Northern Ontario MP to introduce bill aimed at making FedNor independent

Timmins-James Bay New Democrat MP Charlie Angus is slated to bring a private member's bill to Parliament that aims to strengthen FedNor, the economic development funding agency that serves northern Ontario.

The bill, if passed by the Liberal majority House of Commons, would establish FedNor as a standalone agency and re-instate a ministerial position to oversee it.

Angus told CBC News that the agency has seen big cuts to its funding and its ability to help economic development in the region.

"The reason we need it stand-alone is that our economy is fundamentally different from the south," he said. "We are resource-based. All the resources that come out of northern Ontario go to southern Ontario or Ottawa."

• NDP MP says $8.5M in FedNor funding went unspent

• Confidential report shows FedNor employees 'rattled' after decades of cuts

This isn't the first time Angus has set his sights on the current state of FedNor. In May, the NDP's parliamentary critic for the funding agency highlighted an Industry Canada report that showed low morale among front line employees, allegedly due to budget cuts.

Angus argued that making FedNor an independent agency would allow for more transparency and accountability.

"The reason FedNor was founded was so that we could get some economic diversification, so we could get off this boom-bust cycle," Angus said.

"We could start with small businesses, entrepreneurs, trying to get into the new economy."

Angus told CBC he's looking for support from northern Ontario's Liberal MPs.

Officials at FedNor could not be reached for comment Friday.