Bill C-29

National Council for Reconciliation Act

An Act to provide for the establishment of a national council for reconciliation

This enactment provides for the establishment of a national council for reconciliation as an independent, non-political, permanent and Indigenous-led organization whose purpose is to advance reconciliation between Indigenous peoples and non-Indigenous peoples.

[Cassidy Caron, President, Métis National Council]

Thank you.

Tansi, everyone.

My name is Cassidy Caron. I sit before you today as the president of the Métis National Council, which has been the recognized national and international representative of the Métis nation in Canada since 1983.

The Métis National Council, for those of you who may not know, is composed of, and receives its mandate from, the democratically elected leadership within provincial Métis governments currently within the provinces of Ontario, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia.

In 2017, the Government of Canada and Métis governments entered into the Canada‒Métis Nation Accord. Among its objectives, the accord seeks to advance reconciliation of the rights, claims, interests and aspirations of the Métis nation. Four of five Métis governments recognized as signatories to this accord are the governments that currently compose the Métis National Council.

Our Métis governments, through their registries and democratically elected governance structures at the local, regional and provincial levels, are mandated and authorized to represent Métis nation citizens within their respective jurisdictions, including in dealing with collectively held Métis rights, interests and outstanding claims against the Crown.

Since 1983, the Métis National Council's priority has always been to advance the distinct Métis voice at the national and international levels, and we will continue to advance issues of collective importance and serve the Métis nation as our original founders intended.

I want to begin this morning by extending my gratitude for the work that has been done by the transitional committee to date in developing this legislation and to the interim board that sat in 2017 and 2018 to provide guidance to this transitional committee, and to all those who participated in and contributed to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, where this idea of a national council for truth and reconciliation was first articulated as an accountability mechanism. A significant amount of work by a significant number of individuals who have dedicated their time and effort has brought us to this point today. Their efforts must be recognized.

While a significant amount of time has passed since the release of the recommendation to establish the national council, we would rather not dwell on the time that has passed but rather focus our attention now towards the significant amount of work that lies ahead on our journeys toward reconciliation. Fulfilling TRC call to action 53 will be a significant step in the right direction on our collective journey forward in this country, and Bill C-29 is an important piece of legislation that can serve to support our ongoing and continued efforts on the journey of reconciliation.

While Bill C-29 will support this through the creation of this independent, non-political, permanent and indigenous-led organization, we believe that in some circumstances the legislation does not go quite far enough to provide for the federal government to truly lay the foundation to also address call to action 55, which is a piece that is critical to setting this national council up for success and ensuring that progress is made. Call to action 55 calls on the Government of Canada to provide key information to the council to support its mandate, including reports or data requested by the national council.

As it's currently written, the legislation fails to provide for mechanisms or enablers, such as a subpoena power, to ensure that this government or subsequent governments into the future cannot shield or refuse to provide full access to reports or data required to meet its mandate. It is important to ask how this council will successfully monitor the state of reconciliation without legislated powers to access this critical data.

I will note, however, that a key role and function of the Métis National Council through its dedicated seat on this council will be to support the implementation of call to action 55, thereby contributing to the success of the National Council for TRC.

As we move down a pathway toward data sovereignty, the Métis National Council aims to support our Métis governments in the areas of information governance and management, and it is working toward being able to collect, analyze, evaluate and govern Métis nation data, including data that will be able to contribute to reports on the progress toward reconciliation.

Furthermore, the purpose and function of the council, as set out in the proposed legislation, are in line with the Métis National Council's understanding of how we, collectively, will continue to advance reconciliation efforts. The research and reports that will be produced by the national council can also provide a very important opportunity to highlight the positive work taking place within our communities as it relates to reconciliation.

I will end by once again thanking the individuals who have contributed to the development of this legislation. As the recognized national Métis voice, I applaud the particular attention in the legislation to ensuring that indigenous voices will be a majority on this council, as well as the protection of the three national indigenous organizations' ability to appoint board members.

It's our hope that the end result of this legislation will be the formation of a national council board that can apply a distinctions-based approach and fulfill its mandate to the best of its ability for all indigenous peoples.

Thank you.

[Natan Obed, President, Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami]

Nakurmiik. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

It's good to see everyone here in person.

