Mr. Speaker, I would like to ask my hon. colleague about the clause that allows the minister to arbitrarily withhold funding from a first nation.
We know that last January the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development cut off education dollars to children in Attawapiskat to punish the community because it would not agree with the third party manager. The Federal Court found that the community was completely justified in opposing the third party management. The accusations made by the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development and the Prime Minister against Attawapiskat were completely unfounded.
The issue of using children and education dollars as hostage would be illegal in any system of government anywhere except, it seems, with the federal government relating to the treatment of first nations children.
What does my hon. colleague think this allows the minister to do now, if he is given carte blanche power to cut off money, whether it is for children, health care or social services?