House of Commons Hansard #18 of the 43rd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament's site.) The word of the day was wet'suwet'en.

Topics

Relations with Indigenous PeoplesEmergency Debate

10:15 p.m.

Liberal

Arif Virani Liberal Parkdale—High Park, ON

Madam Speaker, I learned about the important value of listening. We learn that every day in our function as members of Parliament representing our ridings.

Travelling the country listening to those in first nations, Inuit and Métis communities, I was struck by the fact of how diverse those viewpoints were, and how sometimes ineffective one felt in terms of being able to address them, and address them quickly.

Still, I learned about the value of actually being there, being attentive and listening to those concerns, and lending an ear to people who had been hitherto shunned by consecutive governments for literally centuries in this country.

Is the work ongoing? Absolutely it is. Will it be solved tomorrow? Absolutely it will not. Is this work fundamental and is doing it in a peaceful manner, as articulated by the member, critical? Absolutely it is.

Relations with Indigenous PeoplesEmergency Debate

10:20 p.m.

Bloc

Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe Bloc Lac-Saint-Jean, QC

Madam Speaker, I completely agree with my hon. colleague's point that we should not send in the RCMP.

I find it very funny that my Conservative colleague said that it was ironic to tell the RCMP what it should or should not do.

However, this afternoon, my colleague from Chicoutimi—Le Fjord told the media that we must absolutely send in the RCMP. He said this on Radio-Canada. You can find it online. I think the worst thing we could do in this situation would be to respond in warlike fashion and send in the RCMP. That makes absolutely no sense.

My question is for my hon. colleague opposite. The Bloc Québécois made a proposal and I have not heard the government's response. The Bloc Québécois asked that GasLink construction be halted in exchange for having the blockades lifted, which would allow for the dialogue we are seeking.

What does the government think of the Bloc's proposal?

Relations with Indigenous PeoplesEmergency Debate

10:20 p.m.

Liberal

Arif Virani Liberal Parkdale—High Park, ON

Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his question and I appreciate the position of the Bloc Québécois, who pointed out that the Conservative member does not speak on behalf of all opposition members in the House.

What is important and what was pointed out by the hon. member is that we need to reopen the dialogue as soon as possible. We do not quite agree on how to go about that, but we agree that we need to reopen the dialogue as soon as possible.

Relations with Indigenous PeoplesEmergency Debate

10:20 p.m.

Conservative

Luc Berthold Conservative Mégantic—L'Érable, QC

Madam Speaker, it is my turn to talk about this very important issue. I have so many things to say that I wish I did not have to share my time, but I want to inform you that I will be sharing my time with the member for Lakeland.

This is a major crisis that is currently affecting all Canadians and the indigenous people involved in this conflict, sometimes through no fault of their own and sometimes according to their own will. So many things have been said tonight that I have no choice but to correct some of them.

First, since the beginning of the evening, since the Prime Minister's speech, the party opposite has been serving up a word salad, as our leader said. The Liberal Party is not saying anything.

The Prime Minister encouraged people to be patient. We have already waited 13 days and we will be waiting even longer. We are going to be waiting until the crisis resolves itself. I have already heard the Prime Minister say that about deficits and budgets. It seems budgets balance themselves. Unfortunately, that approach does not work.

The Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations said something tonight that stood out to me. She said the following.

As we heard in the heartfelt words of the Minister of Indigenous Services, we believe we have learned from the crisis at Oka, but also Ipperwash, Caledonia and Gustafsen Lake. Last year, we said that we never wanted to see again the images of police having to use force in an indigenous community in order to keep the peace.

This government has learned nothing from past crises, all of which were the result of the government's inaction, of its inability to respond quickly, which only led to the situation deteriorating, and also to various drastic and unfortunate actions. That is just the reality. The government has learned nothing. Now it is attempting to blame its lack of understanding of the crisis and its handling of previous crises on the Conservatives' own lack of understanding, when in fact, it is the other way around.

I would like to talk about a crisis that hit Quebec in 1998. In 1998, 350 pork producers decided to blockade Highway 20. These 350 pork producers were desperate and had made certain demands. I am not talking about the demands made by the Wet'suwet'en. That is not the issue I am concerned with at the moment. What I am interested in is the government's response to that crisis. No matter how legitimate these demands may be, the crisis at hand goes far beyond the demands of this particular indigenous nation. There are people getting involved who are not at all concerned with these demands.

As I was saying, 350 pork producers had blockaded Highway 20 in 1998. The crisis lasted five days. All things considered, that is a long time. For five whole days, Highway 20 was closed to automobile traffic. How was the crisis resolved? The then premier of Quebec, Lucien Bouchard, instructed the Sûreté du Québec to let the people involved know that the blockade would be lifted, that the police would have to get involved. The very next day, the situation was resolved in an orderly and respectful fashion. No major police intervention was needed. The blockade ended. That is the reality. How can such crises be expected to be resolved without setting an expiry date? Members know just how long these kinds of discussions can last.