We are pleased to offer our views on Bill C-29 and the creation of a national council on reconciliation.

The work of the truth and reconciliation commission, the national inquiry on murdered and missing indigenous women and girls and many other initiatives have been foundational to identifying and describing the widespread trauma inflicted upon indigenous peoples during the colonial era and its connection to the current situation of indigenous peoples.

While Inuit Nunangat, our homeland, comprises over 40% of Canada's land mass and 72% of Canada's coastline, it is remote and often removed from the consideration of policy-makers, government officials and most Canadians. We appreciate the broad scope of the act and provisions designed to address reconciliation measures.

In some cases, Inuit have shared experiences with other indigenous peoples, yet in many cases, the impacts of colonization have affected Inuit in a distinct fashion. We have worked with the Government of Canada for a distinctions-based approach to reconciliation for justice but also for the work moving forward with the Government of Canada. Some examples of this—and many of these initiatives have flowed through the Inuit-Crown partnership committee—are things such as ensuring Inuit inclusion for those who are excluded in the Indian residential schools settlement agreement, further and greater federal recognition of and actions with respect to the Qikiqtani truth commission, securing recognition and an apology for the Ahiarmiut relocation in central Nunavut, and completing long-standing work on the Nanilavut initiative for families to identify the graves of loved ones who had been taken south for treatment in sanatoriums for tuberculosis. If they did pass away, their families and loved ones weren't notified and were not told the place where they had been buried.

A challenge with many pan-indigenous exercises is that the specific impacts of colonization of Inuit and the specific means of moving forward could be lost. We note that the proposed body is mainly focused on reporting and awareness raising. It would not be in a position to provide meaningful redress for the ongoing impacts of colonization. This is the reason ITK has proposed an indigenous peoples human rights tribunal through the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the implementation of that act to ensure that government accountability is clearly catalogued for recourse and remedy for all those situations in which Inuit human rights have not been upheld or have been violated.

This particular piece of legislation aims to do something completely different, and therefore there are many different pieces that are needed. Tribunals, boards, or bodies need to be created during this time to ensure that we implement not only the calls to action from the TRC and the calls for justice for the MMIWG inquiry but also implement the legislation on the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

For these reasons, ITK often advocates the inclusion of Inuit representatives within and on federal bodies that have an impact on Inuit rights, and, further, that Inuit should be able to determine Inuit representation.

We do not have specific amendments for you today. We are still in the process of understanding this legislation and talking it through with our board of directors, but the principles raised by National Chief Archibald are very similar to the ones that I believe we would be making to ensure that the council is composed of representatives of first nations, Inuit and Métis and that these appointment processes will be very different under this proposed legislation because it is the creation of a not-for-profit society versus a governmental agency.

I look forward to further conversations with you all on this particular bill in the time that has been allotted.

[National Chief RoseAnne Archibald]

In terms of the recommendations from the AFN, we feel it's inappropriate for the federal government to grant itself the discretion to appoint the majority of the board of directors responsible for providing this independent oversight of its own actions. This is not within the spirit and intent of reconciliation, and it's very paternalistic.

The AFN proposes that clause 10 be amended to provide for the following nominations of the first board of directions: Assembly of First Nations, three nominees; ITK, two nominees; MNC, two nominees; and the remaining two to five nominees to be nominated and appointed by the minister in collaboration with the transition committee. This proposal ensures that the majority of nominations to the first board of directors will remain with the AFN, ITK and MNC, and not the federal government.

The second part of the recommendation is an actual amendment we're suggesting. The second recommendation is around clause 12, which deals with representativeness. It says that the board of directors “must, to the extent possible”, include first nation, Métis, Inuit, and other peoples in Canada. What we're saying as the AFN is that it is of the utmost importance that the NCR board of directors include first nation representation. It should not be “to the extent possible”, but that there must be first nation representatives on the board of directors.

I will wrap it up there—oh, sorry. There is an actual proposed amendment: The AFN proposes that clause 12 be amended to provide that the council's board shall include representation from first nations.

