LGBTQ+, women groups brace for funding cuts as Ottawa looks to trim spending

OTTAWA — LGBTQ+ and women’s groups say they’re bracing for funding cuts in November’s budget.

The federal minister overseeing Ottawa’s gender policy has urged activists to speak out, and LGBTQ+ and women’s organizations are staging an advocacy push this month on Parliament Hill.

“We’re on alert,” Canadian Women’s Foundation president Mitzie Hunter told The Canadian Press.

“If we don’t have announcements that these programs will be continuing, then we know that the pain in the communities is going be on the increase.”

Prime Minister Mark Carney has mentioned gender issues far less frequently than his predecessor Justin Trudeau, whose feminist brand was central to his political identity.

Carney’s government has committed to maintaining the gender-based analysis initiative that examines