As long as these discussions last, there will be people who are suffering. No amount of discussions will improve the situation of those who are suffering. We will not be able to improve the situation of those who are bearing the brunt of these blockades.

I would now like to return to the Leader of the Opposition's speech today. He very eloquently expressed everyday Canadians' thoughts on the current situation. The Prime Minister's speech, on the other hand, was akin to a word salad. He had absolutely nothing to offer to resolve the situation. He simply stated that we would have to continue to wait for the crisis to resolve itself. That is an accurate summation of the Prime Minister's speech.

The Prime Minister convened the House and all its members to state that he had an important announcement to make to the nation. In the end, he delivered an utterly wishy-washy speech that was entirely devoid of substance and ultimately accomplished nothing.

In spite of the Prime Minister's speech tonight and in spite of his invitation for all parties to enter into a dialogue to find a solution, the blockades persist. The situation is the same as it was before the speech and absolutely nothing has been fixed.

It really was nothing more than a word salad designed to appease, one that drove home the point that no one has been doing a thing for 13 days, that no one has stepped in and that no one would be stepping in because, after all, no one really knows what to do. That is essentially what we have heard today from the Prime Minister.

In his speech, the Prime Minister had already suggested that he disagreed with the Conservatives' position. Then, we learned that he had invited all party leaders to a meeting, except the leader of the Conservative Party, which is unbelievable.

Our leader said today that the Prime Minister's statement was a complete abdication of responsibility and of leadership. I am in complete agreement.

Our leader added that, “standing between our country and prosperity is a small group of radical activists, many of whom have little to no connection to first nations communities.” He added that these “radical activists...will not rest until our oil and gas industry is entirely shut down.” Finally, he said that “they are blockading our ports, railways, borders, roads and highways”.

I looked at images of various blockades and I read #shutdowncanada and #nopipeline. That is the reality. What is the connection to the indigenous community's demands? Meanwhile, in my riding, people are suffering, they are going through terrible times and they just cannot cope.

I want to mention a few businesses in the riding of Beauce, which my colleague represents. Propane GRG in Sainte-Marie is running out of stock and is delivering only to essential services. It is the middle of winter, and the company has to ration its customers and deliver only 20% of what it usually delivers. The vice-president of Propane GRG, Patrice Breton, says the business is on life support until an agreement ends the blockades.

The rail blockades set up by indigenous people in Lac-Mégantic are hurting businesses in the Eastern Townships. The Tafisa plant, for example, has been unable to supply its clients since the crisis began. As a result, 350 workers have been taken hostage by this crisis because, for 13 days, the Prime Minister has not done a single thing to even attempt to resolve the crisis. For the time being, Tafisa has been able to dispose of its stock by filling wagons that are parked in a train yard between Lac-Mégantic and Montreal. The harbours are at capacity. In short, the situation is unacceptable. If it persists, the company will have to lay off staff.

I also received a message from a dairy farmer in the Lac-Mégantic region tonight. I would like to read it again. “Hey Luc. Because of the crisis with the indigenous folks and the rail blockades, our livestock will soon be going hungry. Anything you can do to shake things up and move things along would be appreciated, because the viability of our businesses is on the line. The situation is still manageable, but our stocks are dwindling, and by next week, the grain centres will be emptied out.”

The health of small farms in my riding and in many other regions of Canada is at stake, but the crisis is also having other repercussions, namely, price fluctuations. Kernel corn prices for producers have risen by $10 to $15 per tonne since the crisis started. That is the reality.

We are in the midst of a national crisis, and meanwhile, all we are hearing from the other side of the House is that we need to be patient. They say that no instructions are being given to the RCMP, but the RCMP is being told that discussions are being sought.

There has been no rhyme or reason to the Liberals' management of this crisis. We expect a lot more from a government, and a lot more from a Prime Minister.

We expect a Prime Minister who is trying to resolve a national crisis to not intentionally exclude a leader of the official opposition from official meetings to discuss this crisis.

Relations with Indigenous PeoplesEmergency Debate

10:30 p.m.

Yukon Yukon

Liberal

Larry Bagnell LiberalParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Economic Development and Official Languages (Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency)

Mr. Speaker, first the member said that the Prime Minister did not have a plan, and then he said that the Prime Minister did have a plan, which was dialogue. If the member does not agree that dialogue is a plan for negotiation and working closely with the parties severely affected in order to come to an agreement, then what is his solution to deal with this? No member over there has specifically outlined a solution. Members have outlined the problem but have not outlined a solution.