The third portion is not an amendment. It is around funding. Bill C-29 actually includes no provisions with respect to funding or operational budgets; it simply states that the NCR must fulfill financial reporting requirements. Again, we have a proposed amendment under funding. In order for the NCR to be truly independent and adequately resourced, the AFN recommends that Bill C-29 be amended to include guaranteed funding provisions to ensure that the important work of the NCR be sustained into the future.

I want to thank you, despite some of our technical problems. We will submit the full speech that I have prepared in writing.

I want to say meegwetch, thank you; ninanâskomon, which in my language means, “I'm grateful, I'm thankful, I thank you”; and kisâkihitin, which means, “I love you”.

[National Chief RoseAnne Archibald, Assembly of First Nations]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

My comments might go over, so I think I might just jump quickly to the recommendations that the AFN has with respect to this bill.

[Witness spoke in Cree and provided the following text:]

Wahcheeyay misiway. RoseAnne Archibald nitishinikahsoon. Taykwa Tagmou ishinakataow kawocheean.

[Witness provided the following translation:]

Greetings, everyone. My name is RoseAnne Archibald and the place I come from is called Taykwa Tagmou.

[English]

I am happy to be here today to speak to the committee. I'm just trying to find my notes, if you could give me just a moment.

As I said, I'm here to share the AFN perspective on Bill C-29. I'll be providing a summary of AFN's perspective on the legacy of those former residential institutions. I don't call them schools anymore. They were institutions of assimilation and genocide where thousands of our children died.

I'll speak to the implementation of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada's calls to actions 53 to 56. I'll share with you some of AFN's concerns with Bill C-29.

I'm just going to jump ahead to that, Mr. Chair, because I feel like I might run out of time in terms of the amendments that we have to the bill, and the suggestions.

In terms of the nominations, clause 8 of the proposed act sets out that the first board of directors will be chosen by the minister “in collaboration with the transition committee”.

Clause 9 states that the board will have “a minimum of nine” directors and that the AFN, the ITK and the Métis National Council will each nominate one board director. Presumably, the minister would then have the discretion to appoint the remaining six to nine members of the first board of directors. Essentially, the minister has the authority to nominate and appoint two-thirds of the NCR's first board of directors.

Clause 11 requires that at least two-thirds of the directors must be indigenous, but no distinction is made between first nations, Inuit and Métis people.

Given the history of these institutions on our people, it's really of primary importance that the NCR board of directors be truly independent of government and also be reflective of the overwhelming impact that these institutions had on first nations people, so it's very concerning that under Bill C-29, the minister is given the broad discretion to appoint the majority of—

[Émilie Thivierge, Legislative Clerk]

In just a few words also, my role as the legislative clerk assigned to Bill C-29 will be to assist the committee during the clause-by-clause consideration of the bill. If members of the committee have any questions about the procedural admissibility of any amendments they would like to submit once they have been drafted by Alexandra or if you have any questions concerning the clause-by-clause study of the bill, please don't hesitate to contact me at your earliest convenience.

In order to assist the committee in conducting an orderly clause-by-clause study, I will organize all the amendments that members submit to the clerk into a package of amendments. I will also prepare an agenda that includes each clause of the bill and any submitted amendments. This will be circulated to all members of the committee shortly after the deadline to submit amendments. I will also be present in the room for the clause-by-clause consideration of the bill.

My contact information can be found in the memo the clerk has already sent to all committee members.

I will be happy to answer any questions committee members may have regarding the procedural admissibility of amendments they may wish to make to Bill C‑29 and to provide advice in a confidential manner, as my colleague Ms. Schrorah said.

Furthermore, I encourage all members to contact my colleague to have their amendments written in both official languages as soon as possible.

Finally, if members have any questions, I encourage them to contact me without hesitation.

[The Chair, Liberal, Marc Garneau]

Finally, today we have Émilie Thivierge, who is a legislative clerk, and Alexandra Schorah, who is a legislative counsel. They are here to explain how they can assist us if we wish to propose amendments to Bill C‑29.

Ms. Thivierge and Ms. Schorah, you have the floor.

[The Chair, Liberal, Marc Garneau]

I call the meeting to order. Good morning, everyone.

Welcome to meeting number 33 of the Standing Committee on Indigenous and Northern Affairs.

We are gathered here today on the unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinabe nation.

We have a few items of housekeeping before we get to our invited witnesses on Bill C-29.

