Portage la Prairie's MLA says they had a productive first session, as the new provincial government. Ian Wishart says it's interesting being on the other side of questioning during debates, and it's also exciting to be able to move forward with the party's ideas. He notes while they had to hit the ground running when it came to the Throne Speech and the budget, this past session also saw some strong legislation moving forward.

"You get to bring forward your agenda, so we had a chance to bring a few bills forward. It was fairly short notice so we only had a couple we could get into the session. The Protecting Children Act, which was a priority for us, and some changes to the Mental Health Act to make sure the people are better serviced were the first two priorities for us, so we're moving forward."

He notes it was also great to be able to set the direction for the provincial government for the next year. Wishart says their Throne Speech was well received by the public, and they feel their budget was a good step forward. However, Wishart says now that they'll have more time to work on the 2017 budget, you'll likely see a different document put forward next spring.

"This budget, as I mentioned before, was a little bit of a hybrid --some that was already in place, and some things we wanted to do. The next budget, I think, will look more like a Progressive Conservative budget than this one did, but we're still able to put our stamp on it."

While they're pleased to be in government after spending years in opposition, Wishart says taking over the helm didn't come without its challenges. He says the fact the provincial deficit was much higher than expected was one of the major issues they had to face. Wishart notes that will continue to be a focus for them in the future, but it's a challenge they're willing to tackle.

"We're looking to make some long-term changes, and I think it has been very positive. We've had a lot of support from people, and I think people are willing to be a little bit patient with us because it's going to take us a while to get things running the way they should be, and turned around in the direction we want them to go. There are lots of challenges ahead, but that's what we signed on for, we knew that."

He describes their first session as incredibly productive, and looks forward to the next legislative session in the fall.