal workers to “come to their senses” and get a deal to avert a possible work stoppage that could begin as soon as this weekend. Ford made the comment at an unrelated news conference on Tuesday when asked about the possibility that a work stoppage involving approximately 700 unionized workers could impact transit service during the upcoming FIFA World Cup, which is now only one month away. “Hopefully they can come to their senses, both parties. I never take one side over the other. Let’s sit in the room, lock the door and they can come out with a deal. We have been going through this for decades and decades on many negotiations,” Ford said Tuesday.
Manitoba
- A quick-spreading grass fire came “within feet” of residential properties in the rural municipality of Ste. Anne as firefighters battled the blaze Wednesday night and into early Thursday. The fire — which was about 1.6 kilometres wide — began on Road 46 North, northwest of the community of Richer, around 6:30 p.m. and lasted until around 4 a.m. The community is about 55 kilometres east of Winnipeg.
- A western Manitoba college will begin offering a program early next year meant to increase training opportunities and shore up front-line staffing amid a shortage of rural paramedics. Together with the province, Assiniboine College will launch a primary care paramedic training program in January with 32 seats, Premier Wab Kinew said Thursday. “The whole idea is to get more people into the parts of the health-care system where we need them, instead of waiting for folks to come to the hubs like Winnipeg, like Brandon,” Kinew said during a state-of-the-province address in Brandon.
- In a decision described as “historic,” a Manitoba judge found that the governments of Manitoba and Canada breached First Nations’ rights to self-governance in child welfare. The chiefs of three Manitoba First Nations — Black River First Nation, Pimicikamak Cree Nation and Misipawistik Cree Nation, along with the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs — launched the proposed class-action lawsuit in October 2022, seeking $2.1 billion in damages for First Nations harmed by the apprehension of kids by child and family services agencies between 1992 and the present day.
- Dozens of Manitobans who tried to call 911 were met with a busy signal late last month as a power failure at a Bell MTS site affected telecommunications services for several hours, a post-incident report says. On April 28, 53 callers were unable to reach 911 due to the power failure at a Bell facility in Manitoba, says the post-incident report Bell filed with the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission. The outage lasted about 4½ hours — from about 3:10 a.m. until just after 7:30 a.m. that day — and affected callers outside of Winnipeg, the report said.
Saskatchewan
- Premier Scott Moe says the federal government’s new plan to double Canada’s electrical grid has given Saskatchewan a way to “chart the path forward” on its plan to double down on coal. Prime Minister Mark Carney announced the Powering Canada Strong plan on Thursday, aiming to double the grid by 2050 and lower electricity costs by expanding natural gas use. It will also amend the previous Trudeau government’s controversial Clean Electricity Regulations.
- Saskatchewan is where the federal NDP got its start, and it’s where newly elected Leader Avi Lewis chose to begin his first national tour. Lewis met with leaders of the Star Blanket Cree Nation in Lebret on Thursday before heading to Regina. But the visit to the small village about 70 kilometres northeast of Regina came amid an undercurrent of tension over differences of opinion on fossil fuels. In March, Lewis declared his opposition to new fossil fuel development, a position that puts him at odds with the provincial branch of the party in Saskatchewan. Provincial NDP Leader Carla Beck called the stance ideological and unrealistic, saying it ignores the realities faced by workers in the province and puts jobs at risk.
- A leaked SaskPower document indicates SaskPower was told the provincial government’s decision to double down on coal would bring an “extreme” risk. The NDP Opposition says the document it shared with the media on Wednesday should raise more concerns about the province’s 25-year, $26 billion plan to refurbish and extend the life of its coal-fired power plants. “There is no way to make this make sense,” said Aleana Young, the NDP’s critic for the Crown Investments Corporation.
- The next provincial election is more than two years away, but planning is well underway at Elections Saskatchewan. “This is the biggest event that goes on in the province, and it involves 850,000 people, so you have to start before you would with the Grey Cup,” Chief Electoral Officer Michael Boda said in an interview. In May, Elections Sask. is making a push to reach new voters through a Voter Registration Month campaign, but behind the scenes, more policy-oriented work is underway.
Alberta
- The federal and Alberta governments have advanced a climate and energy agreement that could see construction on an oil pipeline to the West Coast start as early as September 2027. Prime Minister Mark Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith made the announcement on Friday in Calgary. The agreement, which builds on the memorandum of understanding that the Alberta and federal governments signed in November, includes a plan to increase Alberta’s industrial carbon price, though at a slower pace than previously projected. The agreement would see Alberta submit a proposal for a new oil pipeline to the major projects office by July 1, and the federal government designate it as a project of national interest by Oct. 1.