First, we must approve the proposed budget for consideration of Bill C‑29, which you all received.

Do the committee members agree to approve the budget?

[The Chair, Liberal, Marc Garneau]

Thank you, Mr. Battiste.

This ends our second round of questions.

I'd like to thank the minister for being with us and answering our questions on Bill C‑29.

I'd also like to thank Ms. Ledgerwood, Mr. Garrow and Ms. Sunga for being here today and for answering some of our questions as we continue, in committee stage, to look at Bill C-29.

With that, I remind the committee that our next meeting is on Monday the 17th—we won't be here next week—when we'll continue our study on Bill C-29.

Thank you very much, everyone.

With that, the meeting is adjourned.

[Gérard Deltell, Conservative, Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC]

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. I salute your achievement 38 years ago.

Ladies and gentlemen, I'm very pleased to be with you today.

My best wishes to you, Mr. Chair.

I want to say that whenever I've had dealings with the minister with respect to the indigenous community in my riding, we've always worked well together. I want to thank him publicly for that.

Indeed, I have the privilege to represent the community of Wendake. The Huron-Wendat are established here, on the ancestral lands, and have been living here on a more permanent basis for over 300 years. I had the privilege of representing them for seven years in the Quebec National Assembly, and now I have been representing them for seven years in the House of Commons. I say that with pride because I was born next to Wendake, in Loretteville, which is just a mile from that community. I grew up with the people of Wendake, and I am very proud to represent them. Unfortunately, that representation will end in the next election because of the electoral redistribution. So if I run again and am re‑elected, I will no longer have the privilege of representing them. It breaks my heart. Electoral redistribution isn't done based on the moods of the members, but rather on demographics.

That being said, I would like to commend the minister and come back to what Ms. Gill said earlier about the various governments.

As we know, there is a department in Quebec that deals with first nations affairs. I've forgotten the official name of that department. In any event, I think the minister responsible is well recognized and has done a good job in recent years.

Bill C‑29 calls for the creation of a national council for reconciliation, which will be very important. We want everyone to work together. Of course, no one is against virtue. However, when there is jurisdictional overlap, that's when problems can arise.

In the context of this council that will be created, I would like to know how the minister sees the fit between the federal government, which is the lead on first nations matters, and the provinces, particularly Quebec, which have jurisdiction over the issues.

I would like to know the minister's vision on this.

[Marc Miller, Liberal, Ville-Marie—Le Sud-Ouest—Île-des-Soeurs, QC]

Bill C‑29 provides for an audit process to ensure that everything is as it should be. There is a process established by the Canada Not-for-Profit Corporations Act. In this bill, we have tried to ensure that the government cannot, on its own, make radical changes to that process without introducing a new bill. In other words, it would open itself up to criticism if it tried to interfere with the process.

So I think that everything is in place to ensure the independence of the body. In any event, there will always be provisions for that in the Canada Not-for-Profit Corporations Act.

[Marc Miller, Liberal, Ville-Marie—Le Sud-Ouest—Île-des-Soeurs, QC]

First, I think people are generally very happy with the principle of Bill C‑29. Where it gets complicated is that everyone wants their voice around the table. It's going to be difficult at the end of the day if everyone wants to be represented. There are stakeholders who are very political. I don't blame them for that. Unfortunately, difficult choices will have to be made. Most of the time, people who are independent are not politicians. People can also be political without being politicians. In the end, it will be a hard choice. All in all, I think people, looking back, will be very happy with the bill.

[Marc Miller, Liberal, Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations]

Thank you, Mr. Chair. Please cut me off if I drag on.

Kwe kwe. Ullukkut. Tansi. Hello.

Before I begin, I would like to acknowledge that Canada's Parliament is located on the unceded traditional territory of the Algonquin Anishinaabeg people.

I'd like to thank the chair of the committee for inviting me to appear today to speak about Bill C-29, an act to provide for the establishment of a national council for reconciliation.

I look forward to answering these questions, because strengthening this bill and ensuring we move forward on this are priorities for all of us.

We marked the second National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on September 30, last Friday. Indigenous and non-indigenous people across the country came together in their orange shirts to continue to learn about the legacy of the residential schools and the intergenerational impacts. Orange shirts alone are not enough, though. We have to continue to take concrete steps towards reconciliation.

