Monday, December 29, 2025
ADVT 
National

Alberta sexual assault centres to be consulted on spending additional $10 million

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 30 Apr, 2024 04:01 PM
  • Alberta sexual assault centres to be consulted on spending additional $10 million

An additional $3 million is being allocated in 2024-25 to support 15 sexual assault centres.

There will be another $3 million in 2025-26 and $4 million in 2026-27.

"Nearly half of Albertans have experienced some form of sexual violence in their lifetime. That's 1.8 million too many," Family Services Minister Searle Turton told a news conference Tuesday.

"I've heard how it impacts every aspect of their well-being and their relationships, not to mention their ability to trust and feel safe."

Alberta signed a deal last fall to receive $54 million in federal funding to create and implement a 10-year strategy to end gender-based violence. 

The funding, which will be allocated to the province over four years, is part of a national plan to tackle gender-based violence. 

Turton said how the money will be spent will be determined by the sexual assault centres in roundtable discussions in the coming weeks.

"This will allow government to hear directly from centres and those who work with survivors every day how this funding can best address their urgent needs," he said.

Tanya Fir, Alberta's minister for the status of women, said the facilities represent "hope and safe havens" where survivors can receive support. 

The news was welcomed by the Association of Alberta Sexual Assault Services.

Corinne Ofstie, co-chief executive officer, said it will help members respond to the increasingly complex needs of individuals and communities affected by sexual violence.

"It is difficult for survivors to reach out for help in the aftermath of sexual violence," she said.

"It is critical they receive help in a timely way as close to home as possible."

MORE National ARTICLES

B.C. man pleads guilty to second-degree murder of Ashley Simpson in 2016

B.C. man pleads guilty to second-degree murder of Ashley Simpson in 2016
A 21-day murder trial that was supposed to begin Monday in British Columbia Supreme Court in Salmon Arm ended almost immediately as Derek Favell entered a guilty plea. The Shuswap-area resident, who is in his early 40s, was charged with the 2016 slaying of his former girlfriend Ashley Simpson.

B.C. man pleads guilty to second-degree murder of Ashley Simpson in 2016

BC United promises carbon tax relief if elected government next year, says Falcon

BC United promises carbon tax relief if elected government next year, says Falcon
British Columbia's Opposition leader is promising to immediately cut the provincial carbon tax on all fuels and stop planned future increases if elected to form government next year. BC United Leader Kevin Falcon says his party would give motorists a break by eliminating the provincial fuel tax, currently at about 15 cents per litre on gasoline and diesel, and remove the carbon tax on all home-heating fuels. 

BC United promises carbon tax relief if elected government next year, says Falcon

Economy remained flat in August says Statistics Canada

Economy remained flat in August says Statistics Canada
Statistics Canada is reporting the economy flatlined in August as higher interest rates, inflation, forest fires and drought conditions weighed on the economy and its preliminary estimate suggests the economy shrank at an annualized rate of 0.1 per cent in the third quarter.

Economy remained flat in August says Statistics Canada

Israeli ground forces in Gaza as Canada debates humanitarian pause

Israeli ground forces in Gaza as Canada debates humanitarian pause
A temporary respite from Israel-Hamas hostilities should not be Canada's focus, Israeli and Palestinian advocates argued separately on Parliament Hill Monday, even as the Canadian government continued to push for ``humanitarian pauses.''  

Israeli ground forces in Gaza as Canada debates humanitarian pause

B.C. commits to mandatory Holocaust education for Grade 10 students

B.C. commits to mandatory Holocaust education for Grade 10 students
British Columbia has plans to make Holocaust education mandatory for high school students with additions to Grade 10 curriculum coming in 2025. It has been a "frightening time" for the Jewish community after deadly terrorists attacks by Hamas militants in Israel earlier this month, Premier David Eby told an audience at the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver on Monday.

B.C. commits to mandatory Holocaust education for Grade 10 students

Surrey bylaw officers seize fireworks

Surrey bylaw officers seize fireworks
Bylaw officers in Surrey have seized 100-thousand dollars' worth of fireworks from a single unlicensed retail location, just ahead of Halloween. A statement from the City of Surrey says R-C-M-P officers found the illegal fireworks store through online and social media searches and issued municipal tickets to the owner and two employees.

Surrey bylaw officers seize fireworks