Bloomberg via Getty Images Bill Morneau, Canada's finance minister, speaks during a press conference before tabling the Fall Economic Statement in Ottawa.

TORONTO — The federal government announced Saturday it will invest nearly half a million dollars in improving the safety of Canada's LGBTQ community in the wake of the killings of eight men with ties to Toronto's gay village. Finance Minister Bill Morneau said the government will provide $450,000 to Pride Toronto to lead an initiative that aims to improve the relationship between the LGBTQ community and the criminal justice system. "For too long, the LGBTQ2 community has encountered injustice from various institutions in our society in ways that have prevented people from living their lives more fully and contributing their strengths to our country," Morneau said at The 519, a Toronto-based agency that advocates for the LGBTQ community.

Andrew Francis Wallace via Getty Images Investigators sift through compost looking for human remains in the back area of 53 Mallory Crescent in Toronto. The property is linked to the Bruce McArthur murder investigation.

Morneau, who is also the MP for Toronto Centre, did not specifically name Bruce McArthur, who faces eight counts of first-degree murder, but said the funding comes as "violent murders" have been uncovered in the city. McArthur made his first appearance in Ontario's Superior Court of Justice earlier this month, and a judge said he could stand trial as early as next September. "The groups in this riding have led the way in demanding meaningful change," Morneau said Saturday. "We know there has been a long and turbulent history between the criminal justice system and LGBTQ2 Canadians. Certainly residents of Toronto Centre know about this issue here locally." Members of the LGBTQ community have accused Toronto police of failing to seriously investigate the disappearances of men linked to the city's gay neighbourhood in the years leading up to McArthur's arrest in January.

Carlos Osorio via Getty Images People walked and carried the names of people who died by homicide in the Church and Wellesley area during the Toronto Pride Parade.