Relations with Indigenous PeoplesEmergency Debate

10:30 p.m.

Conservative

Luc Berthold Conservative Mégantic—L'Érable, QC

Mr. Speaker, our Prime Minister completely ignored the crisis for 13 days. In 13 days, he would have had several opportunities to find a solution and initiate a dialogue. Instead of managing the crisis, he was elsewhere, doing something else. The crisis began with a rail blockade and several others followed. The crisis keeps getting worse. Despite his speech to the nation today, there are still rail blockades this evening.

The Liberals are in power. It is up to them to find a solution. If they want to be in power, then they have to manage the crisis, but manage it correctly. Right now, they are doing nothing.

Relations with Indigenous PeoplesEmergency Debate

10:30 p.m.

Bloc

Michel Boudrias Bloc Terrebonne, QC

Mr. Speaker, when it is a question of a blockade that has been paralyzing a major, crucial piece of infrastructure like a rail system in the middle of winter for 13 days, of course there are some extreme concerns, at least for the near future, and it is our duty to address those concerns. Indeed, we have a responsibility to negotiate peacefully and reach a consensus, considering the source of the conflict.

If we begin with the principle that we must negotiate and consider the serious concern raised by my colleague, we must strike a balance between safety and liberty. After 13 days, the government still has yet to reveal a contingency plan.

What do they plan to do in the coming hours and days to ensure the supply of energy and major commodities, like agricultural products and so on?

What is the contingency plan? We are going to have to take a serious look at this issue all together.

Relations with Indigenous PeoplesEmergency Debate

10:35 p.m.

Conservative

Luc Berthold Conservative Mégantic—L'Érable, QC

Mr. Speaker, I agree with my colleague. There is no mention of the contingency plan. The government stated that it must hold discussions with the people who are currently taking illegal action. They are blocking the trains and the flow of supplies to our farms, establishments, aluminum plants and just about everything that can be blocked.

What is happening to the people who are facing serious difficulties? If the farmer who wrote to me does not receive his grain by next week, animals may die. What are they doing about that?

They do not have a plan. The government does not know what to do. It waited 13 days. We have reached the height of the crisis and the government has not even started thinking about what to do for these people. It is making things up as it goes along, it is being amateurish. The government should sincerely reflect on its actions and start doing what it takes to find a real solution. We cannot wait for things to sort themselves out, as the Prime Minister has taught us to do.

Relations with Indigenous PeoplesEmergency Debate

10:35 p.m.

Green

Paul Manly Green Nanaimo—Ladysmith, BC

Mr. Speaker, this situation was completely avoidable and predictable. These protests across Canada were completely predictable. There are agreements between first nations across Canada to stand together when one nation is attacked and forced into a project against its will and down the barrel of a gun.

I was in the north. My sister worked for the OPP and she was a front-line officer at Ipperwash at the inquiry and a front-line officer in Caledonia. She would tell us that the last thing to do in these situations is to escalate action because reaction will be escalated and more problems will be caused.

When I went up north, I met with the Wet'suwet'en hereditary chiefs and with the detachment commander in Smithers. I also met with the detachment commander at the community industry safety office and brought a hereditary chief with me. We had a dialogue. One of the things that those detachment commanders told me was that as long as negotiation was going on, there would not be enforcement. It was up to Coastal GasLink, which could have called off the enforcement of this action with dialogue from the government.

I asked the Prime Minister to meet with the hereditary chiefs and open a dialogue. I sent him a letter and talked to him personally and said that this needed to be done, and it was not and here we are.

Relations with Indigenous PeoplesEmergency Debate

10:35 p.m.

Conservative

Luc Berthold Conservative Mégantic—L'Érable, QC

Mr. Speaker, ending the blockades is fundamental to any negotiation or conflict resolution. If people would withdraw from the railway lines, we could start discussing the real issues.

At present, too many people in our ridings are worried about their supplies and the survival of their businesses. It has become impossible to focus on indigenous matters because these people are currently dealing with other concerns that are much more important in their minds.

I am not denying or minimizing the importance of indigenous issues, but I am saying that the current crisis has created so many other concerns that it is no longer possible to speak solely about the indigenous crisis.

Relations with Indigenous PeoplesEmergency Debate

10:35 p.m.

Conservative

The Deputy Speaker Conservative Bruce Stanton

We have run out of time in that round. I have seen other members stand for questions and comments and they can be sure we will get to them in a different part of the debate.

Resuming debate, the hon. member for Lakeland.

Relations with Indigenous PeoplesEmergency Debate

10:35 p.m.

