Indigenous and Northern Affairs Committee on March 20th, 2024

[Dan Vandal, Liberal, Saint Boniface—Saint Vital, MB]

Mr. Chairperson, get hold on this committee.

[Bob Zimmer, Conservative, Prince George—Peace River—Northern Rockies, BC]

He obviously doesn't want to answer a carbon tax question.

I will ask you once again.

Will you, the Minister of Northern Affairs, support the people of Northwest Territories and specifically exempt Northwest Territories from the carbon tax? They're asking for an exemption, and this is a choice you can make as a government, or will you support your colleague Minister Guilbeault and his promise that as long as he's the environment minister, there will be no more exemptions to carbon pricing?

Which is it, Minister?

[Dan Vandal, Liberal, Saint Boniface—Saint Vital, MB]

Okay. Can I answer the question?

[Bob Zimmer, Conservative, Prince George—Peace River—Northern Rockies, BC]

Please.

[The Chair, Liberal, John Aldag]

There are 15 seconds left.

[Dan Vandal, Liberal, Saint Boniface—Saint Vital, MB]

Come on. This is not real.

[Bob Zimmer, Conservative, Prince George—Peace River—Northern Rockies, BC]

It's a simple question.

[Dan Vandal, Liberal, Saint Boniface—Saint Vital, MB]

There's an affordability issue in the north. That's why we brought in child care. He voted against it. That's why we brought in dental care—

[Bob Zimmer, Conservative, Prince George—Peace River—Northern Rockies, BC]

Once again, he simply won't answer the question.

[Dan Vandal, Liberal, Saint Boniface—Saint Vital, MB]

—for kids aged 12 and under. He voted against it. That's why we brought in the Canada child benefit, which has lifted 500,000 children out of poverty. He and his party voted against it.

That's what I can answer on affordability.

[Bob Zimmer, Conservative, Prince George—Peace River—Northern Rockies, BC]

I guess you won't be answering that question, Minister.

[The Chair, Liberal, John Aldag]

We're out of time on the first six minutes.

We're going now to Mr. Carr, who I believe is splitting his time with Ms. Gainey.

The floor is yours for six minutes.

[Ben Carr, Liberal, Winnipeg South Centre, MB]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Minister Vandal, thank you for being here.

I'm going to take one eighty-fifth of the time to ask my question.

[Dan Vandal, Liberal, Saint Boniface—Saint Vital, MB]

I'm sorry. Can you start over?

[Ben Carr, Liberal, Winnipeg South Centre, MB]

Is this real?

Minister, I'm being a little tongue-in-cheek. It's nice to have you here.

I want to ask a question about Churchill.

The town of Churchill in northern Manitoba, as you know, is critical to our province. I recognize that our colleague Madame Ashton has joined us today. I think she's still with us. She, of course, represents the good people of northern Manitoba.

Minister, Churchill, through its people, its rail line and its port, plays a critical role in the economy, defence and security of our province and country. It certainly plays a critical role in terms of our relationship with indigenous peoples.

Can you tell the committee a little about some of the most recent investments the government has made in the town of Churchill and how you see that as critical to the future of not only Manitoba but also of Canada?

Thank you.

[Dan Vandal, Liberal, Saint Boniface—Saint Vital, MB]

Absolutely. That's a very important question, not only for Manitoba but for Canada and the Arctic.

First of all, let me back up a bit. After we were elected in 2015, in 2016 the whole railway and port were shut down because the private American owner simply did not put any money into maintenance, so the railway had to shut down when there was flooding in northern Manitoba. Climate change is real. It's especially real in the north.

Through the leadership of your father, we invested hundreds of millions of dollars to reopen the rail line and reopen the port, and we found new owners to operate it. The first nation-owned Arctic Gateway Group, a collective of first nations and mayors from small towns in northern Manitoba, has assumed ownership of the Port of Churchill and the rail line that leads up to the port.

In fact, we were up there about one month ago to announce an investment of another $30 million from the federal government and $30 million from the brand new NDP provincial government. That money will be used to further stabilize the railroad that leads up to the Port of Churchill. There is a new technology they're using—some sort of honeycomb technology that they're building—under the rail lines to make sure that they are stable to not only deliver goods to the port, but also to accept goods from the port.

Through wonderful partnerships with the Province of Manitoba and the Arctic Gateway Group, we invested again in the rail line to finish the rail line stabilization—again, more investment—and I'm proud to say that this summer, they will be accepting minerals from a northern Manitoba mine and delivering them to the Port of Churchill for export. Not only that: They will be accepting a cruise ship for the first time in quite a while in the Port of Churchill, which will revitalize the community and make sure that it will be great for tourism.

We hope that this is the start of many new business endeavours in the Port of Churchill.

[Ben Carr, Liberal, Winnipeg South Centre, MB]

Thanks very much, Minister.

I'm very appreciative of your personal support and the support of the government in the development of northern Manitoba.

Ms. Gainey, I'll turn it over to you.

[Anna Gainey, Liberal, Notre-Dame-de-Grâce—Westmount, QC]

Thank you.

Thank you all for being here.

I met recently with an organization called Avataq, which is located in my riding and is dedicated to preserving and documenting Inuit art, culture and archeological artifacts in Nunavik. Their work is really impressive, and the archives contain a tremendous collection of Inuit artifacts.

