Sue Barnes

[Aboriginal Affairs, November 21st, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, no one should prejudge the outcome of a meeting. The meeting that will take place is an historic one. The Government of Canada has acknowledged that the living conditions on many reserves are unacceptable. That is why we have been working for two years with many organizations and the leadership to get to this historic conference this week. They will have the plans that will affect the lives of Canadians.

May I remind the members opposite, when Canadians look to a government, they look for a vision. The do not look for negative comments all the time.

[First Nations Commercial and Industrial Development Act, November 18th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I know my colleague has been looking at economic issues in the country over many years. I know he appreciates the necessity of this, not only off reserve but on reserve. The partnering first nations have been advocating this initiative passionately and eloquently, both with the Government of Canada and other first nations. They have sent information packages regarding the proposed legislation to all first nations and first nations organizations.

Support material was provided, including a bulletin for first nations, a document on the functional principles of the proposed bill as well as a technical working paper.

First nations were also informed about the 1-800 toll free number, the website address www.fncida.ca for information in either French or English, and the e-mail address [email protected] for additional information.

Following introduction, the bill kits were distributed to all first nations as well. The bill kits also included a cover letter, a numbered copy of Bill C-71, a backgrounder, a bulletin, a press release and frequently asked questions.

Once again, first nations were invited to use the toll free number or the website address or the e-mail address for comments and additional information.

Partnering first nations have conducted presentations, addressing the proposed legislation with officials from the Indian Resource Council and the Canadian Council of Aboriginal Business. Similar presentations also were conducted at several national first nations meetings, including the first nations summit in September and the Alberta chiefs summit in October. Information packages were provided at the Assembly of First Nations economic first nations summit in November.

Ultimately, we can always have a first nation that has not read some of the material or has not felt that they have been engaged enough. What we have is legislation that will be an economic business tool for the development, a sectoral self-government.

I know the member has been very much engaged in productivity discussions over the years. How does the member feel about economic productivity and how that allows first nations and their communities to work on the social and cultural activities, that engagement of services within those first nations?

[First Nations Commercial and Industrial Development Act, November 18th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, to help my friend, who has in the past been supportive of bills that have helped first nations, I would like to point out to him that this bill itself does not have any direct implication for aboriginal and treaty rights. However, regulations for large scale and/or complex commercial and industrial projects could have some effect on aboriginal and treaty rights. For this reason, authority would be provided in the proposed legislation to permit the inclusion of provisions to accommodate proven or asserted aboriginal or treaty rights in the project specific regulations made under the proposed act.

The partnering first nations and their legal counsel have indicated their strong support for this approach of addressing specific aboriginal and treaty rights in the regulations, specific to a given project brought forward by a first nation.

Overall, the proposed act permits regulations, and I will quote here, to “provide for the relationship between the regulations and aboriginal and treaty rights referred to in section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982, including limiting the extent to which the regulations may abrogate or derogate from those aboriginal and treaty rights”.

We have a situation where the provincial regulation has to be able to come in when the community has so desired this to be able to do industrial development. This is with the consent of the first nation. All of the legal experts, not only in the first nations communities but also in the Government of Canada, felt that it was necessary to proceed in this way to give the utmost protection to existing inherent rights, but also to allow development where the first nations who are leading the projects specifically request it and require it.

If we had a complete, fulsome non-derogation clause, it is unlikely that any of this development work would be able to occur.

[Premiers of Quebec, November 18th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I am not sure if I mentioned education and I do not want to mislead the House. I want to ensure that education is also part of the FMM agenda.

[Aboriginal Affairs, November 18th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I will repeat my answer perhaps a little slower so it can be understood on the other side. Last June we had meetings where the federal government and the regional, territorial and provincial ministers came together with the aboriginal leadership, including NWAC. We together worked out the agenda of major items. We have health, housing, economic development and relationships. All these things will incorporate many different topics that could be included, and that is under discussion. These are the general--

[Aboriginal Affairs, November 18th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, we have no lessons to learn from those members opposite. The first nations councils appoint an electoral officer who is responsible for administering the general band election. Any first nations elector or candidate may appeal an election held under the Indian Act. Once an appeal is filed, all candidates and electoral officers receive a copy and are provided with an opportunity to respond to any allegations.

If the information received is not sufficient to make a determination, an investigator can be appointed to conduct further investigation. This minister has followed procedure.