Conservative

Shannon Stubbs Conservative Lakeland, AB

Mr. Speaker, I am certainly grateful for this emergency debate tonight, because Canada is facing a crisis of leadership that is threatening the whole economy.

This crisis is not really about whether indigenous communities support Coastal GasLink, because every local first nation does support it. A majority of the Wet'suwet'en hereditary chiefs support it too. One of them, Theresa Tait-Day, said their whole community voted on it and “85% of our people said yes” to this project.

Chief Larry Nooski of the Nadleh Whuten said “Coastal GasLink represents a once in a generation economic development opportunity” for his nation, and that they “negotiated hard...to guarantee that Nadleh people, including youth, have the opportunity to benefit directly and indirectly...while at the same time, ensuring that the land and the water is protected....”

Chris Sankey, a former elected band councillor for the Lax Kw’alaams First Nation, said, “We need jobs. We need to build homes and roads and schools for our kids and care centres for our elders. These projects will help us do that.”

This crisis really hangs on the question of whether Canada is a country where the rule of law is respected and upheld, or whether Canada has succumbed to the rule of the mob. It is about whether Canadians will let our entire economy be held hostage by a small group trampling the legal system that has governed our country for more than 150 years.

This morning, the Prime Minister's statement was a complete and sad abdication of responsibility and leadership. The Prime Minister himself has emboldened and encouraged this kind of behaviour by cancelling other big projects based on political and activist considerations, like vetoing northern gateway, imposing Bill C-48 and funding TMX pipeline opponents, instead of on science and facts, and on the best interests of the whole country.

As an MP for an oil and gas riding and for nine indigenous communities, and as a person who happens to be part Ojibwa, I suggest his actions look a lot like those of a centralist, colonialist government imposing its views against the wishes and the priorities of local indigenous governments and the majority of directly impacted indigenous people, such as those in my riding, which are all involved in the oil and gas sector.

Every single person in this country has the right to freedom of speech and the freedom to protest, but they do not have the right to break the law or to hold the Canadian economy hostage. Because the Prime Minister has yet to clearly denounce the actions of these radical activists as illegal, or to provide an action plan that will end the illegal blockades, rail lines continue to be shut down. Bridges, roads and highways are blocked. The commutes, jobs and livelihoods of farmers, small business owners, workers and families across the country, thousands of kilometres away from beautiful British Columbia, are at risk.

Bonnie George, a Wet'suwet'en member who formerly worked for Coastal GasLink, said, “It’s disheartening now to see what’s happening. Protesters across Canada should ask our people who are out of work what they think. As a Wet’suwet’en matriarch I’m embarrassed....”

Who is really behind it?

Ellis Ross, the B.C. Liberal MLA for Skeena and elected official for the Haisla First Nation for 14 years said:

Professional protesters and well-funded NGOs have merely seized the opportunity to divide our communities for their own gains, and ultimately will leave us penniless when they suddenly leave.... It is therefore truly ignorant for non-Aboriginals to declare that elected Aboriginal leaders are only responsible for “on reserve issues” or are a “construct of the Indian Act meant to annihilate the Indian”.

He continued:

I was an elected Aboriginal leader for 14 years and I never intended to annihilate anyone.

My goal was to do everything I could to make sure my kids and grandkids didn't grow up knowing the myriad social issues that accompany poverty. I'm pretty sure all chiefs — elected and non-elected — feel the same way.

However, if the Liberals and the protestors claiming solidarity and shutting down rail lines in eastern Canada do want to talk about the Coastal GasLink pipeline and the LNG Canada plant it will supply, let them take note that all 20 of the local first nations want this pipeline built. When indigenous communities have access to revenues independent of the government they can invest in their own priorities without having to get approval from a civil servant in Ottawa or a big lobby group, or fit their plan into a federally prescribed program application.

Empowering first nations economically provides the tools for indigenous communities to manage their core needs, to invest in their cultures, and to preserve and nurture their heritage and their languages for future generations.

Chief councillor Crystal Smith from Haisla Nation, who supports Coastal GasLink and opposed Bill C-48, said, “Our nation's goal is to be an independent, powerful and prosperous nation. We can't get there without powerful, prosperous, independent people.”

There is no stronger example of the patriarchal, patronizing and quite frankly colonial approach of these lawless activists, and of the current Liberals, than their treatment of these first nations who want to develop, provide services, and supply and transport oil and gas.

Another person said that all too often, indigenous people are “only valued as responsible stewards of their land if they choose not to touch it. This is eco-colonialism.”

Crystal Smith further said:

This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I’m tired of managing poverty. I’m tired of First Nations’ communities dealing with issues such as suicide, low unemployment or educational opportunities. If this opportunity is lost, it doesn’t come back.

