Article content

OTTAWA — Faith-based groups are largely welcoming the government’s overhaul of its summer jobs attestation, saying it addresses the biggest problems that prevented many organizations from signing it in 2018.

“It’s unfortunate that we were in this position to begin with,” said Neil MacCarthy, communications director for the Catholic Archdiocese of Toronto. “That said, I think the changes for 2019 are certainly an improvement from where we were this time last year.”

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or 'The values test is gone': Faith groups welcome changes to summer jobs attestation Back to video

MacCarthy said he expects most religious groups will be able to sign this year’s version — though whether they get approved for funding remains to be seen. “People have said, ‘Well, at least I can apply in good conscience,'” he said.

The new attestation drops much of the controversial language from the 2018 version, which required applicants to attest that their “core mandate” respects abortion rights. Hundreds of religious organizations argued they couldn’t sign such a statement because it violated their beliefs, despite the government’s insistence it only referred to activities.