‘I’m sorry’: N.S. government to reinstate $53.6M in grants, funding after backlash

The Nova Scotia government is reversing course on some budget cuts.

The Nova Scotia government is reinstating $53.6 million in grants and funding to support people with disabilities, seniors and education initiatives, after receiving backlash over budget cuts.

Premier Tim Houston made the announcement in Halifax Tuesday morning.

“Nova Scotians have spoken. We listened, and we are reinstating supports to disabilities programming, seniors programming and African Nova Scotian and Indigenous students. These are grants that help people meet their basic daily needs,” said Houston in a statement.

“We wish we could do more. We will continue to look for opportunities to support all Nova Scotians as our fiscal picture improves.”

The announcement comes roughly two weeks after the province tabled its budget, when it said it would have to cut $130.4 million in grants to deal with a $1.2-billion deficit.

Several groups affected by the cuts have voiced their anger and thousands of protesters rallied outside the legislature last week, including members of the Mi’kmaw community and people working in the arts and culture sector.

‘We got it wrong’

Houston admitted Tuesday that, after some “soul-searching” and “heartfelt discussions with people,” his government “got it wrong” on some of the decisions made during the budget process.

“And for that, I’m sorry,” he said during a news conference, adding his government “moved too quickly in areas that affect people’s daily lives.”

The province says it will reinstate $21.4 million in grants and $22.2 million in funding to support seniors, people with disabilities, and help African Nova Scotians and Indigenous people access educational opportunities.

Another $10 million will go back to organizations that support those groups.

After Tuesday’s announcement, the province says the deficit will now stand at $1.24 billion before contingency.

“Restoring this funding will increase that deficit in the short term, but Nova Scotians made it clear that even as we work through the financial challenges we face, we must protect services that people depend on and I agree, and these changes today will do that,” said the premier.

Houston explained his government can make adjustments to the budget as it’s still being reviewed in the legislature.

As for whether other groups might see their cuts reversed, Houston said the changes announced Tuesday are the only ones on the table.

“One kind of rule that I always have kind of had … is, can I put my hand on my heart and say, ‘We did the right thing there?’ And I think when I put my hand on my heart and I said, ‘What will the impact be on people living with disabilities?’ I couldn’t live with that,” Houston told reporters.

In an interview with CTV News Atlantic’s Bruce Frisko, Houston noted the budget contains $66 million in arts funding.

“Much of the protests have been driven by the arts community,” he said. “We love our arts community. We’re making a significant investment in the arts. We wish we could do more.

“We’re supporting the sector with what we can. Hopefully there’ll be a day when we can do more.”

He reiterated Nova Scotia must continue to tackle its deficit and grow its economy, but said next time his government will try to engage Nova Scotians earlier in the budget process and talk to them about possible solutions.

Organizations and families react to premier’s apology

The Prescott group is one of 34 agencies in Nova Scotia that support persons with disabilities. 24 hours ago, these groups were faced with tough choices, for some considering shrinking programs, increasing costs and worries about what to do next.

But after today’s announcement by Nova Scotia’s premier, many of those decisions can be put to rest for now.

“We know the operational grants aren’t being cut and we hope that means we can continue the essential service work that we are doing,” says Alice Evans, Prescott Group executive director.

Despite gratitude for the premier’s apology and message today, this doesn’t mean these organizations won’t be affected at all by the budget cuts.

“Club Inclusion relies a lot on arts funding, so we have a theatre program, music therapy and arts therapy that supports our program, so we still have to see how we are going to be affected,” says Evans.

The Dartmouth Adult Services Centre was looking at a $400,000 cut to their programs.

“We are heartened to hear that funding for organizations like ours that provide support for persons with intellectual disabilities is going to be re-examined and hopefully this means it’s restored. So full credit where credit is due, I think the premier listened and that is due to the voices and the testimonials of persons with disabilities and their families and supports,” says Henk van Leeuwen, Dartmouth Adult Services Centre Executive Director.

Collectively these organizations support 2,700 people with intellectual and physical disabilities.

Katrina Aucoin attends the day program at the Prescott group’s Club Inclusion five days a week, somewhere her sister and primary caretaker Brittany Aucoin is fortunate she has.

“This is a vital component to her life, these people are very important to her life, its taught her cooking skills, it’s given her friends, it’s given her community, it’s given her job opportunities and for the first time in her life she’s received small pay cheques,” says Brittany Aucoin, Katrina’s caretaker and sister.

Brittany has been under a ton of pressure trying to figure out how to best support her sister since the original cuts were mentioned. They have already been through so much, losing their father and then worrying about a $2,000 increase to her sister’s monthly programming costs.

“I’m doing my best. I try really hard not to get emotional on TikTok and all those things, but at the end of the day, it’s extremely emotional . It’s like myself and everybody else. We already have so much on our plates, and I just think people have had to advocate for their loved ones for so long and it is so exhausting. I have always advocated for my sister, but I am relatively new to the fight of being a primary caretaker and if I can be that voice for everybody else that is exhausted, I will do my best,” says Aucoin.

There were a lot of emotions outside of the legislature parents whose children rely on these services.

Kari and James Robertson have a son, Graham, who attends the Prescott Group’s day programming. Their advocacy started when the original cuts to the caregiver fund were discussed and continued when the programming came into conversations. They were grateful that the funding for their son had returned.

“It wasn’t just for the disabled, it was also for the seniors and others, and we are just very grateful that it has gone this way and makes us feel like what we have done was a benefit,” says Kari Robertson.

“For us it means that Graham will be able to continue enjoying the programs that he has all along which allows him to further develop his skills and abilities and frankly gives us some respite at the same time,” says James Robertson.

Jocelyn Tingley’s 30-year-old son, Donald, attends a number of programs through Club Inclusion and Building Futures. She says she was devastated when she first heard these cuts were coming into effect. She has been speaking to politicians, posting on social media and talking to families. She says she’s grateful that today’s announcement means Donald will get to remain with his friends at Prescott.

“I’m hoping that he’s true to his word. Extract that it is happening, but we also need him to stop the other cuts,“ says Jocelyn Tingley.

For some organizations it’s a sigh of relief but for others there are still possible cuts on the table so they are unsure of the impact those will have on their operations.

Of the crowd outside of the legislature today, emotions were high, some grateful for some movement on the government’s part while many still want to see more changes.

“We’re very happy about today’s announcement in terms of reinstating the programming and grating to disability communities, indigenous communities, and African Nova Scotia communities. As a shoulder-to-shoulder in solidarity group today we couldn’t be happier that the government is starting to listen to community members when we express our concerns,” says Jacob Sampson, with the 2b Theatre Company, Nova Scotia Arts Coalition.

There were many outside the legislature that were also advocating for the arts and culture cuts which in turn impact several organizations. Many there today continue to advocate for more changes to this budget.

“We hope the government continues to listen to the community members that are all out here saying that these cuts are bad for our communities,” adds Sampson.

With files from The Canadian Press and CTV News Atlantic’s Sean Mott and Emma Convey.

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