[Aboriginal Affairs, November 18th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, the investigator has completed his investigation. Officials of the department have received the report and are currently reviewing it. We take this process very seriously. We need to ensure that we have reviewed all the documents and information prior to making a decision.

The department is committed to working with first nations to strengthen their governments' procedures, including elections. We will do so because we know that in this country our future is dependent on having good relationships and giving all of the support that is needed to raise the democracy--

[Aboriginal Affairs, November 18th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to report to the member opposite that the first ministers' meeting, the first one that will deal with health, housing, education, economic development and strengthening relationships, those things are vehicles for dealing with the issue.

Nineteen groups fed into the agenda last June; the leadership, the provinces, the territories and our government. We will do our job. The Native Women's Advisory Committee, NWAC, was talking to our minister yesterday on this subject. She knows things that the opposition cannot even understand.

[First Nations Commercial and Industrial Development Act, November 18th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I think the vast part of the credit for this legislation goes to first nations themselves. We have worked with them inside government, and we and I believe all parties in the House are working to move this legislation forward. I hope that by the end of today not only will people be voting to get this to a committee, but they will be considering getting this through the House later today. We are looking for all party consent to do that. That is in the hands of my colleagues in the House. If we hear that information, I will do all those things that are necessary with my other colleagues.

I want to say for the benefit of Canadians that we need to appreciate the sophistication of what is possible on the reserves and we need to appreciate the leadership on reserves. We know we can go forward with very specific projects rights now. We need this legislation to move forward. We will need it for other first nations so that they will be able to follow in those footsteps, to follow that path in the future.

We look forward to working with first nations. We have had great initiatives, not only by the five proponents but also by actively partnering first nations that are going out to other first nations and have tried at the regionals to have the conversations that are necessary. At some point, even though this will be legislation that will quickly enable one, or two, or five first nations to move forward, it will be the path for others. There will be a uniqueness available, though, because the regulatory framework will have to be developed for each specific project. This is not widely templated, per se; it is just enabling.

It is a very powerful tool. It fills a gap that exists right now. These first nations have gone forward with their vision for their communities to fill that gap and get onto the path that puts a level playing field in the places where they live so that there can be economies of large scale. This is possible today in some first nations. Let us make it happen.

[First Nations Commercial and Industrial Development Act, November 18th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, a primary goal of the Prime Minister and the government is to close the gap in socio-economic conditions between first nations peoples and other Canadians.

The bill, the first nations commercial and industrial development act, FNCIDA, would allow first nations to participate more actively in the Canadian economy and to access engines of economic development.

In working toward fulfilling this goal, the government signed an accord with the Assembly of First Nations at the May 31, 2005 policy retreat, which underlined a shared commitment to helping first nations exercise greater control over their social and economic aspirations.

The government is committed to working with first nations to build stronger indigenous economies leading to greater economic independence.

The legislation represents a bold step forward in the partnership between the federal government and first nations. It builds on the success of previous legislation in this area, the First Nations Land Management Act and the proposed first nations oil and gas and moneys management act, Bill C-54, which is currently before the House.

This bill, like these two legislative initiatives, will give first nations who opt into the legislation the confidence that comes from accessing and developing the resources on their own lands. As such, it represents a very powerful tool to build economic opportunity and improve the quality of life on reserves.

First nations across Canada are considering development opportunities that will improve economic and social conditions on their own reserves. For example, Fort McKay First Nation in northern Alberta is pursuing over a billion dollar oil sands development to be developed by and with Shell Canada Limited. The oil sands in general represent enormous economic opportunity for all Canadians, including first nations like For McKay. Billions of dollars of investment will be flowing into the oil sands in the next few years. We know this and first nations want to be players and participants.

The investment in Fort McKay would create unprecedented job and revenue growth, along with vast opportunities and quality of life and social and cultural development on reserve and employment opportunities in the region. We are very pleased to move forward on this.

For these types of projects to proceed on reserves, first nations need effective regulatory regimes and existing federal legislation currently does not provide the authority to establish them, creating a regulatory barrier or gap.

The Constitution Act, 1867, gives Parliament exclusive authority in respect of “land reserve for the Indians”. Also, the Indian Act, the Canadian Environment Assessment Act, the Canadian Environment Protection Act and other federal legislation were never intended to provide a complete federal land regime on reserve. In her 2003 report, the Auditor General found that regulatory barriers like this are one of the main impediments to first nations economic development.

Therefore the government has responded to these concerns and is making legislative and regulatory renewal a priority. FNCIDA is an important part of this legislative and regulatory renewal and is designed to remove barriers to first nations economic development. This legislation is also consistent with the government's smart regulation initiative.

