Once it's clear who owns the land, then everybody can move forward. It is extremely difficult when the lands are contested. Rightly, the federal government has their hands tied as far as granting.... There's only so much they can do; they need the consent of the aboriginal peoples who have claims to the land. So you have more parties that need to agree to make something happen. Once the land claim is settled, if it falls on the claimed land areas, then the ownership is known, and if it's on crown lands, they're crown lands. It's much simpler and easier, and more gets done.
On December 5th, 2011. See this statement in context.