There were very strong concerns by witnesses and in briefs that this bill doesn't move us forward from the Harper assessment bill. Simply, it's a selective listing of effects, and there are many that are missing.
The recommendation is that it would include physical activities and designated projects, but it would also include physical activities “related to a decision by a federal authority”, or that could “occur in a province other than the one where the physical activity or designated”—in order words, transboundary—or “occur in a situation where there is related financing by a federal authority, or occur in a situation that is subject to federal legislative jurisdiction”. That's very important, because it's missing. And again, “affect the Indigenous peoples of Canada, including their rights as enshrined under the United Nations Declaration”.
This is a common recommendation from countless briefs and testimony. People are deeply concerned with the extremely narrow definition of “effects within federal jurisdiction” in this bill. The promise was that we would have an expanded bill that would cover all matters of federal jurisdiction. If this definition remains, then we know we're going to have a continuation of the federal government not reviewing the vast number of projects in Canada.