Mr. Speaker, I am glad I heard the member talk about the funding increases that are needed, but he also indicated that the government will continue to review the recommendations. We need action and not reviews all the time. We have studies, national panels and reports, but no action. It is about time.
I would like my colleague to comment on the fact that when we look at the joint panel's recommendations on first nations education, the AFN estimates that the average annual increase required since 1996 was 6.3% and that the cumulative blending shortfall since that time has been almost $1.2 billion. Here I would point out that the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples states:
Indigenous individuals, particularly children, have the right to all levels and forms of education of the State without discrimination.
Principle 10 states:
The child shall be protected from practices which may foster racial, religious and any other form of discrimination.
My question to my colleague is this. Does he not think that the current funding shortfall is discriminatory to first nations children?