Latest news with #KativikRegionalGovernment
Global News
22-07-2025
- Global News
Nunavik police under review after 3rd fatal shooting in 8 months
A regional authority in northern Quebec has launched a review into the Nunavik Police Service after the third fatal police-involved shooting in eight months. The Kativik Regional Government says three deadly incidents since November 2024 is 'three too many.' The authority says it is overseeing an audit of policing practices and policies to ensure community members can feel safe. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy The KRG says it will consult with local leaders as well as work on a plan to end a rotational system for police management that sees them fly in and out of the communities where they work. The most recent death happened last week when officers allegedly shot and killed a person in Inukjuak while responding to a call about a possible forcible confinement. A news release by the Quebec's police watchdog said a person at the home allegedly approached the officers with a knife. Story continues below advertisement The KRG has extended condolences to the victim's family and says it is working with local authorities to co-ordinate grief and trauma counselling.
CTV News
22-07-2025
- CTV News
Regional authority announces review of Nunavik police after third fatal shooting
The logo of the Nunavik Police Service is shown. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Handout - Nunavik Police Service (Mandatory Credit) MONTREAL — A regional authority in northern Quebec has launched a review into the Nunavik Police Service after the third fatal police-involved shooting in eight months. The Kativik Regional Government says three deadly incidents since November 2024 is 'three too many.' The authority says it is overseeing an audit of policing practices and policies to ensure community members can feel safe. The KRG says it will consult with local leaders as well as work on a plan to end a rotational system for police management that sees them fly in and out of the communities where they work. The most recent death happened last week when officers allegedly shot and killed a person in Inukjuak while responding to a call about a possible forcible confinement. A news release by the Quebec's police watchdog said a person at the home allegedly approached the officers with a knife. The KRG has extended condolences to the victim's family and says it is working with local authorities to co-ordinate grief and trauma counselling. This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 22, 2025. By Morgan Lowrie, The Canadian Press
CBC
11-07-2025
- Health
- CBC
Fears of budget cuts to Nunavik health board based on 'misunderstanding,' official says
Nunavik's health board says there are no budget cuts to the organization, and the financial concerns raised by the region's 14 mayors are due to a "misunderstanding." Last month, the mayors called on the provincial government to declare tuberculosis a public health emergency. They also alleged there were budget cuts to the health board and demanded for them to be reversed. There are "optimization measures" across Quebec's health care network as the province tries to eliminate a $1.5 billion deficit, but Quebec's health ministry said that doesn't apply to Nunavik, and funding for the region's health board is actually being indexed up. The Nunavik Regional Board of Health and Social Services (NRBHSS) has also confirmed there are no reductions to its funding from the province. In a statement, a board spokesperson says there was "a clear misinterpretation and miscommunication" of what was reported at a meeting of the Tuberculosis Regional Committee in the spring. During the NRBHSS's annual general meeting, executive director Jennifer Munick-Watkins made a plea to all leaders in the region to improve communication around tuberculosis prevention and elimination. ''It is by joining forces that we, as Nunavimmiut, can work to reduce the progression of tuberculosis and eliminate it in Nunavik,'' she said in Inuktitut. The Kativik Regional Government, which released the open letter last month on behalf of the mayors, did not respond to several requests for comment by deadline. Despite no budget cuts, the health board said the current funding is inadequate and the mayors' letters reinforced the need for more resources. The region is facing a possible third year of record tuberculosis cases, with outbreaks in six of Nunavik's 14 villages. "The absence of specific provincial funding, as well as local budget constraints, severely limit the ability of facilities to act in the field. It is these front-line shortages — staff, equipment and infrastructure — that are holding back the fight against transmission," a spokesperson said. Systemic inequities in Nunavik Jessika Huard, NRBHSS' infectious diseases coordinator, said tuberculosis treatment can be a long process that can leave patients feeling alone and stigmatized. Treatment usually takes about