NWT MP Rebecca Alty says she will talk with cabinet colleague Mandy Gull-Masty about Ottawa’s recent decision to stop funding travel for a key mental health program.
On Sunday, Cabin Radio reported that Indigenous Services Canada is scrapping travel funding for programs under the Trauma-Informed Health and Cultural Support Program – including mental health counselling for residential school survivors and their relatives.
“Going forward, in Nunavut and the Northwest Territories, approvals will be for virtual services only, as there is no funding to support client or service provider travel,” Indigenous Services Canada told mental health workers by email late last week.
Counsellors who work with northern clients say virtual sessions can be significantly harder for people and reduce the likelihood of long-term success.
Appearing at a housing announcement on Monday, Alty – who is the Crown-Indigenous relations minister in Mark Carney’s cabinet – took questions about the change.
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“It has been raised as an issue from residents and so I will be working with my cabinet colleague to get further information,” Alty said, referring to Gull-Masty, who is the Indigenous services minister.
“It’s important that residents in the Northwest Territories are able to access the service,” Alty said, noting she wanted to be sure “the solution that’s brought forward is meeting people where they’re at.”
“The travel cost is something that I’ll discuss with my cabinet colleague,” she reiterated following a third question.
The pause on travel funding is understood to have already rolled out. Two mental health workers told Cabin Radio they have not received approval to travel to smaller NWT communities for months – travel that used to be routine.
Aastha Sethi contributed reporting.
