Ontario’s rape crisis centres await details from the provincial government on a $2 million funding announcement — and while the additional money is welcome, they say it is received “with some trepidation.”

“This announcement comes a week after the Ministry of the Attorney General confirmed its plan to end $1 million in funding to sexual assault centres in Ontario to address demands for service and crushing wait lists for supportive counselling to survivors of sexual assault across Ontario,” said a statement from the Ontario Coalition of Rape Crisis Centres.

The coalition said that the new, $2 million from a different ministry — community and social services — as part of an initiative to combat human trafficking is “(received) with some trepidation. While we share the priorities identified, such as preventing human trafficking and supporting sexually exploited survivors of violence, this funding comes with unknown parameters at this time.”

At an unrelated event in Scarborough Monday morning, Premier Doug Ford said the money will permanently be added to the 42 centres’ budgets.

He did not comment on whether the funding changes could have been better handled by his government.

“We’re going to be putting $2 million dollars in,” he said. “And I know they’re quite happy and pleased with the announcement … and we look forward to always supporting them.”

The centres had initially been expecting about $14 million over three years, as promised by the previous Liberal government before the 2018 election, to hire much-needed staff, provide more supports and services and help clear wait lists, following decades of underfunding. Some centres have been operating with the same staffing levels as the 1990s.

Then, last year, the Ministry of the Attorney General provided an additional $1 million in funding. Then, two weeks ago, it notified the Ontario Coalition of Rape Crisis Centres that the money would not be renewed when it expired at the end of March.

Centres were left reeling, worried about having to cut services and growing wait lists.

“Some of our agencies received a really generic letter, and it did say the ($2 million) is specific to trafficked victims, but we don’t know what that will look like,” said Nicole Pietsch of the coalition.

It could pose challenges as not all survivors of sexual assault will identify as having been trafficked. “We might not hear that on intake,” she added. “It might take awhile to figure it out.”

About eight of the centres already provide services to those who have been trafficked.

A spokesperson for Jill Dunlop, associate minister of children and women’s issues, said the money is meant for human trafficking initiatives, but realizes centres need flexibility.

“This funding will be determined by the metrics established by the Ministry of the Attorney General, and factors including regional demand, the types of programming these centres provide to victims, and the size of the population they serve will be taken into account,” Spence said. “In the coming weeks, our government will be providing these centres with further details on this matter.”

Spence said “our government recognizes the great work being done to provide trauma-informed care for all victims of sexual assault, from gender-based violence to human trafficking.”

The attorney general will continue to provide $14.8 million annually to the sexual assault centres.

The centres have seen a huge increase in demand, especially in light of the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements which have focused on sexual assault and harassment.

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NDP Leader Andrea Horwath said it is “shameful, that for decades, rape crisis centres have not gotten the funding that they needed … when people have had violent sexual assaults and have to wait 10 months to a year to get counselling, that’s absolutely wrong.”

Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner said “for the government to put them through that … was reckless and irresponsible.”