Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you to the witness for coming.
I won't drag out my introductory remarks. We had a chance to share some thoughts and ideas, but for the record, Mr. Shanks, I do want to acknowledge the important work you've done over the course of your career in this specific area. I don't think there's a more timely instance in which your perspective would be more helpful to us.
Very briefly, I have five quick items. I had a chance to read your paper. I appreciated very much the public policy forum discussion you had, and it struck me that, indeed, as we found out in our trips, one size doesn't fit all. You've alluded to those challenges. Obviously, in the great Kenora riding we have first nations communities that are southern and border some of our towns and cities and have access to different kinds of economic development opportunities, and in stark contrast we have more than 25 first nations communities that are completely isolated, accessible only by winter road throughout the winter.
As you've said in your paper, it seems that economic development would be attached primarily to resource development, but there was economic infrastructure that you delivered to government as a message we must invest in.
The four points overarching were the legal instruments and legislation for modern governance, speed of business.... Notwithstanding the fact that the government does have a responsibility to ensure that the business plans being submitted have survived some degree of due diligence and are viable, there continued to be incentives for first nations. And as my colleague pointed out, one I generally agree with, own-source revenue appears to be a subject matter we need to discuss further--use, tenure, and jurisdiction of land, and, finally, economic infrastructure.
The steps required there are things like small business centres. For example, in communities those kinds of fairly safe assets generate a local economy but hopefully contribute to the development of regional activity, for example, in resource development.
With respect then to the use, tenure, and jurisdiction of land, in your paper you mention a high level of frustration with regard to the process of land designation and additions. We've heard lots about additions to reserves, so I was wondering if you could describe for us what specific legislative regulatory obstacles exist to economic development related to use of land and land management, and what specific recommendations you have for us to address them. I'm not sure I got as much of the specificities out of the paper as I needed.