- A day after a court quashed his petition, separatist proponent Mitch Sylvestre is calling on Alberta Premier Danielle Smith to put his question on a referendum ballot this October, while warning of the ramifications should she fail to do so. On Wednesday, an Alberta judge threw out the chief electoral officer’s decision to grant a petition to Sylvestre’s Stay Free Alberta, who claim to have gathered more than 300,000 signatures in support of Alberta seceding from Canada. Sylvestre, a United Conservative Party (UCP) constituency association president, pointed to support within the party for his call for Alberta to secede from Canada to be put to voters.
- Premier Danielle Smith is rejecting the ruling of an Alberta judge who, on Wednesday, quashed a separatist petition and says the province will appeal the court ruling. In her written judgment, Justice Shaina Leonard ruled the petition should never have been issued because the provincial government failed in its duty to consult with First Nations and Alberta’s separation would be a violation of treaty rights. Premier Danielle Smith, during an unrelated announcement in Edmonton shortly after the decision came down, called the court’s ruling incorrect in law and anti-democratic.
- A bill is coming this fall that could give the Alberta government the power to review or remove bike lanes. Transportation Minister Devin Dreeshen says after a period of population growth, Alberta’s cities need more roads, not bike lanes. It’s a position that Edmonton’s mayor and cycling advocates say they have concerns with. “When you’re taking that lane away, that has a whole bunch of cascading effects on people that live in that area,” Dreeshen said at an unrelated news conference on Monday. “As a provincial government, we have no qualms with bike lanes if they’re put in proper places.”
British Columbia
- An investigation into Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim’s behaviour has found that he breached the city’s code of conduct and misused his influence to personally attack Coun. Sean Orr shortly after Orr was elected in 2025. The investigation followed Orr’s October complaint against Sim, which pointed to two events: a press conference held at city hall on April 8, 2025, and a social media post from Sim on Oct. 4 that year. During the press conference, Sim condemned comments made by Orr on the social media platform X back in 2021.
- The federal government says it is committed to supporting B.C.’s struggling forestry sector amid U.S. import fees and has announced a new $12-million fund to do so. But for those struggling, the help offered so far does not go far enough. “This is an insult,” said John Brink, whose workforce at a trio of wood manufacturing plants in and around Prince George, B.C., has dwindled from roughly 400 to about 30 people over the past year. Brink said he’s been unable to access any of the announced support so far.
- The agency overseeing British Columbia elections says it will issue a recall petition against OneBC MLA Dallas Brodie. Elections B.C. said it would issue the petition against Brodie on May 21 after approving an application that says Brodie is unfit to represent the riding. The campaign to remove Brodie will have until July 20 to collect the necessary 15,232 signatures to trigger a byelection, but Elections B.C. says none of the 30 previous recall petitions since 1995 have succeeded.
- The minister responsible for energy and climate change solutions in British Columbia says four new wind farms will strengthen the province’s energy sovereignty amid rising costs and uncertainty. Adrian Dix says three projects in the province’s northern region and one near West Kelowna, B.C., will not only generate enough electricity to power 350,000 more homes but also keep energy affordable, while also drawing $4.3 billion in private investment. Dix says he feels the wind projects deserve more time in the spotlight.
- B.C. Premier David Eby says he’s hopeful that LNG Canada will make a final investment decision at the end of the year, which will be the “largest private sector investment in Canadian history.” Eby and other provincial officials, along with federal Energy Minister Tim Hodgson and LNG Canada president Chris Cooper, were in Vancouver on Thursday to tout a new “enhanced cooperation agreement” around the company’s expansion plans in Kitimat, B.C. Eby says if the final investment decision is reached, it will make a “material difference” for both Canada’s GDP and the value of the Canadian dollar.
Northwest Territories
- Ekati Diamond Mine’s parent company won an extension of creditor protection on Monday and approval of up to $60 million in interim financing from the Canada Enterprise Emergency Funding Corporation. B.C.’s Supreme Court also granted the Arctic Canadian Diamond Company more time to find possible new investors, refinance, or restructure. The company is the Calgary-based operator of the Northwest Territories’ Ekati Diamond Mine and a subsidiary of Australian mining company Burgundy Diamond Mines.
Yukon
- Remediation at the Eagle gold mine is projected to cost $76.5 million this spring and summer, according to receiver PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). That’s a minimum of $11 million per month, according to a recent PwC report. PwC has been managing Victoria Gold’s affairs since it was placed into receivership following a heap-leach failure at Eagle in June 2024. A spending breakdown says that between April and September 2026, nearly $24.4 million will go toward on-the-ground cleanup work, such as water treatment, water storage, and heap leach stabilization. The receiver expects costs to increase during spring snowmelt, requiring greater surface water management.
Nunavut
- When residents of Grise Fiord, Nunavut, started noticing stronger storms and an eroding coastline, they turned to researchers for answers. This prompted the first research project to measure wave length near the shores of the hamlet of 150 people on Ellesmere Island. Residents hope the research will help improve safety for hunting trips as they experience stronger wave activity, changing sea ice conditions and flood risks. “It all started with questions from community members,” said David Didier, a professor of geography at the University of Quebec at Rimouski.