Indigenous and Northern Affairs Committee on Dec. 3rd, 2014

[Colleen Swords]

My understanding is that there were consultations on various iterations of the bill, but the first nation communities in Yukon would have liked to have more consultation. We did fund consultations with them, and the amount for those doesn't actually appear in that consultation and accommodation item.

[Carolyn Bennett, Liberal, St. Paul's, ON]

On the issue of how it's reported, we feel very strongly that not only members of Parliament but also Canadians need to be able to understand where the money goes and how the reannouncement of the reannouncement, or the shell stuff around the infrastructure money losing A-base funding.

How do you as a new deputy feel that you can help people know where the money's going?

As you know, we are pretty disappointed that even the departmental documents on the 2012-13 performance report on Nutrition North said that the cost of the food basket went down 8%, when it actually went up 2.4%. What do you do when you find that you've tabled misinformation in Parliament?

[Colleen Swords]

I don't think we've tabled misinformation in Parliament. We do our best to report regularly through the report on plans and priorities, the estimates, every supplementary estimate, and the DPRs.

We do have to reallocate funding throughout the year. We have over $8 billion in the department that is funded under various programs, and in different years different programs require additional money depending on demographics and the need in a particular year.

Infrastructure itself is a program that we have a five-year investment plan for, but that can change. You can have a particular community that has a fire in a school and something has to change. You can have a situation in which you plan to fund something and then for whatever reason the community decides they want to change the overall scope or additional funding is required and something slips and you can't spend it that year.

Rather than having it lapse, we then move it and identify it for other years.

[Carolyn Bennett, Liberal, St. Paul's, ON]

And it looked like—

[The Chair, Conservative, Chris Warkentin]

Ms. Bennett...

[Carolyn Bennett, Liberal, St. Paul's, ON]

—money that was supposed to go to infrastructure went to social programs and education.

[The Chair, Conservative, Chris Warkentin]

Ms. Bennett, your time is up. I apologize that you weren't aware of that. I did want to give Ms. Swords the opportunity to finish that initial question.

Mr. Strahl, we'll refer to you now for the next question.

[Mark Strahl, Conservative, Chilliwack—Fraser Canyon, BC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I know we will have a chance to debate Bill S-6, if and when it's referred to this committee, but more than $98,000 was provided to Yukon first nations for consultation, specifically on the four items of concern they have raised. They requested $149,000 but were only reimbursed for about $99,000 because of the production of receipts. We'll have that discussion, perhaps, when that is referred.

I want to ask about the line requesting additional funding for Mi'kmaq education in Nova Scotia. That is an education system for first nations that is held in very high regard, having a higher graduation rate than, I believe, the Nova Scotian rate, so they're obviously doing something right there.

Can you talk a little about that system and explain what the additional resources are going to be used for.

[Colleen Swords]

Thank you very much.

Yes, the Mi'kmaq Education Act and the Mi'kmaq agreement are very successful and are our model for first nations education for the country. It's what we call a sectoral self-government agreement. It's a self-governing agreement for the Mi'kmaq that relates to education and has contributed significantly to closing an education gap between the Mi'kmaq communities and the children there and the provincial school system. At the same time it's provided culturally relevant programming, including Mi'kmaq language and culture. It came into effect in 1997. There were nine of 13 first nations then and now the agreement covers 12 of the 13 first nations in Nova Scotia. I think that in itself shows you a bit of the success; the fact that more first nations have chosen to join.

The annual report put out by the Mi'kmaq education authority reports a high school graduation rate of 87.7% in 2012-13, which is really significant and a clear indication of success. Their attendance rate is 86.3%, which is also very good, and they end up with about 100 post-secondary graduates every year. All the indicators are of a very successful program.

There have been two new schools in the past three years through capital funding provided under the agreement. They have a really good relationship with the province. That's another lesson we've learned through this, that a close relationship with the provincial education system is often very useful to achieve good success.

The funding in the supplementary estimates relates to the fact that the 12th first nation joined and that was the Glooscap First Nation, so this allows the funding they have to be moved out of the First Nations Education Authority, which we had before, into a self-government agreement.

It's not really new funding; it's a transfer from one to another.

[Mark Strahl, Conservative, Chilliwack—Fraser Canyon, BC]

Thank you.

Another item that caught my eye was funding for out-of-court settlements.

I know you can't disclose what those were for probably, given the confidentiality agreements that often accompany them, but maybe you could explain how many we are talking about. Is this one; is this 10?

[Colleen Swords]

It is one single out-of-court settlement, but it relates to eight individuals. It relates to abuse in a school in one of the provinces. I don't want to give any of the details because I think it's fairly sensitive. The schools are not part of the residential school settlement itself, but they were run, in part, by Canada and there was a decision that there should be a settlement.

[Mark Strahl, Conservative, Chilliwack—Fraser Canyon, BC]

That's all I have, Mr. Chair.

[The Chair, Conservative, Chris Warkentin]

Thank you. We'll turn to Mr. Genest-Jourdain for the next questions.

[Jonathan Genest-Jourdain, NDP, Manicouagan, QC]

Good afternoon.

Supplementary estimates (B) allocates $1 million for out-of-court settlements. Is it possible to get some identifying information on these out-of-court settlements? What specific settlements is the funding being requested for? What was the nature of the litigation pertaining to these out-of-court settlement agreements?

[Colleen Swords]

I already answered that question.

[Jonathan Genest-Jourdain, NDP, Manicouagan, QC]

Indeed you did.

I wasn't paying attention. I'm really sorry.

[The Chair, Conservative, Chris Warkentin]

The question has already been answered.

[Colleen Swords]

That's the same question I just answered.

[The Chair, Conservative, Chris Warkentin]

Does anybody have any additional questions?

Mr. Genest-Jourdain, did you have some follow-up questions?

[An hon. member]

What's that?

[The Chair, Conservative, Chris Warkentin]

I'm sensing that members have completed or exhausted their questions.

Ms. Hughes, do you want to take the remainder of the time?

[Carol Hughes, NDP, Algoma—Manitoulin—Kapuskasing, ON]

Sorry, I'm just trying to get some sense of this.

He was asking some questions, and then—

[The Chair, Conservative, Chris Warkentin]

He asked the same question, which had just been answered.

[Carol Hughes, NDP, Algoma—Manitoulin—Kapuskasing, ON]

Oh, okay.

[The Chair, Conservative, Chris Warkentin]

So if you have any follow-up or additional questions, we'll turn to you, Ms. Hughes.