Mr. Speaker, I find the statements being made on this bill very sad.
Organization after organization, first nation government after first nation government, first nation national leaders and regional chiefs have all said they oppose this legislation.
Yes, the government, finally pressured after many iterations of the bill, did provide for some consultation. What it did not do is listen to what it was told.
The same issues have been raised time after time by the first nations. They would like to have the opportunity to develop their own legislation. Many of them have strong customary laws. They are saying this is all very fine and dandy; however, they are asking how they resolve this if there is no housing. In many cases, in isolated communities, the women do not even have access to a bus to meet with a lawyer, let alone to pay the retainer for the lawyer to go to court.
I wonder if the member would advise the House what the first nation organizations and governments told them and in what way the bill would respond to what they were told.