MP Charlie Angus wants FedNor to show northern Ontario the money

The federal Liberals don't dispute assertions from NDP MP Charlie Angus that  FedNor's budget shrank under the previous Conservative government.

And while the parliamentary secretary for the Minister of Innovation, Greg Fergus, wouldn't say specifically how the Liberals would address the funding issue, he said the importance of FedNor will be demonstrated in the future.

"It depends which baseline you're looking at, but I certainly know that we consider it an important priority and that, as a result, it will be reflective of the party," he said.

"You'll see the numbers that will reflect that priority."

Angus is calling on the Liberal government to restore funding to FedNor.

He told CBC News the government's own records show millions that were allocated to FedNor were never spent and lapsed into general revenue.

In the fiscal year 2013-2014, $8.5 million earmarked for FedNor was not spent.

Suspicions confirmed

"FedNor is part of what is now the massive innovation and science portfolio, so it's really (hard) to find the money," he said.

"It's like a shell game, so these documents are really important because they show what we've known all along — that the cuts are there."

Fergus did not say whether any projects went unfunded when the $8.5 million went back into general revenue.

"Mr. Angus is correct that the budget has gone down for FedNor over the number of years, and there's also been some lapsed funding in that," Fergus said.

"But what I can certainly say is that … this new government has a very different attitude toward regional development agencies."

Angus said communities and organizations have long suspected that FedNor was spending less.

"People are being told there's no money," he said.

"Well, there's no money because the documents are showing that what is actually happening is that there's this ongoing undermining of the role FedNor plays in northern Ontario."