Government of Canada Takes Action to Prevent Crime in the Northwest Territories

Market Wire, August, 2008

The Honourable Rob Nicholson, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, on behalf of the Honourable Stockwell Day, Minister of Public Safety, today announced more than $688,000 in funding to support five crime prevention projects that focus on helping at-risk Aboriginal youth in the Northwest Territories.

"The Government of Canada is committed to working with our territorial partners to address issues of substance abuse, victimization and recidivism among Aboriginal youth," said Minister Nicholson. "It is important that we focus crime prevention resources on programs that work at the local level and respond directly to the needs of Aboriginal communities."

"I am very pleased the federal government is making these vital investments in Northern youth. Children are our most vulnerable citizens: it is our duty to protect them from people who would harm them. We must support child victims, give young people places where they are safe, and deal with the root causes of crime to protect them from those who would lure them into lives of crime. I want to thank Minister Nicholson for listening to our concerns and acting to provide real solutions," said the Honourable Jackson Lafferty, Minister of Justice for the Northwest Territories.

The funding comes from the Government of Canada's National Crime Prevention Strategy (NCPS), which provides funding support to strategically selected projects that contribute to preventing and reducing crime as well as increasing knowledge about what works in crime prevention. Priorities for funding include:

- addressing early risk factors among vulnerable children and youth;

- preventing youth gang and drug-related crime;

- preventing recidivism among high-risk groups; and

- fostering crime prevention in Aboriginal communities.

Budget 2008 provides $30 million per year in additional, ongoing funds to the National Crime Prevention Strategy. These funds are in addition to the Strategy's permanent annual funding base of $33 million. The NCPS is administered by Public Safety Canada's National Crime Prevention Centre (NCPC) and is managed in collaboration with the provinces and territories.

For more information, please visit the website www.publicsafety.gc.ca

Information:

Contacts: Office of the Honourable Stockwell Day Minister of Public Safety Melisa Leclerc Director of Communications 613-991-2863 Government of the Northwest Territories Department of Justice Cabinet Communications Brad Poulter 867-669-2302 Public Safety Canada Media Relations 613-991-0657