OTTAWA — Indigenous Affairs Minister Carolyn Bennett says the federal government is determined to overhaul the First Nations child welfare system, even though critics say the budget fell far short of meeting expectations.

Bennett says additional capacity is needed so First Nations can control child welfare services.

Indigenous Affairs Minister Carolyn Bennett stands in the House of Commons during question period on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Friday, March 11, 2016. (Photo: Fred Chartrand/CP)

Cindy Blackstock, a social worker who spent nine years fighting the government on the underfunding of reserve care, criticizes the Liberals for failing to spend $200 million this year.

In the legal fight, Blackstock and the Assembly of First Nations argued that the federal government failed to provide First Nations children with the same level of welfare services that exist elsewhere, contrary to the Canadian Human Rights Act.

At the end of January, the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal ruled in their favour and the government decided not to appeal.