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The Government of Canada is committed to a renewed partnership with Aboriginal people and has initiated a Canada-Aboriginal Peoples Roundtable process that will be completed later this year.

Budget 2005 invests $735 million over the next five years, in addition to the $700 million over five years for Aboriginal health programs announced in September 2004, to address urgent needs, with a focus on children, youth and their families, including:

$345 million over the next five years for First Nations early learning and child care, special education, and child and family services.

$340 million over the next five years for First Nations housing on reserves, Aboriginal languages and culture, and the Aboriginal Healing Foundation.

http://www.fin.gc.ca/budget05/bp/bpc3e.htm

Strengthening Aboriginal Communities

The Government of Canada is committed to a renewed partnership with Aboriginal people. The most recent Speech from the Throne noted that more must be done to ensure that the country's prosperity is shared by Canada's Aboriginal people and communities. The Canada-Aboriginal Peoples Roundtable, launched in April 2004, provides an historic opportunity to innovate, move forward, strengthen partnerships and set a new direction for the future.

Federal Ministers, in partnership with Aboriginal leaders and in cooperation with provincial and territorial governments, have been holding follow-up sessions on health, lifelong learning, housing, economic opportunities, negotiations and accounting for results. The conclusions from these sessions will be the focus of a policy retreat in the spring of 2005, followed by a First Ministers' Meeting in the fall of 2005. The Government looks forward to the conclusions of the Roundtable process and will take action, in partnership with Aboriginal people and provinces and territories, to close the gap in life chances for Aboriginal people.

While awaiting the completion of the Roundtable process, Budget 2005 provides investments of $735 million over the next five years, with a focus on children and youth and their families.

Aboriginal Children and Youth

The Aboriginal population is young and dynamic-a full third are under the age of 14 years. This young population is poised to make a significant contribution to Canada's society and economic growth, but must have the education and skills needed to succeed. Reflecting this priority, Budget 2005 provides new investments totalling $345 million over the next five years for:

• First Nations early learning and child care.
• Special education.
• First Nations child and family services.

First Nations Early Learning and Child Care

The Government's commitment to a national system of early learning and child care includes First Nations children and families on reserve and builds on recent budgets' commitments to strengthen programs on reserve for First Nations children, which have included:

$320 million over five years ($65 million a year ongoing) for early childhood development programming for First Nations and other Aboriginal children. A total of $45 million over three years ($14 million a year ongoing) for early learning and child care for First Nations children living on reserve. Budget 2005 commits an additional $100 million over the next five years, from the $5 billion provided for the five-year plan for a national initiative (see Chapter 4), to enhance early learning and child care opportunities for First Nations children and families on reserves. This will ensure that First Nations children share in the national commitment to the best possible start in life for Canada's children. Implementation of these funds will draw on the outcomes of community consultations, upcoming assessments of programs and how they are delivered, and the Aboriginal roundtable discussions.

First Nations Special Education

Investments in primary and secondary education have long-term benefits for both children and Canada as a whole. Some children, however, face special learning challenges in school. These can include fetal alcohol spectrum disorder and mild to severe physical or behavioural challenges. These children require extra resources, such as specialized teachers and equipment that can help them to overcome their challenges and tap into their full potential.

Budget 2001 provided $60 million over two years and $35 million annually thereafter for the Special Education Program for First Nations children living on reserve. Budget 2005 builds on that investment by providing an additional $120 million over five years. Combined with funding from the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, this will bring funding for the Special Education Program to $125 million per year by 2007-08. The incremental funding provided in this budget will enhance the ability of First Nations to provide the additional resources (including teachers, specialized programs, assistive technology and modifications to physical surroundings) required to meet the demands on the program.

First Nations Child and Family Services

The health, safety and well-being of children are everyone's responsibility. One of the most difficult issues facing many Aboriginal communities and families is the high rate of placement of Aboriginal children in care outside their parental homes. There are about 100 First Nations child and family service agencies that are currently mandated and monitored by provincial governments and funded by the Government of Canada to provide essential child protection and family support services to First Nations communities.

A comprehensive strategy is being developed to help ensure that more First Nations children and parents get the help they need to prevent the types of crises that lead to intervention and family breakdown. In the interim, Budget 2005 provides an investment of $25 million a year to address immediate cost pressures.

Strengthening Aboriginal Social Foundations

Children and their families also need the basic foundations of healthy communities. Budget 2005 provides new investments totalling $340 million over five years on:

• First Nations housing on reserves.
• Aboriginal languages and culture.
• The Aboriginal Healing Foundation.