The Liberals' and the activists' anti-resource, anti-business, anti-energy agenda from outside these indigenous communities are sabotaging the best hopes and all the work of all the first nations along the Coastal GasLink pipeline.

Hereditary chief Helen Michelle of the Skin Tyee First Nation said, “Our own people said go ahead.” She also said, “A lot of the protesters are not even Wet’suwet’en....”

Troy Young, a member of one Wet'suwet'en community, and general manager of Kyah Resources Inc. , a company working to clear trees and build roads along Coastal GasLink's proposed pipeline route, said the history of the Wet'suwet'en is one of outsiders telling them how to do things, and if they are successful in stopping Coastal GasLink, “it will be one of the biggest cultural appropriations in British Columbia's history.”

MLA Ellis Ross said:

We’ve always had to cope with outsiders and so-called experts telling us who best represents First Nations, or what we should do within our own territory. Yet none of these people have ever lived on reserve or spent any significant time with the people who actually live there....

Allowing outsiders to undermine and dismiss years of careful consideration and consultation with elected chiefs who want nothing more than to secure a brighter future for their membership, is quite unacceptable.

He said he will continue to speak out against it.

Of course, Coastal GasLink does not just offer opportunity for indigenous communities. It is good for all of Canada, and it will benefit the world. Clean Canadian natural gas will reduce global emissions and deliver the affordable energy the world requires to reduce poverty and to increase the quality of life of the 2.6 billion people without access to electricity or clean cooking fuels.

The International Energy Agency projects the average global energy demand will increase approximately 30% by 2040 as world populations and economies expand, adding the equivalent of another China or India to the current level of global energy consumption. Natural gas is projected to meet one-third of that new demand.

As the fourth-largest natural gas producer with the fifth-largest reserves in the world, Canada can and should help meet that need.

Canadian natural gas is abundant, and it is the most viable fuel for reducing domestic and global emissions. Life-cycle emissions associated with LNG can be 20% lower than diesel, 60% lower than coal, 20% less than gasoline, and, crucially, emit less particulate matter, meaning less smog.

Canada LNG and the associated Coastal GasLink pipeline is the largest private sector commitment to the energy sector in Canadian history. It will give Canada the long-sought opportunity to export clean Canadian gas to foreign markets.

However, over $100 billion in LNG projects alone have been cancelled since the Liberals came to power, and that is not including other major oil infrastructure they killed. When LNG projects like Pacific Northwest, Grassy Point and Aurora are cancelled, it is devastating to the indigenous communities, local municipalities, service and supply businesses, and all the workers who were counting on them.

The lack of new pipeline access and LNG facilities in Canada is forcing natural gas producers to sell their product at a massive discount, and natural gas prices have even gone negative, meaning that producers have had to pay someone to take their product.

Liberal policies already left Canada out of the loop the first time, and could cause Canada to miss out on the second wave of the huge opportunity of LNG. In fact, the B.C. government had to agree to exempt LNG Canada from the Liberals' job-killing carbon tax hike in order to ensure that it went ahead. This is just another example of how Liberal policies are impeding resource development and driving private sector investments and businesses out of Canada. This is costing Canadian workers and indigenous people their jobs, and undermining their aspirations, work and hopes for self-sufficiency. It is driving increasing poverty rates in rural and remote regions and diminishing Canada's role in the world.

Canadians are looking for action from their government. It has taken almost two weeks for the Prime Minister to get back to Canada and to really say anything about it at all. Today it was just more words and an impotent call for dialogue. It is exactly this “do nothing” approach that has created the crisis we face today.

It is time for the Liberals to tell Canadians how they will lead for all of Canada, restore the rule of law and end these illegal blockades.

Relations with Indigenous PeoplesEmergency Debate

10:45 p.m.

Liberal

Nathaniel Erskine-Smith Liberal Beaches—East York, ON

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the member's comments. It is a complicated issue and it is not so black and white.

I appreciate when the member lists off a series of projects and the importance of development, but of course she knows that the government does support the Coastal GasLink project. She also knows that it is a provincial project supported by the B.C. NDP. I assume she knows as well that there is a provincial court order, and that the RCMP in this case is provincially contracted.

When we talk about the time between the initial conflict and where we are today, the province is fundamentally the lead in this. Where the federal government can play a role is oversight, in some ways, of the RCMP, and by being at the table and supporting provincial efforts. One way is to escalate conflict and the other way is to de-escalate the situation. When we talk about removing the blockades, that is the ultimate goal.

I wonder what the member's thoughts are, and whether her course of action would be to escalate or to de-escalate. What is the best course of action to remove the blockades?

Relations with Indigenous PeoplesEmergency Debate

10:45 p.m.

