AFN’s draft child-welfare reform deal with Ottawa reportedly worth $47.8B

The caput of nan Assembly of First Nations has informed chiefs that a draught woody pinch Ottawa connected child-welfare reforms is worthy $47.8 billion, a root who was successful nan room says — much than double what was initially promised.

National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak revealed that number to chiefs and their proxies connected Tuesday afternoon, says nan source, who was granted anonymity because they were not authorized to stock nan specifications publicly.

She besides referred to nan governmental risks of not accepting nan woody that is connected nan table, nan root said, and affirmed that she wanted chiefs to beryllium capable to talk nan connection earlier voting connected nan matter astatine a typical assembly this fall.

The closed-door session, which members of nan media were not allowed to attend, was portion of nan AFN’s yearly wide assembly being held successful Montreal this week.

A spokesperson for Woodhouse Nepinak would not instantly connection a remark erstwhile asked to corroborate nan source’s relationship and nan $47.8-billion figure.

The national authorities primitively promised $20 cardinal for semipermanent reforms to nan kid use system, but Woodhouse Nepinak precocious told The Canadian Press that nan woody pinch Ottawa would apt apical that amount.

That was portion of a $43-billion colony connection that resulted from a Canadian Human Rights Tribunal ruling that Ottawa discriminated against Indigenous kids by chronically underfunding kid use services successful First Nations.

The different $23 cardinal was group speech to compensate astir 300,000 group harmed by a strategy that often placed kids successful foster attraction alternatively of offering support to thief families enactment together.

On Tuesday morning, during opening remarks to chiefs that were broadcast publicly, Woodhouse Nepinak had said that she couldn’t opportunity openly really overmuch money was connected nan table. But she said she was “very happy” astir nan compensation.

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The AFN brought nan original human-rights lawsuit alongside nan First Nations Child and Family Caring Society. Its executive director, Cindy Blackstock, had been calling for Ottawa to perpetrate a overmuch higher magnitude to nan betterment effort.

She said Tuesday that calculations from experts suggested $57 cardinal was needed to afloat hole nan strategy complete nan adjacent 10 years, not including superior investments. And she criticized Woodhouse Nepinak for keeping nan latest connection secret.

In nan lead-up to nan three-day meeting, nan AFN’s negotiations pinch Ottawa had been criticized by 4 location chiefs representing much than half of First Nations successful Canada.

They penned letters to Woodhouse Nepinak past period raising interest that nan woody was being made successful secret.

Woodhouse Nepinak said successful consequence that that wasn’t nan case, and each chiefs would beryllium capable to spot nan draught statement earlier a ballot scheduled for later this year.

On Wednesday, chiefs are expected to perceive from nan curate of Crown-Indigenous relations.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh are scheduled to speak connected Thursday.