PM Mark Carney via PMO official Facebook Page
OTTAWA — Prime Minister Mark Carney is promising to put Indigenous partnerships at the centre of Canada’s push to build major projects, but Treaty 8 chiefs say Ottawa must move beyond consultation and access to borrowed money by sharing the public revenues generated from resources on Treaty lands.
Carney convened more than 250 First Nations leaders, regional organizations and rights holders in Gatineau, Que., for the First Nations Major Projects Summit to discuss the Building Canada Act and the federal government’s plans to accelerate projects considered in the national interest.
The federal government announced plans to create an Indigenous Advisory Council to work with the new Major Federal Projects Office, provide $40 million to support Indigenous participation in major projects and expand the Indigenous Loan Guarantee Program to $10 billion.
Carney said major projects built in collaboration with Indigenous Peoples will be at the forefront of the government’s economic agenda.
“It’s time to build big projects that will transform and connect our economy,” Carney said. “Central to this mission is shared leadership with Indigenous Peoples.”
The federal government says the Building Canada Act requires meaningful consultation with Indigenous Peoples on projects considered to be in the national interest and the conditions attached to their development.
Ottawa says projects will move forward while respecting constitutionally protected Indigenous rights, modern treaties and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
However, chiefs representing Treaty 8 First Nations in Alberta emerged from subsequent talks with Carney calling for a more formal relationship with Ottawa and a share of government revenues generated from natural resources.
Treaty 8 chiefs joined leaders from Treaties 6 and 7 and the Blackfoot Confederacy in a July 11 meeting with Carney, Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Rebecca Alty and Minister of Emergency Management and Community Resilience Eleanor Olszewski.
Treaty 8 chiefs called on Carney to immediately establish a bilateral table between Treaty 8 First Nations and Canada to provide an ongoing mechanism for negotiations over Treaty implementation and shared priorities.
They also called for resource revenue sharing to become a central part of Canada’s economic reconciliation agenda.
The chiefs said First Nations support responsible economic development but must receive a fair share of public revenues generated from oil, natural gas, forestry, mining and other resources developed within Treaty territory.
They argued opportunities to borrow money to purchase equity stakes in major projects are not a substitute for resource revenue sharing.
“Treaty 8’s message to the Prime Minister was straightforward: if Canada is serious about nation-building, then Treaty Nations must be nation-building partners,” Grand Chief Trevor Mercredi said.
“That means establishing a formal bilateral table and finally advancing resource revenue sharing so our Nations share in the prosperity generated from our Treaty lands.”
The position exposes a point of friction between Ottawa’s major-projects strategy and Treaty 8 leaders over what meaningful economic partnership should look like.
The federal government has emphasized Indigenous equity ownership, doubling its loan guarantee program to help communities acquire stakes in major projects.
Treaty 8 chiefs are seeking a broader arrangement where First Nations receive a portion of public revenues generated from resources within their traditional territories, regardless of whether communities borrow money to invest directly in individual projects.
“These are long-standing Treaty issues that require action, not further study,” Mercredi said.
Despite those differences, both sides expressed support for continued government-to-government discussions and Indigenous participation in major economic projects.
Ottawa says collaboration will continue through regional dialogue tables, while Treaty 8 chiefs asked Carney to direct federal ministers and senior officials to establish bilateral implementation tables addressing resource revenue sharing, major projects, Treaty implementation, health, education and other obligations.
The chiefs also raised concerns about the Alberta separation movement, stressing Treaty rights are constitutionally protected and cannot be diminished through provincial legislation or a future independence initiative.
According to Treaty 8 First Nations of Alberta, Carney reaffirmed Canada’s commitment to uphold the Constitution and recognized the importance of First Nations in any future process.
The discussions come as Ottawa seeks to accelerate major energy, transportation and resource projects while navigating longstanding demands from First Nations for greater authority over development and a larger share of the wealth generated from their traditional territories.
Comments