Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you to all the witnesses.
Madame Auditor General, thank you for your very informative report.
Let’s summarize the situation. Several billions of dollars were invested into Indigenous housing over the last few years, and yet there seems to be no results. That said, there’s a slight improvement in terms of repairs. Since 2015‑2016, the rate of housing requiring repair went down by one percentage point. As for the percentage of housing requiring replacement, in contrast, it went up by a percentage point during that same period. So, many people here, those listening and, above all, our friends among the First Nations, who are the most affected, are entitled to ask what this money was good for.
Fundamentally, if we have the humility and intellectual honesty needed to ask the right questions, we must reflect on the government’s approach to resolving problems experienced by First Nations. At best, this approach seems lacking; at worst, it is harmful.
I would very much like for the deputy minister—whom I’ve been watching for a while—to tell me what she thinks about the approach used. I would like her to tell me if we can completely redefine the federal government’s approach, from A‑to‑Z. That way, we could finally stop pumping in money that is doing no good whatsoever. We have to think of using an approach based on capacity building. This type of approach is in fact used in other areas, where it works better, and I will ask questions about that. I’m talking here about an approach where Indigenous people can build and finance their houses themselves. It might be a less colonialist approach.
I would very much like to hear Ms. Wilson’s opinion on that.