It's back to work for Manitoba's MLAs this week for a short session, prior to the 2016 provincial election campaign. Portage la Prairie MLA Ian Wishart says while they don't often sit just before an election, this was part of a deal last year, to prevent a prolonged sitting through the summer. Wishart notes while the session -- which begins Wednesday-- will only last for about 11 days, they'll likely see some fiery question periods taking place. He says it's hard to say if there will be any benefits of the short sitting during the campaign, but says it will be interesting to find out. 

Ian Wishart

"It's going to be interesting to see who it really works for, or against. I suspect it could go either way, depending on how things are handled. We believe it's to our advantage, because we'll get to ask the difficult questions, especially at the election's doorstep."

He anticipates while the opposition PCs are asking tough questions, the NDP government will aim to improve the public's perception, by introducing legislation to show they're willing to make changes. Wishart anticipates one piece of legislation will fall under his portfolio as Family Services Critic.

"I'm sure we'll see a bill brought forward called 'Custom Care', which will have some impact on the number of kids that are in the care of child welfare if was done properly. We've been arguing that they need to do this for some time, and at the very last minute we're seeing a bill that will provide them the ability to say 'Look, we're doing something.' but for 17 years they haven't done anything and just let the numbers go up."

Wishart says while the NDP had already released a number of commitments prior to the media blackout, and other parties have been putting their election focus forward, this new session could ramp up the campaign feeling.

"I think it will extend the campaign a bit already. To a degree the campaign is already not necessarily in high gear, but certainly out there and peculating. It may gear things up a little bit, that's for sure."

MLAs return to the Legislature Wednesday.