Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew will visit Brandon on Thursday, May 14, 2026, to deliver the annual State of the Province address. The luncheon, hosted by the Brandon Chamber of Commerce at the UCT Keystone Centre, will offer local residents and business leaders a look at provincial priorities and plans for the year ahead.
The event comes as the province works through the financial plan laid out in Budget 2026. The current provincial budget projects a deficit of $498 million for the 2026-27 fiscal year, a decrease from the $1.7-billion deficit expected at the end of the previous year. To support this goal, the provincial government is counting on an increase in tax revenue, though some analysts have pointed to a difficult economic climate as a potential challenge for these projections.
Local community members will also see changes starting July 1, 2026, when the provincial government removes the sales tax from all food items at grocery stores. The move, expected to cost $32 million annually, includes items that were previously taxed, such as rotisserie chicken, sandwiches, and snacks like samosas.
Infrastructure and local development remain key points of discussion for the region. Budget 2026 includes $3.8 billion in capital investments for the province, featuring the twinning of the Trans-Canada Highway toward Ontario, improvements to Provincial Trunk Highway 2, and the design of the Carberry overpass. Additionally, the budget allocates $118 million for the construction of four new schools, including a facility planned for southwest Brandon.
These provincial plans follow recent federal investments in the city. On April 2, 2026, the federal government announced $7.1 million in funding for six projects in Brandon, including support for an automated welding line at Behlen Industries and a mechatronics program at Assiniboine College.
The State of the Province Luncheon is scheduled from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM CDT.