six months, and it's mandatory for patients to take daily medication in front of a health professional. "People often need to be isolated or flown away from their communities either for testing or for isolation for a few days or weeks. They're separated from their family, from the land," she said. "This can be deeply distressing, especially in the context where we already have mistrust towards the health system." She adds that there is a systemic lack of resources for tuberculosis care in Nunavik, including the shortage of staff, X-rays, as well as training opportunities for Nunavimmiut to be able to deliver basic public health interventions. "This limits our ability to build local capacity and goes against the spirit of self-determination and health," Huard said. Sarah Beaulne, executive director of the Inuulitsivik Health Centre in Puvirnituq, lamented the lack of hotels and other facilities for patients to isolate and get tuberculosis care. "We are trying our best to get a hold of them so that they can be utilized … we will have to be supported and funded by the government," she said in Inuktitut. Going to Manitoba for help Earlier this year, NRBHSS said it needed 700 sputum test kits for diagnosing tuberculosis in mucus. But with the recent surge in cases, the health board said it doesn't have enough funding to acquire the necessary amount of test kits. It ended up asking the National Microbiology Laboratory in Manitoba for some of those kits. "The Ministry of Health has a responsibility for ensuring accessibility, quality and continuous care in Quebec, including Nunavik," Huard said. Both Quebec's Ministry of Health and Social Services and Santé Québec said they didn't receive a request for sputum testing kits. Nunavik's health board said there isn't specific provincial funding for tuberculosis care. Santé Québec adds that it "will provide all necessary support" if the situation requires it. No health emergency for now In a June 20 letter to Nunavik's 14 mayors, Luc Boileau and Horacio Arruda, two of Quebec's assistant deputy ministers at the Ministry of Health and Social Services, said the Nunavik health board is developing an action plan to control tuberculosis. Because of that, they are holding off from using emergency powers under the Public Health Act, but they said they will reassess the situation if needed. "If it turns out that some of these obstacles can only be removed by the exceptional powers granted to us by the provisions of the Public Health Act, then you have our assurance that the necessary means will be implemented," they wrote in French.
CBC
24-06-2025
- Health
- CBC
Review underway into Puvirnituq, Que., water crisis, as province negotiates new agreement
New 3rd-party review expected to be completed by September A third-party review is now underway into the cause of a severe water shortage in Puvirnituq, Que., earlier this year. For months, the village of 2,100 people grappled with a water delivery and sewage crisis, after a water pipeline that connects the pump station to the treatment plant froze mid-March. At times, the local hospital ran out of water and had to fly some patients south for care. Nunavik's chief public health officer also warned that illnesses like gastroenteritis (stomach flu) could spread rapidly as the water shortage affected access to sanitation. Severe weather conditions also made it difficult to complete water deliveries, which eventually triggered a state of emergency in May that lasted almost three weeks. The emergency ended earlier this month after a temporary water pipeline bypass was installed. On Friday, local, regional and provincial leaders met in Puvirnituq to discuss the path forward. Ian Lafrenière, Quebec's minister responsible for relations with First Nations and the Inuit, said he wants to understand what exactly triggered the crisis. "We know that the main pipe froze, but why is that? Is it because of maintenance? Is it because of a lack of proper equipment?" he said. Kativik Regional Government officials told CBC News at the time that a heating wire, which prevents water from freezing during the winter, had reached the end of its life. Hilda Snowball, chairperson of the Kativik Regional Government (KRG), believes the third-party review, which is expected to be complete by September, will highlight how outdated Nunavik's water infrastructure is, and how more funding is needed. "All these discussions will be had after the report comes out, and we will push to have a strategic plan in place for Puvirnituq, as well as the other communities that are facing issues with their infrastructure," she said. Finding new communications channels Lafreniere acknowledges there was a lot of pressure on the village during those few months, but he said it was difficult to get information about what was happening in Puvirnituq. At times, he said he found out about some issues from the media. "One part of the diagnostic that I made very clear with all my colleagues on Friday was