Despite fiscal pressure, Liberals to lift funding cap on First Nations: Trudeau – Hamilton Spectator
OTTAWA — The Liberal government will lift a long-standing cap on First Nations funding, Justin Trudeau said Tuesday as he promised a fresh fiscal partnership with indigenous communities — even as the economic and political pressure on the federal pocketbook continues to mount.
Just one day after Finance Minister Bill Morneau conceded the promised Liberal middle-class tax cut will cost more than originally planned, Trudeau told First Nations leaders of his plan to remove the two per cent cap on reserve program funding.
“As you know, that limit has been in place for nearly 20 years,” said Trudeau, who promised to remove the cap in the government’s first budget.
“It hasn’t kept up with the demographic realities of your communities, nor the actual costs of program delivery.”