Conservative

Shannon Stubbs Conservative Lakeland, AB

Mr. Speaker, the crucial job of the Prime Minister and the Liberal government is to provide leadership. The reality is that the RCMP does report to one of the ministers of the government.

Certainly I recognize the jurisdictional responsibilities of the project and the support, as the member has outlined, but that is quite apart from enforcing the rule of law and from ensuring that the agencies that report to a minister of the government do that and know that the government will have their backs when they do it.

Certainly, on the myriad of other issues that are being raised, which are often historical in nature or are an attempt to achieve reconciliation through these activities, the government should also explain what exactly it has been doing for month after month and for five years on that side on the variety of all of these other issues that people are using their freedom of speech to raise in the course of the illegal blockades.

However, it is absolutely the Prime Minister's job to say that the rule of law will be upheld and that—

Relations with Indigenous PeoplesEmergency Debate

10:50 p.m.

Conservative

The Deputy Speaker Conservative Bruce Stanton

Questions and comments, the hon. member for Nunavut.

Relations with Indigenous PeoplesEmergency Debate

10:50 p.m.

NDP

Mumilaaq Qaqqaq NDP Nunavut, NU

Mr. Speaker, when I spoke in the House of Commons in Centre Block in 2017, I talked about how these foreign systems do not work for indigenous peoples. When we are talking about these protests and blockades and people not being able to make it to work and such, may I suggest that is a glimpse of what it is like to live a life like mine, to look like me and have to walk through the world as I do?

In saying that, indigenous peoples have been backed into a corner, and the federal government has constantly backed indigenous peoples into a corner. Often it is a decision between whether this is a project I am going to support to be able to feed my family or pay rent, or do I say no to it? We constantly see indigenous groups being given one very horrible option.

We have heard numbers, we have heard figures and we have heard contributions to economic development, but I am on the ground and I know it is failing. It is not working for indigenous peoples or groups. We could be talking about climate, jobs and economic development, supporting search and rescue, supporting hunters and fisheries, investing in the arts industry, but instead we are giving indigenous peoples a very difficult position.

If there is such concern around jobs and economic development, why are indigenous peoples not given multiple opportunities instead of one difficult choice?

Relations with Indigenous PeoplesEmergency Debate

10:50 p.m.

Conservative

Shannon Stubbs Conservative Lakeland, AB

Mr. Speaker, I agree with the premise of the member's question and exactly the way that she phrased it. The indigenous communities and people I represent in Lakeland say that it is exactly what oil and gas offers them. There is the mining industry, which employs the highest number of indigenous people of any sector in the country. Oil sands, as a single company, is the highest employer of indigenous people there. Often Alberta gets crapped on in this place, if members do not mind my saying so.

This is one of the things that irks many of us as one of the provinces that has actually been a leader on partnerships with indigenous communities and indigenous people as owners, as partners, as proponents and not just as workers; as service and supply companies; as owners of the resource; as providers for their own communities and all the communities around them. They are in Alberta and they have been doing it for decades. They are in my backyard in Lakeland, which is why I am so passionate about this, and they are all over northern Alberta.

I want to say I greatly admire my colleague's questions too about the challenges of food in the north. On the whole host of issues that my colleague has raised, those all have to be discussed, and all governments and all elected people should engage on all of those issues. Certainly, my grandmother and my great-grandmother would have a similar story about how people look at certain things from their world views.

However, the subject of this emergency debate is ending illegal blockades, which all law-abiding Canadians and, frankly, all—

Relations with Indigenous PeoplesEmergency Debate

10:50 p.m.

Conservative

The Deputy Speaker Conservative Bruce Stanton

Resuming debate, the hon. member for West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country.

Relations with Indigenous PeoplesEmergency Debate

10:50 p.m.

Liberal

Patrick Weiler Liberal West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country, BC

Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with my hon. colleague for Sydney—Victoria.

I will start today by acknowledging that we are standing here on the traditional territory of the Algonquin people. It is also a privilege to serve as a member of Parliament for a riding that includes the unceded traditional territory of the Squamish, Lil'Wat and Sechelt nations.

Our government is committed to advancing reconciliation with indigenous peoples through a renewed nation-to-nation, government-to-government relationship based on recognitions of rights, respect, co-operation and partnership. Indeed, this is our most important relationship, and a relationship we have neglected for far too much of our nation's history.

We know that building this important relationship is not a quick fix. We never pretended that the road to reconciliation will be quick or easy, but we vow to begin the journey towards a renewed relationship.

While we work toward this aim, first nations are understandably frustrated by a lack of progress in recognition of their fundamental and constitutional rights. The result is that we are now at a boiling point.

