Minister could be refused entry after Manitoba legislature mandates vaccinations next month

Manitoba's new premier has rejected calls to demand her MLAs be fully vaccinated, but her governmentwill soon requireproof if they want to enter the Manitoba Legislature.

Heather Stefansonrevealedher government is planning to require that everyone entering the legislature ranging from MLAs to government staff and visitorsdemonstrate their vaccination status beginning onDec. 15, she said Monday after speaking to the Association of Manitoba Municipalities convention.

"That will take some time," Stefanson told reporters, explaining the timeline.

"There's a few different government departments involved in that Central Services, Justice and our deputy premier as well in his departmentso they're working on that."

The vaccination mandate may become a point of contention forInfrastructure Minister RonSchuler, who has kept mum on whether he's rolled up his sleeves, despite repeated inquiries.

For months, the governingProgressive Conservatives have said 34 of their 36 MLAs have provided proof of vaccination. The Winnipeg Free Press polled every MLA in Manitoba and reportedSchuler and Seine Riverrepresentative Janice Morley-Lecomte both Torieswere the only ones who wouldn't answerthe question.

Morley-Lecomte now on side

However, Morley-Lecomteconfirmed on the weekend she is now fully vaccinated, after she was called out for trying to eat at a Winnipegcafwithout producinganadequate proof of vaccination.

She wasin attendance at the Progressive Conservative leadership convention last month, where attendees had to show theirvaccination status.

Schulersaid in a statementMonday his "personal health information is a private matter and I do not discuss my personal health information publicly."

He was not present at either last month's party leadership announcement, nor the AMM convention on Monday where a vaccination requirement was also enforced.

The NDP and Liberals have said alltheir MLAs are fully vaccinated.

An agreement between party house leaders hasrestricted capacity inthe legislative chamber throughout the pandemic and, more recently, demandedMLAsbe fully inoculated against COVID-19 to take their seats.

A third of MLAswill continue to participate virtually in question period, which returns on Tuesday.

Winnipeg city hall has required everyone to be vaccinated by Nov. 15, while, beginning on Monday, Parliament Hill in Ottawa is enforcing that mandate forparliamentarians, unless they can produce a valid medical exemption.

Meanwhile, Stefanson said she believes the issue ofMorley-Lecomte failing to show theirproper vaccination status at a Winnipeg restaurant has been settled.

The matter came to light afterOakwood Caf owner Wendy May detailedher staff's interaction with the MLA in a letter to the premier and other party leaders. Liberal Leader Dougald Lamont published an excerpt of the letter on social media last weekend.

May saidMorley-Lecomte insisted restaurantstaff wasmistakenwhen they asked to see her QR code, and she left the bistro, May said. Manitoba has required restaurant patrons seeking to dine indoorsto show their scannable code.

Morley-Lecomtehas since downloaded a copy of her QR code onto her phone, Stefanson said on Monday.

"I think that that issue is moot now. That's been dealt with and it's dealt with to my satisfaction."

The Seine River MLAshoweda printed-out piece of paper with her vaccination record, May said, but that document alone, devoid of the QR code,falls short of provincial requirements.