to establish what are the responsibilities of everybody, from KRG, the municipality, to us as a government," he said. "At the end of the day, we're not trying to do some finger-pointing, we're just trying to find a solution for the future." For her part, Snowball said KRG was in constant communication with Lafreniere's office, though there were other provincial departments that cancelled some meetings. "We will for sure push to have better communications as well," she said. Negotiating a new 2-year funding agreement Improving communications is important, Lafreniere said, especially now as the province negotiates a new two-year funding agreement for municipal infrastructure projects. A priority for him in those discussions is to not implement a paternalistic approach to the partnership, which includes Makivvik and KRG. "We want to give them all the autonomy that they deserve, but we still get that partnership," he said. Snowball acknowledges that KRG has several different funding arrangements with the province, but existing deals for municipal infrastructure are no longer sufficient. "With the [current] five-year agreement that we have, most of the funding is already allocated. The increase of the cost, the materials, even renovations is in the millions now. It used to be in the [hundreds of] thousands, but they're now in the millions," she said. "If there is a project, there is a certain percentage that the community has to pay. It's impossible for some of the communities to deal with that." As for long-term changes to Nunavik's water infrastructure, Lafreniere said there are several options they're studying, including utilidors into homes, drilling for groundwater, and creating a direct water line to schools and hospitals. However, in the face of a changing climate and melting permafrost, he said there are no perfect solutions. "So instead of doing something that is not going to be appropriate in 10, 15, 20 years [time], we want to make sure to find a good solution," he said.
Hamilton Spectator
24-06-2025
- Politics
- Hamilton Spectator
Quebec launches review of Puvirnituq water crisis
The Quebec government is launching an independent review of the Puvirnituq water crisis to determine the causes and a path forward, says Ian Lafrenière, the minister responsible for relations with First Nations and the Inuit. 'We're not looking for a Band-Aid solution. I want to see how we can do better, what could be done, what's feasible. This is a priority for us,' Lafrenière said Tuesday in an interview with Nunatsiaq News. He visited Puvirnituq for a few hours on June 20 for the first time since the state of emergency was declared in Nunavik's second-largest community of roughly 2,100. The state of emergency lasted 20 days, ending June 6. The water crisis was spurred by a break in the main pipeline that brings water from the river to the treatment plant in the village. The struggles started March 18 with a boil water advisory issued by the village. Untreated water had to be trucked into the village. But that effort was hampered by weather conditions and some of the trucks being out of service requiring repair. Health centre patients and long-term care residents were sent south during that time. On May 17, after a fire in the community , local leadership declared a 10-day state of emergency. It was extended May 27 for another 10 days until June 6. In that time, the Quebec government airlifted 145,000 litres of bottled water to Puvirnituq and Canadian Rangers were deployed to help during the crisis. A temporary 2.9-kilometre pipeline was installed in late May to connect the pump at the river to the water filtration plant. Lafrenière said he doesn't know how long the temporary pipe will be able to sustain the community — that's one of the issues the government is continuing to monitor. Because of supply issues for repair parts, a permanent fix to the five-kilometre Puvirnituq pipe might take a year and cost between $5 million and $10 million instead of an initial estimate of $300,000, said Hossein Shafeghati, Kativik Regional Government's public works director. Lafrenière didn't say whether the government of Quebec will commit to picking up the cost to replace the pipeline. 'Before committing, we are waiting for the budget and we'll see how we can help,' he said, adding the crisis is something the Quebec government and Kativik Regional Government will 'deal with together.' Through a review of the emergency that will be conducted by an independent company, the Quebec government hopes to determine the origins of the emergency and possible solutions. As well, the goal is to establish how the government can learn from the crisis and be better prepared to respond in the future, Lafrenière said. 'It's going to be a learning event for us. We hope it's not going to happen [again], but if it does we will be ready,' Lafrenière said. Findings from the review are expected to be released in the fall. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