Today, this is particularly true for the Wet'suwet'en, who have spent many decades working to have their rights and title recognized. The Wet'suwet'en have been leaders across this country in advancing reconciliation. This is evident in the landmark Supreme Court of Canada Delgamuukw case where, for the first time, aboriginal title was recognized as an ancestral right protected by our Constitution. In spite of this landmark case in 1997, not enough progress has been made on this critical relationship.

While indigenous peoples have inherent rights and treaty rights that have been affirmed by section 35 of the Constitution, too often they still have to go to court, first to prove that their rights exist, and then to force the government of the day to implement them.

Our government has taken some of the essential and overdue steps required to renew and build upon Canada's relationship with indigenous peoples to ensure that they have control over their destiny. We have made unprecedented investments to repair and upgrade water and wastewater systems in first nations communities. We are investing in families and children. Through the oceans protection plan, indigenous peoples have new opportunities to protect, preserve and restore Canada's oceans.

We have also made fundamental changes in our approach to negotiating modern treaties. This is critical for B.C., where already our province is home to many unsettled land claims, but we have examples of reconciliation being successful in some of our modern treaties, especially up north.

I want to raise two examples from my riding that are poignant examples of how reconciliation can work in practice.

First and foremost, this month we celebrate the 10-year anniversary of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games. This event was a source of immense pride for all Canadians, as we were able to show the world our rich cultural diversity.

This event also allowed us to highlight the incredible history and culture of our indigenous peoples. We did this by partnering with the four host first nations. In this process we allowed first nations to share their languages and to share their culture in celebrations and through new economic partnerships, including through the development of new tourism infrastructure, such as the Squamish Lil'Wat Cultural Centre.

Second, and perhaps because we are speaking about a crisis that was ignited by a natural gas pipeline, I want to mention the Woodfibre LNG project in my riding. This pipeline and export terminal is situated in the middle of Squamish nation lands. The Squamish were concerned that the existing regulatory processes would not adequately engage with and respond to their concerns, so the nation proposed leading their own environmental assessment process and, lo and behold, the company agreed to be bound by this.

This process went ahead and identified additional conditions for the project. The proposal went back to the nation, which put it to a vote, and the nation ended up approving it. The nation subsequently negotiated an impact benefit agreement with this project. This project will now be monitored by the Squamish to ensure compliance with the conditions.

I raise this example because adding first nations voices to the table for resource projects does not mean that these projects will not be approved. Rather, these voices help produce projects that are better for the environment, better for the community and better for Canada.

In fact, this is why we introduced and passed the Impact Assessment Act in the last session. Reforms under the previous Conservative government failed to honour indigenous rights and partnerships, eroded public trust and put our communities at risk. Under the Impact Assessment Act, we create the space for indigenous peoples to run their own environmental assessment process to give first nations a role in the decisions that affect their rights. In addition, early public engagement will ensure reviews happen in partnership with indigenous peoples, communities will have their voices heard and companies know what is required of them, including on issues related to climate change, conservation and environmental protection.

Having meaningful engagement and consultation with indigenous peoples aims to secure their free, prior and informed consent, and this is not optional. Canada has a legal duty to consult and, where appropriate, accommodate indigenous groups if there could be potential adverse impacts on potential or established aboriginal rights and title. Section 35 of the Constitution makes our fiduciary relationship toward first nations very clear. We cannot continue in the situation we are in today, and it is going to take all of us at all levels of government to find a way forward. What we find ourselves in now is the outcome of reconciliation not making progress and Canadians letting each other down, so we must be utterly committed to repair and improve the systems to keep our country functional and capable of providing the services that we all rely on.

The impacts to our transportation systems cannot continue. The transportation sector allows for social linkages. Canadians are feeling the effects of diminished access to family members, community events, education and health services. Railways are a mainstay of rural life in Canada. They offer service, access and connection to more rural and remote places in our country. Rail offers first- and last-mile service, and we cannot fail to connect these Canadians to the services they need.

I know my colleagues share my concern for Canadians in industries right across the country who are facing layoffs and disruptions to their ability to support themselves and their families. Communities rely on the materials transported by those rail lines, not least among them the families in Atlantic Canada, who rely on propane to heat their homes and are facing rations. We move our food staples by rail from fields to homes. Tens of millions of tonnes of food are transported by rail every year. We need to do better for our communities. An economically healthy Canada is able to uplift, empower and constantly strive to do better for all Canadians. The rail transportation losses our country is facing are in the billions every day, and the need for action has never been more urgent.

We have seen the devastating effects of unwarranted force used against our indigenous peoples in Canada. I state in no uncertain terms that force cannot and will not be the resolution to this conflict, nor will our solution be found in endless drawn-out court cases. Together we and our partners need to get out of the courtroom and gather together around the negotiating table. We can find more than resolution; I believe we can find success. We can do better.

