Evidence of meeting #99 for Indigenous and Northern Affairs in the 44th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was communities.
A video is available from Parliament.
Conservative
Martin Shields Conservative Bow River, AB
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I appreciate the information that you have given us, but I want to get clarity on something.
You have seven coordination agreements that have been signed. Can you define what a coordination agreement is?
Director General, Act Respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis Children, Youth and Families Branch, Department of Indigenous Services
Yes, a coordination agreement is basically an agreement about the assertion of jurisdiction, what the community is going to do and what funding frameworks are built therein. Basically, it's the tripartite agreement that exists to support the exercise of jurisdiction by a given indigenous community.
Conservative
Director General, Act Respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis Children, Youth and Families Branch, Department of Indigenous Services
Yes.
Conservative
Director General, Act Respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis Children, Youth and Families Branch, Department of Indigenous Services
You can imagine that typically over the years—and I think you mentioned this earlier—provinces have been very active in providing child and family services, particularly off reserve. It's a coordination. The title sort of gives it all. It needs to be a coordination of services across those areas so that, for example, if a child is living off reserve but a community has asserted jurisdiction over a whole geographic area, then those two areas have spoken to each other and there is a plan about what is going to happen to support that child and that family.
All of those pieces are built into the coordination agreement. There's an incredible amount of planning, which is part of the reason why it's time-consuming.
Conservative
Martin Shields Conservative Bow River, AB
That would lead me to believe that the provincial organizations still have a large role to play in the enactment of these agreements.
Director General, Act Respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis Children, Youth and Families Branch, Department of Indigenous Services
In terms of the planning, absolutely, we think that the tripartite role is very important.
Conservative
Martin Shields Conservative Bow River, AB
Once it's implemented, though, let's talk about the sense of.... When we're talking about nations and the services they may provide in their nation, they may be looking to contract outside of their nation.
Is the province involved in that, in your opinion?
Director General, Act Respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis Children, Youth and Families Branch, Department of Indigenous Services
In terms of what agreements may exist after a coordination agreement has been signed, that certainly depends on the given indigenous governing body and how it has developed its model. It will vary from case to case.
Conservative
Martin Shields Conservative Bow River, AB
The latitude could be for a variety of.... The first nation may have an agreement to contract with the province or with an independent contractor.
Director General, Act Respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis Children, Youth and Families Branch, Department of Indigenous Services
Both are certainly possible.
Conservative
Martin Shields Conservative Bow River, AB
The provincial organizations we see now, which can be fairly extensive as this program for children has been in place for a long time, could still have a significant role.
Director General, Act Respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis Children, Youth and Families Branch, Department of Indigenous Services
You're putting your finger right on it. It's a different role in terms of where the jurisdiction lies and where the decision-making lies. The decision-making, when jurisdiction has been assumed, lies with the community. The different vehicles that may be necessary—for example, to provide an emergency service in the city—are for the community to determine and may involve contracting with a provincial body. However, the decision-making process lies with the community.
Conservative
Martin Shields Conservative Bow River, AB
The ultimate decision is with the nation that signs the agreement.
You don't have an agreement signed at the end yet.
Director General, Act Respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis Children, Youth and Families Branch, Department of Indigenous Services
There are seven that exist now.
Conservative
Martin Shields Conservative Bow River, AB
There are coordination agreements, but you haven't signed off on a final agreement with anybody yet.
Director General, Act Respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis Children, Youth and Families Branch, Department of Indigenous Services
There are seven. Those seven to which I'm referring have been finalized, and there are nations that are exercising jurisdiction, yes.
Conservative
Martin Shields Conservative Bow River, AB
Seven coordination agreements have been signed. When I asked you earlier if there are any in place that actually...I thought I got the answer “no.”
Director General, Act Respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis Children, Youth and Families Branch, Department of Indigenous Services
I apologize if I spoke that way.
What I meant to say is that there are seven indigenous governing bodies in Canada that are exerting jurisdiction over their child and family services.
Conservative
Director General, Act Respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis Children, Youth and Families Branch, Department of Indigenous Services
I apologize.
Conservative
Martin Shields Conservative Bow River, AB
What is the monitoring mechanism for those agreements? Is there any role of monitoring, or are they now stand-alone? Are they totally separated from the federal and provincial government? Are they making the decisions totally?
Director General, Act Respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis Children, Youth and Families Branch, Department of Indigenous Services
Well, it is a self-governing agreement, so the decision-making process, as in any self-government, lies with the community.
Conservative
Martin Shields Conservative Bow River, AB
Okay, so that process has happened and seven are totally independent nations making decisions on child welfare.