A look at the federal fund for parents of murdered or missing children

OTTAWA – Victims groups say there are multiple issues with an employment insurance-delivered benefit set up by the previous Conservative government to help parents of murdered or missing children. Here’s a by-the-numbers look at the issue:

— $10 million: Amount budgeted annually for the program

— $70,490: Amount spent on the program in the 2013-14 fiscal year, according to government spending reports known as the public accounts.

— $95,830: Amount spent on the program in the 2014-15 fiscal year, according to the public accounts.

— $350: Amount before taxes eligible parents can receive weekly through the program.

— 35: Maximum number of weeks parents can receive the benefit.

— $12,250: Maximum, before tax, parents can receive under the program.

— 51: The number of children under 18 who were victims of homicide, on average, between 2010 and 2014, according to Statistics Canada.

— 609: Children under age 18 who went missing in 2014, according to the RCMP’s National Centre for Missing Persons and Unidentified Remains.

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