Canada: Fed govt announces revised First Nations child welfare compensation agreement – April 5, 2023

Indigenous Services Minister Patty Hajdu, Crown–Indigenous Relations Minister Marc Miller, and Assembly of First Nations Manitoba Regional Chief Cindy Woodhouse speak with reporters about the $23.4-billion revised settlement agreement to compensate First Nations children and their families harmed by the federal government's underfunding of the on-reserve child welfare system. Counsel for the Mushroom and Trout class actions also take part in the news conference on Parliament Hill.
The agreement responds to a ruling made in 2016 from the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal (CHRT) and to class-action lawsuits. The AFN and the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society filed a complaint with the CHRT in 2007 alleging that the child welfare system discriminated against First Nations children. The federal government originally announced a $20-billion compensation agreement in January 2022. The CHRT rejected the deal months later in October on the grounds it did not meet all criteria.