First Nations Housing On Reserves

Adequate housing is one of the basics of life, an essential support for developing one's potential. Yet there is a critical and growing shortage on First Nations reserves. The Canada-Aboriginal Peoples Roundtable identified housing as one of its top priorities and the most recent Speech from the Throne stated that "these are the intolerable consequences of the yawning gaps that separate so many Aboriginal people from other Canadians," including unacceptable gaps in basics like housing.

Since then the Government of Canada, Aboriginal organizations, provinces and territories, and housing experts have launched in-depth discussions about what transformative changes are required to improve housing conditions for Aboriginal people. But while these discussions are ongoing, there is an opportunity to take immediate action to start addressing the housing shortage.

Budget 2005 provides an investment of $295 million over five years, of which $200 million will be for the next two years, for housing construction and renovation on reserves. The Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development and the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation will build on their current programs to stabilize the housing situation on reserve by constructing 6,400 new units and renovating 1,500 existing units-enough to stem the growing shortage of housing units and begin to eliminate it. Capital contributions will be limited to new construction or renovations, and rents will be paid on these units. The Government will consider further proposals, including a First Nations Housing Authority, after the Roundtable process is completed.

Support for Languages and Cultures

Aboriginal languages and cultures are an integral part of Canada's cultural heritage and an important source of pride and identity for Aboriginal peoples. The Government of Canada and a number of provincial and territorial governments support and promote Aboriginal languages and cultures both directly and indirectly, often by assisting communities to take the steps they believe are needed to preserve and revitalize their languages and cultural practices. Yet more is needed to ensure that Aboriginal languages and cultures remain a vital part of the diverse and vibrant Canadian heritage.

In December 2002, the Government announced $172.5 million to support the creation of a new Aboriginal Languages and Cultures Centre. Recommendations from an Aboriginal advisory task force regarding the activities and operations of this centre are anticipated shortly. Budget 2005 provides funding of $5 million to extend the Aboriginal Languages Initiative, which supports community-based Aboriginal languages projects, for one more year until the centre becomes operational.

Aboriginal Healing Foundation

The Aboriginal Healing Foundation (AHF) was established in 1998 with a $350- million endowment and a mandate to support community-based projects that would address the legacy of the physical and sexual abuses that occurred in the Indian residential school system. Consistent with its mandate, the foundation has now committed all its funds and is winding down its affairs.

The AHF has helped many thousands of individuals and hundreds of communities begin their healing journeys and has contributed to a deeper understanding of the legacy of the residential school era. However, individuals and communities are at different stages in their healing work. While the Government takes stock and considers how best to move forward with regard to this important work in the context of the Aboriginal Roundtable process, Budget 2005 will provide an additional $40 million in 2004-05 for the Aboriginal Healing Foundation to continue supporting healing projects and to promote public awareness and understanding of healing issues. The $40 million will enable the Foundation to fund projects over the next two years.

The Government will continue to work with residential school claimants and their representatives, Aboriginal healers and leaders, and the churches to find ways to expedite the resolution of claims of physical and sexual abuse in Indian residential schools.

Building Relationships

Canada's Relationship With the Métis Community

In the 2003 Powley decision, the Supreme Court of Canada recognized the Métis Aboriginal right to harvest for food in the Sault Ste. Marie area of Northern Ontario, and allowed for the possibility that such rights might exist elsewhere in Canada.

In response to this decision, Budget 2004 set aside $20.5 million in 2004-05 to work with Métis leadership, provinces and territories to address Métis Aboriginal harvesting issues. Over the last year, the Government of Canada has been working with stakeholders to assess the broader implications of the decision, develop possible approaches to implementation, and facilitate responsible harvesting while ensuring public safety. But more work needs to be done.

To that end, Budget 2005 provides an additional $30 million over the next two years to continue work with provincial and territorial governments, Métis organizations and other stakeholders to fully assess the implications of the decision for Métis communities and ensure effective implementation of the Supreme Court decision.

Post-Secondary Scholarships for Aboriginal Canadians

The Government of Canada is committed to supporting the educational aspirations of Aboriginal Canadians. In 2003, the Government established a new post-secondary scholarship program for Aboriginal students with a one-time $12- million endowment, to be administered by the National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation.

To further support and encourage the achievement of higher levels of education among Aboriginal students, Budget 2005 commits an additional $10 million in 2005-06 for the Post-Secondary Education Program administered by the National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation.

Inuit Secretariat

Inuit organizations have long argued that their unique issues, needs and priorities have not received adequate attention from the Government of Canada. In response, at the April 2004 Canada-Aboriginal Peoples Roundtable, Prime Minister Paul Martin announced the creation of an Inuit Secretariat, to reside within Indian and Northern Affairs Canada. The Secretariat will bring a strategic policy focus to discussions and decisions that impact on the policies, programs and services that shape the federal government's relationship with the Inuit. Budget 2005 provides $10 million over the next five years to establish and operate the Inuit Secretariat.