WINNIPEG — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is scheduled to address a national group representing Ukrainian Canadians today in Winnipeg.
He is also likely to hear a request from the Manitoba government for more money to help Ukrainians fleeing the war.
Premier Heather Stefanson says Manitoba is pleased to have welcomed nearly 12,000 Ukrainians since the Russian invasion began last February.
But she says the province needs federal funds to help pay for housing, health care, education and other needs for newcomers.
Stefanson says Manitoba received more than 10% of all Ukrainians who entered Canada and has less than 4% of the country’s population.
Stefanson and Trudeau are due to speak at the start of a three-day meeting of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress.
“They don’t declare them as refugees and give them refugee status, and normally that comes with federal funding,” Stefanson said of the federal government in an interview Thursday.
“They have a role here. They should have a role. And we’ve had discussions with them, but that won’t stop us from doing what we’re doing (supporting the Ukrainians).”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published on October 28, 2022
