Statement on Fall Economic Statement and New Funding for National Women’s Rights Organizations

Crucial investments to strengthen women’s movement in Canada will support systemic change, advance equality and protect women’s rights

The National Association of Women and the Law (NAWL) is pleased to see the federal government take additional steps toward gender justice with measures in its Fall Economic Statement. New investments, in the amount of $15 million over three years, to sustain national women’s rights organizations in their systemic change work are especially welcome. 

NAWL appreciates this critical new funding for national women’s rights organizations and urges the government to ensure its roll-out as soon as possible to strengthen the operations of these organizations who are working to advance women’s economic empowerment and  substantive equality, as well as end the epidemic of gender-based violence.

Among the additional measures of positive benefit for women and gender-diverse individuals, NAWL notes the government’s commitments in the Fall Economic Statement to:

• Fund the assault-style firearms compensation program in the amount of $597.9 million over three years, starting in 2024-25. This will improve the safety of women and children, especially from domestic, intimate-partner and gender-based violence
• Introduce legislation to exempt the Canada Disability Benefit from being treated as income under the Income Tax Act and that the federal government will act to ensure the federal benefit is not clawed back by the provinces and territories. The amount of the benefit remains insufficient, regardless of these plans, and NAWL is disappointed there is no proposed increase to the benefit.

As a champion in defense of reproductive rights and justice, NAWL is pleased to see increased funding to support community-based organizations that improve access to abortion and other sexual and reproductive health care services.

Looking ahead, NAWL awaits action by the government to make parental alienation accusations inadmissible in family courts, which is a measure more than 250 women’s organizations in Canada, as well as the UN has called on the federal government to take in order to protect women and children who are victims of family violence.