Mr. Chair, we know the relationship between first nations and the criminal justice system has been bad for a long time. As much as the government likes to say it is improving, in many ways, it is not, especially where I live in Courtenay--Alberni. There is systemic racism. We see it in policies of today, in court cases today in my riding, which the member knows all about.
There have been multiple commissions and inquiries, spanning decades, regarding or advising on first nations and the criminal justice system, from the Donald Marshall inquiry in 1989 to the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples in 1996 to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in 2015. All of them recommended significant changes to the criminal justice system. The federal government has idled, only for things to get worse. We have finally reached a crisis point, which is what happened to the Boushie family.
While I am posing my question, I would like to send my condolences to the Boushie family on behalf of the people of Courtenay--Alberni.
Could the member tell us if the government will commit to an inquiry into the relationship between first nations people and the criminal justice system with a mandate to recommend serious change? We need to do it expeditiously, working together with first nations people. Will the government idle, or will it idle no more on this issue?