Indigenous and Northern Affairs Committee on Dec. 9th, 2024

[Ted Falk, Conservative, Provencher, MB]

Do you support Jordan's principle?

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

Yes, I do.

[Ted Falk, Conservative, Provencher, MB]

Jordan's principle clearly says that all first nations children living in Canada will receive “the products, services and support [that] they need, when they need them”. Is that correct?

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

That's correct.

Mr. Falk, if I may interject, this area is very much the purview of Minister Hajdu, so I will have limited ability to answer questions relating to this particular issue.

[Ted Falk, Conservative, Provencher, MB]

Yes, but it's still all under indigenous services, and I think you should be able to answer.

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

My role is that of Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations, so I do think that this is best directed to Minister Hajdu.

[Ted Falk, Conservative, Provencher, MB]

That's correct, but I'm just wondering. When a person of non-indigenous status receives money intended for indigenous peoples—like Randy Boissonnault's company—do you really think it's fair when the Hanover School Division in my riding has had to issue 93 layoff notices to Jordan's principle educational assistants because their funding was yanked by your department? Is that fair?

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

Mr. Falk, it's not my department, and I will not be able to answer this question.

[Ted Falk, Conservative, Provencher, MB]

Well, I'll quote for you what Indigenous Services Canada indicated to the Hanover School Division in May. It says, “I can 100% confirm that if a school division is renewing an EA request for a student who had an EA approved in the same division in 2023-24, they can inform the EA that they will be rehired for the 2024-25 school year.”

The invoice that the school division submitted to your department for September was rejected on October 31. Is it fair that money—

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

With great respect to you, Mr. Falk, through the chair, I am unable to answer questions that are outside of my portfolio. I am not, for the record, the Minister of Indigenous Services Canada. I am the Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations.

This is a matter that, as in your own words, sir, directly involves Indigenous Services Canada. I would encourage you to direct those questions to Minister Hajdu. I'm sure she would be more than glad to answer those questions.

[Ted Falk, Conservative, Provencher, MB]

I'm wondering if you think it's fair.

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

I will not be able to come to a conclusion on a matter that I've limited knowledge on.

[Ted Falk, Conservative, Provencher, MB]

What you're saying is that it's not a great enough concern for you that 93 educational assistants have been issued layoff notices and will be unable to provide necessary service to indigenous children that better equips them—

[Jaime Battiste, Liberal, Sydney—Victoria, NS]

I have a point of order, Chair.

[The Chair, Liberal, Patrick Weiler]

Mr. Battiste, go ahead on a point of order.

[Jaime Battiste, Liberal, Sydney—Victoria, NS]

It's asked and answered. It's repetition. He's asking the same question on a file that he knows is not under the minister's ambit.

You can't take all indigenous things in Canada and put them under just one minister. That's what the Conservatives did and [Inaudible—Editor]—

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

Just on the same point of order, can you shut him down when he's obviously not referencing standing orders?

[The Chair, Liberal, Patrick Weiler]

Thank you very much, Mr. Battiste—

[Jaime Battiste, Liberal, Sydney—Victoria, NS]

A little bit of knowledge about indigenous [Inaudible—Editor] unhelpful to their simple narratives, but there's a lot more—

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

It's not a point of order.

[The Chair, Liberal, Patrick Weiler]

This is not a point of order. I want to get back to the matter at hand here.

It seems to me that the minister is answering the best that he can. We did have Minister Hajdu here earlier this evening to speak to this issue.

The member does have about a minute and 45 seconds left in his time. I'll start the clock so that you can continue with your questioning.

[Ted Falk, Conservative, Provencher, MB]

Minister Anandasangaree, you did indicate that you work closely with Minister Hajdu, so this is something that you could carry forward.

The department says that urgent issues, when it comes to issues of Jordan's principle, will be addressed within 48 hours. This is an urgent issue, sir.

It also says that non-urgent issues will be addressed within a week. This is an urgent issue, sir. This needs to be addressed. There are indigenous children who need the support that is provided by educational assistants. They are currently not going to be able to get that support.

Will you commit to carrying that forward to Minister Hajdu?

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

Mr. Falk, I will be more than glad to convey your concerns to Minister Hajdu.

I also want to encourage you.... I have not had a single question from the Conservative Party since my appointment to my portfolio. If you do want to ask a question of Minister Hajdu—I don't believe you've asked a question of her at question period, either—you're more than welcome to hold our government to account through that means as well.

[Ted Falk, Conservative, Provencher, MB]

There have been these Liberal points of order when the minister was here. Perhaps I would have had a round to be able to ask her that question, but your Liberal colleagues have prevented me from doing that.

[The Chair, Liberal, Patrick Weiler]

Thank you very much, Mr. Falk.

Next, we're moving to Ms. Gainey for five minutes.