Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Yes, sir. Thank you very much to the members of Parliament, and to all, tansi; marsil; wachiyea. Thank you for inviting me to speak today. I am speaking with you as chief of the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations. The FSIN represents 74 first nations in the province of

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  The confirmation of funding from the government—

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  I've just got a couple statements left to make and I'm done.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  The confirmation of funding from government is a condition for the University of Regina to enter the administrative services contract with the First Nations University. Here I am stressing to you that the only way for First Nations University of Canada to survive is with the fede

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Thank you very much, member from the Bloc. It's important to know that we've been down this road before, in the area of gaming. We've seen troubles at our institution. When we restructured, of course, we did so in the best interests of employment and ensuring that we had governa

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  I'll ask for some assistance from Ms. Myo as well, but for ISSP funding, the funding primarily does not cover core funding, operations, equipment. We fully believe, given that Minister Rob Norris, last year or a year and a half ago, at the Canadian Council for Ministers on Educa

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Absolutely. At the CCME meeting in Saskatoon...that First Nations University was a major catalyst for people entering post-secondary education, and having that as a model, for the institution itself, to be that welcoming environment for people who enter post-secondary. Our insis

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  We'll both respond. I can't reiterate any more strongly to you that we have new leadership at the helm of the FSIN. We had gained unanimous support at the chiefs in assembly that changes needed to be made, that mistakes were made. The scholarship money was a problem for the uni

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  As we speak, the memorandum of understanding is being signed by the Province of Saskatchewan; it's signed by me. It is also going to be followed by a financial management agreement, a liaison agreement, and of course a transition agreement. That is the overall umbrella agreemen

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Number one, I think the board has taken the steps to fire the president and ensure that proper measures will be taken on behalf of the First Nations University of Canada. They've demonstrated that there is, I think, a willingness to ensure full accountability and transparency, th

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  I'll ask for some support, but very quickly, the Speech from the Throne talked about strengthening student support, and we believe strengthening student support also means that institutions that serve post-secondary students in this country, such as the First Nations University,

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Just for the record, this has been sent to the clerk.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  I would say that by its—

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. On behalf of Saskatchewan's first nations, I begin by acknowledging the elders of the people of the Algonquin territory. I want to thank the members of Parliament, this talking place, for giving me the opportunity to speak to you about Bill C-3

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Just very quickly, thank you for the question, Mr. Lemay. One of the things that's commonly said is, here we go again. Back in 1985, Bill C-31 looked at addressing some of these very common concerns this bill now tries to address. Rest assured, it won't close the gap of further