We can find processes that work for indigenous peoples, but there is nothing that we can achieve if we do not have a conversation. The divides in this country require dialogue. We need to show that we have a process that will lead us down the path to reconciliation. Where we can show that, we can provide an off-ramp to de-escalate the crisis we are in and get our people, goods and economy rolling again.

Reconciliation happens when we are able to work together. Reconciliation happens in learning, in redress and in dialogue, and I call upon all parties involved to be part of that solution.

Relations with Indigenous PeoplesEmergency Debate

11 p.m.

Conservative

Derek Sloan Conservative Hastings—Lennox and Addington, ON

Mr. Speaker, the Tyendinaga blockade occurs in my riding of Hastings—Lennox and Addington, and I want to give the member across the aisle a sense of how the people in my riding are feeling.

People are upset and angry and want to know why the law does not apply to everyone. If anyone else blocked the railway, they would be arrested, and yet here we stand, 13 days later, and nothing has happened. There is no plan from the government. Massive layoffs are starting and will continue.

Those who want to protest may do so and those who want to petition the courts may do so, but the law must be upheld. If it is not, what will stop this from happening again and again? The law must be consistent, predictable and evenly applied. We are looking at propane shortages out east, supplies for hospitals are at risk and thousands of workers will be laid off. These protests must end.

At the end of the day, the government answers to the decisions of the police. It is day 13, and the police are not enforcing the injunction. What do I say to my constituents who feel the rule of law is selective and not being enforced? When will the police enforce this law?

Relations with Indigenous PeoplesEmergency Debate

11:05 p.m.

Liberal

Patrick Weiler Liberal West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country, BC

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member opposite for raising concerns about the impacts of these continued rail closures.

The solution lies in having a meaningful dialogue that will get to the root of the problem. Once we are able to provide a process and move down that process of addressing the root causes of this problem, that will be the most effective and long-term solution to addressing the crisis we have today. It is not at the discretion of the government to direct the police to enforce laws; there is an already an injunction in place.

Relations with Indigenous PeoplesEmergency Debate

11:05 p.m.

NDP

Peter Julian NDP New Westminster—Burnaby, BC

Mr. Speaker, the member talked about meaningful dialogue. He represents a riding on the other side of the north shore, the other side of Burrard Inlet. The indigenous peoples of the north shore, the Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh people, have spoken out against the imposition by the government with respect to the Trans Mountain pipeline. I am not talking about the $17 billion or $18 billion in public funds the government wants to splurge on this pipeline, I am not talking about the environmental destruction that will come with having tankers going out through the Burrard Inlet and the Salish Sea, I am talking about indigenous peoples in his area, in the north shore, who have spoken out actively against this. I ask the member this: How can we consider the government to be credible in any way on this issue when it is willing to run roughshod over indigenous rights in the case of the Trans Mountain pipeline?

Relations with Indigenous PeoplesEmergency Debate

11:05 p.m.

Liberal

Patrick Weiler Liberal West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country, BC

Mr. Speaker, the Trans Mountain pipeline review process dragged on for many years. The level of indigenous consultation that happened throughout this process is unheard of in this country. The high level of engagement from officials at the most senior levels would be hard to replicate in any other process. This is the type of example we need to show when we want to improve our nation-to-nation relationship, to have high-level buy-in engagement from our leaders. That is precisely what we need to pursue when we are talking about the Coastal GasLink project. I was encouraged to see our Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations present in B.C. a couple of days ago to meet with the Wet'suwet'en leaders and address the concerns that were raised.

Relations with Indigenous PeoplesEmergency Debate

11:05 p.m.

Green

Elizabeth May Green Saanich—Gulf Islands, BC

Mr. Speaker, I note parenthetically that the minister was in British Columbia but was not attempting to meet with the Wet'suwet'en because she was not able to leave Victoria. She did meet with her provincial counterpart.

We have referred many times tonight to the Coastal GasLink project as though natural gas reduces greenhouse gases globally. However, this is fracked gas. I know the member for West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country is concerned about climate. Is he not concerned that fracked gas has the same carbon footprint as coal and worsens the climate situation?

Relations with Indigenous PeoplesEmergency Debate

11:05 p.m.

Liberal

Patrick Weiler Liberal West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country, BC

Mr. Speaker, a major focus and really the defining focus for our government is ensuring that we are taking meaningful action to meet our climate commitments. One of the areas the member opposite raised was the contribution of natural gas in this process. One of the major changes our government has made over the last couple of years is investing with companies to pursue the electrification of these processes, to lower the life-cycle carbon emissions of this type of extraction. By doing this, it is able to have lower emissions than LNG and natural gas produced in other locations.