Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  I would add just briefly that, at a leadership meeting, the chiefs stated that they do want to be involved, working with the other governments, whether it's the federal government or the territorial government. We definitely need to be involved in any types of discussions when it comes to energy and energy development.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  I would just ask if one of the other....

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  No, we have not. It was brought to our attention. We tried to get involved. We drafted a letter that was signed under CYFN letterhead but had a signature block of all the leaders that are part of CYFN, as well as the Yukon government. We did a joint letter with the premier but were not involved.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  By brain drain, I guess I'm referring to the fact that a lot of our people in the communities work in the communities and get some of the experience that can help further their careers in the communities working for first nations governments. Then, when other governments come along, because they're able to offer better pensions, better employment opportunities, a lot of these people who have all these talents then leave the communities, in some cases, and go to work for other governments.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  I'll take a couple of minutes, if I may. I think these are questions that Chief Johnston and some others in the communities dealing with these issues around capacity matters are better to answer. I can just give you a quick CYFN perspective. First, when you talk about funds, and funds being delivered or coming into the Yukon government, and then you tie that into policy and how it affects first nations governments, we are able to sit down with the Yukon government and work on some of the funds that have come in from the federal government to the Yukon.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Thank you. I have a brief comment on devolution. Some of the chiefs have spoken about it at great length and the fact that devolution can be wonderful too. But again, as Chief Johnston commented, that is provided we can work together. As governments, we need to be able to work together.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  I believe a lot of our members are moving in those areas with respect to change. You asked if they are ready to change from more cultural activities into various sectors, various economic opportunities, that come into our area. They are adaptable to the change while at the same time maintaining a lot of their traditional beliefs and culture.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  On the government building, CYFN currently does not own a government building. CYFN is not a government, but we represent first nations governments that are members of the council, and we do not have a building that we can proudly call our own. We're being forced to lease at this time.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Thank you. In large part, we do function along those lines. There are, however, some first nations that are not members of CYFN. We try to represent the members as best we can on various issues. The direction comes from the people in the communities as well as from the chiefs, the leaders of those communities.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Thank you. I want to begin by thanking you for the invitation to do a presentation before the committee. For Yukon first nations, most of our past efforts have been focused on building in our traditional lands and our governments to provide our citizens with the core infrastructure and governance that are enjoyed by the rest of Canada.

Finance committee  I believe it would help, definitely. And as far as the $450 million to address housing and water safety and other issues is concerned, we don't see a lot of that in the north because we still have to abide by, and are stuck with, the on-reserve/off-reserve policy. So the first nations south of sixty degrees are the ones who see the majority of the funding.

Finance committee  I concur with those comments. I think there are a number of first nations that have yet to finalize their agreements in the Yukon. I know there has been some discussion in the past around the Yukon having a province-like status. At this point in time it's not something that's supported by the Council of Yukon First Nations until we get the other first nations to the table and look at agreements, and then we can look at it as a collective.

Finance committee  Thank you. I think it's all of them. But to really help us with respect to self-governance we need to implement our agreements with Ottawa. By that, I mean being recognized as a government and being equipped with the tools that will help us to implement these agreements.

Finance committee  My position on behalf of the Council of Yukon First Nations is that it would be supported. But we would do it in conjunction, I believe, with the Yukon territorial government. We have a close working relationship with the government, and I believe it would definitely be supported.

Finance committee  Yes. As I said in my response to Mr. Bagnell's question earlier, eliminating the funding will make it more of a burden, not only on my people, but I believe on the government. As we look at the health system, it's going to be more costly, with people coming in and out of the hospitals and health centres and whatnot, due to smoking-related illnesses.