As committee members know, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission published its final report and calls to action seven years ago. Among the commission's calls to action, number 53 calls upon Parliament to establish a national council for reconciliation, while numbers 54, 55 and 56 expanded on the roles, responsibilities, and expectations for the council and the various levels of government. These calls to action are saying that, as a country, we need to measure our progress on reconciliation. We must be held accountable for our promises to indigenous peoples.

That's why we must implement the calls to action as envisioned by the TRC. It's important that the board of the national council for reconciliation be diverse and reflective of all indigenous people in Canada. If the bill is passed, as Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations, I would collaborate with a transitional committee to appoint the first board of directors. The first council would then establish a process to nominate and elect future board directors, in accordance with the legislation stipulated in the bill.

The board would comprise nine to 13 directors, at least two-thirds of whom are indigenous. Three directors must be nominated by the Assembly of First Nations, Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami and the Métis National Council, respectively. These criteria would apply to the first board, as well as to the future board once the council is incorporated.

In particular, the council will include representation from first nations, Inuit, Métis, indigenous organizations, youth, women, men, gender diverse persons, and various regions in Canada, including urban, rural and remote regions.

It is important to understand that the government does not own or dictate this process. This is a collaboration, and it has been since the beginning, as this bill was jointly developed with indigenous leaders.

Indigenous leaders led the interim board and transitional committee. They provided independent advice and recommendations that were instrumental in shaping the legislative framework before you.

One example of those recommendations is the decision to set up the council as a not-for-profit entity. Incorporating the national council for reconciliation as a not-for-profit organization under the Canada Not-for-profit Corporations Act utilizes the existing legislation to set up the council. Moreover, it establishes and enables the council to be incorporated as a legal entity that operates completely independently from the Government of Canada. It will give the council legal status under the act and allow it to, for example, freely enter into contracts and have bank accounts. The council will also be able to independently fundraise for projects and future work.

It's important to note that budget 2019 announced a total of $126.5 million in funding for the national council for reconciliation, including $1.5 million to support the first year of operation. The funding can be used by the board to establish their endowment for future work, which was very important to the interim board.

I am grateful to the TRC commissioners, the interim board members, the transitional committee members, survivors, and especially the families, and all indigenous and non-indigenous people who participated in the engagement process. Their contribution was essential in shaping this important legislation.

I am happy to answer all your questions.

Meegwetch. Qujannamiik. Marsee. Thank you. Merci.

[The Chair, Liberal, Marc Garneau]

Thank you very much. We will now resume.

Welcome, Minister. As you know, we have begun, as of today, our study in committee of Bill C-29. We welcome you to the committee.

The officials surrounding you have answered questions for the past half-hour, and we will continue now with you. If you would like to make an opening statement, please do so. Try to keep it to five minutes. Then we'll proceed to questions.

Thank you.

[Kate Ledgerwood]

Thank you very much for the question.

As we've mentioned, Bill C-29 is to provide the frame for establishing the council, and I think one of the messages that perhaps we'll say, which we've heard quite clearly through the transitional committee and the interim board, was to create the frame but to let the council, once it's established, determine what its roles, responsibilities and functions—all of that—will be.

Really, as we've mentioned, it's supposed to be an arm's-length independent organization. For that reason, there are things that we can't predict, or we wouldn't want to suggest that we know how they will set these things up. The intention was always that the legislation creates that frame and the guidance so that the council can do the work in the future.

Your question is a great question. It's something that's difficult for us to answer now because we wouldn't want to suggest that we know in advance what the council, once it's established, would look to do in terms of its work. As Andy mentioned, there will be annual reports that will be coming. The council will have the range of what it would like to report on, and the government will be required to respond to the reports they provide us.

[Lori Idlout, NDP, Nunavut, NU]

[Member spoke in Inuktitut, interpreted as follows:]

Thank you very much.

Please feel welcome, for you have made us understand many things about this bill, Bill C-29, before it was established. That accountability is very important to us aboriginal people. Indigenous people have been expecting this for reconciliation.

For many of us who are indigenous, our rights have been broken and have not been protected. In the legislation you're requesting, is there any protection for aboriginal and indigenous rights?