Thank you. Those would be some of the things: the ability to read, to write, to communicate. In the trades, if someone wanted to become a heavy-equipment operator or a welder, obviously, they would need training in the vocational skills.
The point of the matter I'm trying to get to is that—I found it a bit offensive with the minister, and I wish she were here—she kept talking about colonial metrics. That's a bit patronizing. I'm indigenous. I'm Métis. Indigenous people want good-paying jobs. They need real skills and education. They don't need fluff. They don't want participation ribbons. They want those skills. I'm a little tired of hearing from the Liberal benches and from others about the other metrics. We want to participate, to be involved in society and to benefit our families, our first nations, our communities and our country. That is really important.
It's very concerning when we hear that the on-reserve graduation rates are decreasing. It's adopting this and it's going lower. It's like we're watering it down. This is not helpful for first nations and for Métis people. I'm appalled by the “woke” speaking from the minister before us. It is not getting boiled down to opportunities.
My aunts and uncles attended residential schools. My father was sent to another residential school so that he wouldn't have to attend the same residential school, but one thing he emphasized was for us, as a family and as children, to get a good education. I have one sister who is a judge, one who is a lawyer and another who is a nurse. Emphasizing education is what first nations and Métis people need, and not just hearing “This is for the world, and this is for the indigenous people.” I'm sorry. We want to succeed and to do well in this society.
I'm just venting a bit—nothing personal towards you—about some of these games that are not helpful to lift first nations out of poverty, on the reserves or anywhere. We want to see that development.
I was an MLA in British Columbia until 2017. At that time, we found that there wasn't funding on the reserves. It was challenging for many of the first nations to get some of the support. I haven't really followed closely, and maybe there's some good news. Has there been some real development—particularly in B.C., and I guess across Canada—with regard to the standards on reserves as opposed to the provincial standards? Has there been a real improvement in investment and in graduation rates on reserves? I actually have the answers already.