'An early Christmas present': Feds announce $3.75M for N.W.T. victim services

The Northwest Territories Department of Justice plans to increase support for victims of crimes living in smaller communities with a new $3.75 million funding contribution from the federal government over the next five years.

The new funding represents an increase of $250,000 annually from the territory's previous agreement with the federal government.

"I suppose we could always ask for more, but this is a very generous increase from the federal government's prior commitment," said N.W.T. Minister of Justice Louis Sebert.

The funding is being made available through the Department of Justice Canada's Victims Fund, which will make more than $21 million available to provincial and territorial governments and non-governmental organizations in 2016-17.

To date, the federal government has announced Victims Fund agreements with British Columbia, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia.

More support for smaller communities, says territory's justice minister

N.W.T.'s funding, which breaks down to $750,000 annually, is on top of the roughly $700,000 the Government of the Northwest Territories contributes annually to victim services.

Sebert referred to the new funding as an "early Christmas present," and said it "creates certainty" for victim services programs already in place such as the Victims of Crime Emergency Fund, which helps victims of crime access things like childcare and temporary housing.  

The money will also be used to create a full-time victim services co-ordinator, who will train victim services staff on federal initiatives such as the 2015 Canadian Victim Bill of Rights.

However, Sebert said the "major concern at this time is to make sure current workers can reach a larger portion of the population," and said the funding will primarily be used to help victim services workers travel to smaller communities more frequently and provide "more face-to-face support."

Currently, victim services' staff are only available in Yellowknife, Inuvik, Fort Simpson, Fort Good Hope, Tulita, Hay River, Fort Smith and Behchoko. 

The new federal funding will be allocated annually as follows:

• Outreach Victim Services Program - $288,750 per year to enhance existing victim services programs that serve remote communities.
• Canadian Victims Bill of Rights - $250,000 per year to undertake activities that support implementation of the Canadian Victims Bill of Rights including helping victims prepare impact statements, provide testimony and apply for restitution.
• Victims of Crime Emergency Fund - $77,000 per year for the management of the Victims of Crime Emergency Fund, which provides emergency funding to victims to cover costs resulting from serious violent crimes.
• Victims Services staff - $75,000 per year toward a half-time manager, Crime Prevention, Policing, and Victim Services, and a full-time victim services co-ordinator dedicated to implementing federal victim initiatives and advancing victim initiatives in the Territories.
• Training and Publications - $59,250 per year to build the capacity and leadership of victim services providers through various training initiatives and to update all public education documents about victim services to reflect new best practices and legislative changes.