However, when we're speaking about Canada's north at large, it is an area with obviously unique challenges, which you've touched upon, such as food insecurity and the impacts of climate change. Arctic and northern research plays a vital role in increasing Canada's knowledge of the Arctic, fighting climate change and improving food security in the north.

Minister Vandal, can you give us a sense of the state of the Canadian High Arctic Research Station and tell us a bit about it?

[Dan Vandal, Liberal, Saint Boniface—Saint Vital, MB]

Yes. That's a great question.

I had the pleasure of visiting the Canadian High Arctic Research Station with the Prime Minister, Minister Joly and NATO chairperson Jens Stoltenberg recently. I can tell you that there's incredible interest in the high Arctic from many people, many countries and NATO, and it was a real eye-opener to see the cutting-edge research they are doing at the Canadian High Arctic Research Station. There are researchers there from all over the world, doing cutting-edge Arctic research.

As we know, climate change is very real. The north is warming at three times the rate of the south, and that's really going to threaten a lot of the traditional ways of life.

This is not to mention the whole issue of microplastic pollution. There were researchers from Europe doing some incredible research on microplastics that are being found in the ice all over the north. That's a real concern.

The climate crisis is an existential crisis for our world, and we need the good northern research that is being done at the High Arctic Research Station.

[The Chair, Liberal, John Aldag]

Great. Thank you, but we're out of time there.

We'll go now to Monsieur Lemire for six minutes.

[Sébastien Lemire, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

As minister, Mr. Anandasangaree, you are responsible for relations with indigenous peoples, and that includes the issue of self-determination. As I see it, self-determination has to happen on an economic level as well, if first nations are to be fully empowered. I want to tell you about a young entrepreneur I met last week, Jason Picard‑Binet, and the hard time he's having.

He took over Bastien Industries, which makes the moccasins I am delighted to be wearing right now.

The economic vitality of indigenous communities is a source of pride and, above all, a tool to support communities. Bastien Industries' roots go all the way back to 1878, so the business has stood the test of time. Jason Picard‑Binet took over when he bought the company in 2022. A proud member of the Huron-Wendat Nation, he wants to carry on the work of the Bastien family while adding a modern touch.

Young entrepreneurs need supports. He, for instance, is looking towards new international markets and export growth. The CanExport program, however, does not make exemptions for registered businesses, because indigenous businesses are not corporations.

Are you willing to create a legal exemption to give companies like Bastien Industries better access to markets? The Department of Canadian Heritage makes exemptions like that.

[Gary Anandasangaree, Liberal, Scarborough—Rouge Park, ON]

Thank you for your question.

There are some incredible businesses being started and run by indigenous people across Canada. Very recently there's been a move, especially by the Minister of Trade. I actually spoke to her about this last night. As she goes around the world to promote Canadian businesses, one thing she wants to advance is to have indigenous people as part of her delegation, as businesses that can market their products to the world.

To your specific question, I think we can definitely make the connection. Depending on where the opportunities lie and where the interests may lie, we could definitely connect them to the Minister of Trade and her team, and to Global Affairs, to be able to promote the products.

With respect to the specific exemption you're looking for, I'm not familiar with that particular issue, but I will be able to get back to you and we can continue this conversation. There is an obligation, absolutely, to ensure that we support indigenous entrepreneurs to be able to self-determine their future and to be able to build wealth and intergenerational wealth that will enable them to be fully secure financially, and by all other means as well.

[Sébastien Lemire, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

Thank you very much for that answer.

Now I want to turn to the matter of cultural authenticity and cultural appreciation versus cultural appropriation. The United States has a very strict and binding law protecting industries that manufacture products that are typically indigenous. There, Bastien Industries has to prove that its products are 100% indigenous. The company doesn't have that requirement in Canada. I'm talking about the Southwest Indian Foundation certification under the U.S.'s Indian Arts and Crafts Act. Canada doesn't have comparable legislation.

Under the two paragraphs of article 31 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Canada should have taken such a measure, but nothing is being done right now, not even by the Department of Canadian Heritage. As a result, a subcontracting company has no way of making sure the company's products are genuinely indigenous. This puts indigenous entrepreneurs at a disadvantage because they have to compete with manufacturers of counterfeit goods.

Will you commit to supporting typically indigenous businesses by taking actions to foster cultural appreciation and prevent cultural appropriation?

[Gary Anandasangaree, Liberal, Scarborough—Rouge Park, ON]

My role as Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations is to advocate, both within government and also outside, to ensure that indigenous people are able to self-determine and set up their own structures, and also to advocate on their behalf toward structural challenges and limitations that may exist within the Canadian state. I look forward to that conversation and to be able to support and work with you, as well as the business that you're talking about, to be able to obtain the requisite exemptions and recognition that may be required for them to be able to trade with the U.S., for example, or other markets.

[Sébastien Lemire, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

Meegwetch.

Another area where your help would be especially appreciated involves indigenous financial institutions that belong to NACCA. The Native Commercial Credit Corporation, in Wendake, is one such institution providing long-term financing. These institutions' funding is expiring on March 31, 2024, and they have asked for more funding, including $154 million to provide new housing loans. NACCA also needs support for the community investment and business development programs it delivers to first nations.

With the budget coming up, will you commit to supporting these institutions and giving indigenous communities some good news by providing indigenous networks with the funding they need?