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Boos rained down on Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston as he addressed the crowd at an African Heritage Month gala in Halifax Saturday night, attempting to quell concerns about budget cuts.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we\u2019ve made changes that are causing harm or having unintended consequences, it\u2019s OK, we need to hear that directly,\u201d Houston said in remarks widely circulated on social media.<\/p>\n
Houston\u2019s Progressive Conservative government tabled a budget Monday that includes a deficit of $1.2 billion<\/a> and contains cuts to upwards of 1,000 full-time equivalent positions across the public service and $130 million in grants across a variety of government departments<\/a>, including programs aimed at Black and African Nova Scotia communities.<\/p>\n On Friday at the legislature, NDP MLA Suzy Hansen said communities were \u201cblindsided\u201d by the cuts.<\/p>\n \u201cThey didn\u2019t even know that these programs and this funding was going to be cut,\u201d she told reporters.<\/p>\n \u201cI think the consultation should have happened before.\u201d<\/p>\n Houston addressed those concerns during his speech on Saturday, saying he has a responsibility to manage the finances of the province and he takes that duty on knowing that there\u2019s a way to do it \u201cbut not diminish our commitment to equity.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019ll be lots of time, folks, I\u2019ll be happy to chat with anyone,\u201d the premier said as he persevered through jeering to read from prepared remarks.<\/p>\n \u201cAs a government, as a government we remain committed to supporting increased educational outcomes for African Nova Scotia communities. We remain committed to creating employment opportunities for African Nova Scotia communities and we remain committed to supporting the improved health outcomes in African Nova Scotia communities.\u201d<\/p>\n Houston said that if adjustments are needed, he and members of his cabinet will listen.<\/p>\n \u201cMinister Grosse will listen,\u201d he said, referring to African Nova Scotia Affairs Minister Twila Grosse.<\/p>\n \u201cMinister Grosse is committed to community and understands the weight of these decisions. But as a government we know that compassion is measured by what we do in tough times, not just by what we say in easy times.\u201d<\/p>\n Community needs explanation: NDP<\/p>\n Grosse told reporters at Province House on Friday that, as a member of the African Nova Scotian community, she understands and feels the impacts of the cuts.<\/p>\n \u201cBut my department, ANSA, will work in community to provide support and find efficiencies during this difficult time\u201d and minimize impacts, she said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe also remain committed to listening, engaging and serving our community with integrity.\u201d<\/p>\n Hansen said that communities affected by the cuts are owed an explanation, something some government members have struggled to provide so far. The MLA for Halifax-Needham said she\u2019s been hearing from people about the potential implications of the budget cuts.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you cut funding for scholarships, for health programs, for summer programs for our African Nova Scotian youth\u2014I mean, that\u2019s detrimental,\u201d said Hansen.<\/p>\n \u201cThat creates huge impacts for our communities moving forward and the government is going to have a long way to go to repair that trust.\u201d<\/p>\n Ryan Somers, who was working at the event as a DJ, took one of the videos, which is making the rounds on social media. He said the reaction from the crowd was one of frustration.<\/p>\n \u201cI’m sure there’s people in the crowd that know they don’t have a job anymore, or their job is about to end or their programs are going to be cut, so it’s going to cause chaos within their community,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Somers is also a teacher at Nova Scotia Community College and said he expects to be seeing the impact of some cuts first-hand. <\/p>\n More than $5 million in scholarship funding has been cut, and many African Nova Scotian students rely on the opportunities those scholarships afford, he said.<\/p>\n \u201cI mean it was already bad, numbers-wise, getting representation from those communities,\u201d Somers said. \u201cBut now it’s probably going to be non-existent.\u201d<\/p>\n ‘Deep concern’ over cuts<\/p>\n Houston\u2019s speech came on the same day that a prominent member of his cabinet, Natural Resources Minister Kim Masland, took to social media to address budget cuts that are affecting her constituents in the electoral district of Queens.<\/p>\n