Families Minister, Kinew NDP Vote Against Investigation into Systemic CFS Failures
WINNIPEG — Families Minister Nahanni Fontaine and Wab Kinew’s NDP voted against a PC motion today for the Province to inquire into the Child and Family Services system in Manitoba following several critical incidents, including deaths, in recent years.
“I am saddened but not surprised that Minister Nahanni Fontaine and her NDP caucus voted against a public, independent, and transparent inquiry into the systemic gaps facing the CFS system,” said Agassiz MLA Jodie Byram, PC Critic for Families. “Today was an opportunity to work together towards solutions and show families that their voices are being heard. The Kinew government keeps treating each tragedy as isolated incidents, but it’s clear that the system is going in the wrong direction.”
Byram’s motion called on the provincial government to immediately appoint a commissioner to conduct a public inquiry into the systemic failures of the CFS system under The Manitoba Evidence Act. The motion was preceded by a week of unsuccessful attempts by Opposition MLAs to get answers from the government during Question Period regarding the CFS system.
The call comes after several concerning incidents and violent deaths of youth in care, particularly young Indigenous girls.
On Feb. 11, 2024, 17-year-old Myah-Lee Gratton was tragically killed in Carman, allegedly by her cousin’s boyfriend. It was later revealed to media that CFS neglected Myah-Lee’s calls two months prior in which she begged to be removed from the unsafe foster home. At the time, the premier stated that an inquiry would take place if questions remained.
Two years later, on Valentine’s Day, Avontei Hartleib was murdered in Winnipeg while in the care of CFS. A group home worker who helped care for the 18 year old alleged that Avontei’s life was endangered by the conditions at the group home where she lived and by a lack of CFS support.
This summer, 4-year-old Allora Bone-Shingoose died on Long Plain First Nation in CFS care, while her younger sisters were hospitalized in critical condition. The girls’ mother has since alleged that the concerns she raised about possible abuse of Allora went unanswered. She also claims that she completed requirements in order to have her children returned to her, yet reunification did not happen.
Following Myah-Lee’s 2024 death, Midland MLA Lauren Stone brought forward a motion to bring experts to the table to review the laws protecting Manitoba’s children. Fontaine blocked that motion. Stone likewise called for an urgent public debate on foster care. Fontaine dismissed the motion, indicating that she was too busy.
Other concerns in the system have also arisen under Fontaine’s watch. Last year, the number of Manitoba children in care increased for the first time in a decade—since the last time the NDP were in government. It was also discovered that the Kinew government had begun placing kids in hotels, a practice that ran rampant under the Doer/Selinger government and halted by Progressive Conservatives. Fontaine was an advisor to the former NDP government at the time.
“We are seeing the same patterns emerge under the Kinew NDP that led to similar crises under their predecessors,” said Byram. “Manitobans will not stand by and accept the status quo any longer. Vulnerable children are at risk due to the lack of oversight and poor standards set by the Minister of Families.”
“Every child deserves to be safe, loved, and connected to family, culture, and community. I will not stop standing up for those who need their voices heard and for children who are falling through the cracks in the child welfare system.”
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