In its 2004 report, the external advisory committee on smart regulation recommended that the federal government “accelerate its agenda to modernize the regulatory regime in first nations communities and address regulatory gaps that inhibit the development of commercial and industrial projects on reserve land”.

For companies that were considering locating major commercial and industrial projects on reserve, like the multi-billion dollar oil sands development at Fort McKay, the bill would provide the authority to establish regulatory frameworks to address regulatory gaps, offering certainty and transparency for industry proponents and tearing down this barrier to economic growth.

First nations themselves have asked the federal government to help them attract and facilitate economic development on their lands by providing a framework like FNCIDA, which would enable the federal government to regulate large scale complex commercial and industrial projects. I can attest to the fact that the leaders on these reserves, who are the proponents of the bill, are capable, willing, able and anxious to get on with this legislation.

FNCIDA would allow the federal government to replicate provincial laws and regulations to apply to these projects on reserve. This would ensure that as first nations and investors or industry at large move ahead with these major projects, they are regulated in a fashion similar to similar projects off reserve. It would give the added benefit of stability for investors and developers as they deal with the same provincial regulatory regime that they already know and understand. It makes sense.

How does FNCIDA work? Consideration of regulation under FNCIDA for a specific project would be triggered when a first nation itself passes a band council resolution requesting regulations related to a specific project on the reserve, not a generalized project but a very specific major development project. Next, the federal government would conduct an analysis prior to making a final decision on whether to proceed with the development of regulations for the project.

If the regulations are to proceed for the project, the Government of Canada would in most cases seek an agreement regarding the administration and enforcement of the regulations with the province and the first nation. An indication of support from first nation members for the project and the use of regulations under FNCIDA would also be required. Typically, this support would be shown through a community vote.

First nations are leading this initiative. Five partnering first nations have passed band council resolutions in support of this legislation and have been eloquently advocating the initiative in other first nations communities. They have done so because, as we know, they are the best advocates for their proposals.

The five partnering first nations are Squamish Nation in British Columbia, Carry the Kettle First Nation in Saskatchewan, Fort William First Nation in Ontario, and Tsuu T'ina Nation and Fort McKay First Nation in Alberta. They have been assisted, with other partnering first nations, in getting the message across the country. I know that they have written at least twice to all the chiefs across the nation to carry the message to every province and every first nation. I have seen letters showing this.

A resolution of support for the legislation has been received from the Atlantic Policy Congress of First Nations. As well, there have been letters of support from the Uchucklesaht Tribe and the Skeetchestn Indian Band of British Columbia.

In addition, the government has been actively engaged in discussions with several provinces, particularly Alberta and Ontario, where first nations are actively advancing specific projects. In committee, we heard from an Alberta official that Alberta is particularly responsive to this particular proposal, as others would be.

There are active engagements with officials in other provinces, particularly in Alberta and Ontario, as I have mentioned, where first nations currently are advancing specific projects. Officials in both of these provinces have expressed support for a federal approach that would create as much regulatory compatibility as possible for on and off reserve commercial and industrial projects. They are very willing to discuss provincial involvement in monitoring and enforcing regulations for specific projects.

More recently, Saskatchewan and British Columbia officials have also expressed interest in this legislation. It is very much expected that other provinces will develop greater interest in the proposed legislation as first nations and industry partners begin to advance projects in their jurisdiction. Representatives of the oil and gas industry have also indicated strong support for this bill.

By moving forward this important piece of legislation, the government is demonstrating its commitment to work in partnership with first nations communities toward the goal of improved social and economic conditions. I must underscore how necessary this is for economic and social development on reserves. One is a partner with the other. We cannot get the increased viability of a community, the wealth of its culture and the enhancement of services to the people on reserves if there is not a land base to give the economic base. Then they can be a full partner and take it from the initial exploration or exploitation to the delivery.

Across this country, there are very fine leadership examples of first nations that are ready. This is what we are enabling. We all know that there are other first nations, places and communities across this country that have their challenges. They have different needs at this time, but some will be ready at a later stage and some first nations are ready now. As a government, we have to work with all levels of readiness and we have to facilitate. That is what the first ministers meeting next week will do, on some levels, but right now we also cannot forget and leave behind all of this important legislation that we need to move forward for the advancement of economic opportunity.

I encourage all members of this House to move this piece of legislation forward by the end of the day. I think that would be extremely positive.