Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Yes, I do.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  I think it has. And I would like to add, maybe for everyone's benefit, that it's a lot better than what was there before. It's a big improvement.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Mind you, it's not perfect, as I pointed out. I think there's room there for improvement. We're of the opinion that it is workable and that there could be some amendments made to it that we feel would not cause a whole lot of pain on the part of the government.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Well, I really can't answer you on that one. I'm really not able to give you a definite answer on that one. That would be something that I would have to take back and discuss with those in authority.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  No, I haven't.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  I'll give you a couple of examples. The timeframe of six years is a lot sooner than 25 years. With the first nation I come from, there was a land claim that was validated for negotiation in November 1984. I have to fault the department for why it has taken so long. I'll quick

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Not only a broader role, but also, as you know, the superior courts have decided in a lot of cases that oral history is acceptable.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  And it should be. So the elders, we feel, could play a tremendous role in contributing their knowledge on these issues.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Yes, exactly.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Not quite. What I was alluding to was the fact that the Passamaquoddy are denied...or are not even recognized as Indians, despite being signatories to the treaties signed by the British crown in the 1700s and earlier. These people are being ignored, and we felt they should be rec

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  It would need amendment, but I don't think I'm really suggesting that. I'm simply suggesting or giving you an example of how things have evolved, where people and their claims have been forgotten. So this would fall pretty much under a comprehensive claim, rather than a specific

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Well, I agree with you. I can't see in that short time how all these things can be addressed. As I pointed out earlier, this has been building up over time. Claims have been neglected. Just as an example, we have some claims in the system that we're waiting for Justice to give an

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Yes, that's true. I have to agree. I don't know how they're going to resolve those outstanding claims in the timeframe in the legislation.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Going back to specific claims we've been dealing with, as I mentioned earlier, INAC and Justice have always acted as the judge and jury in a lot of these claims. We've waited as long as seven years--eight years in one case I know--just to give an opinion, and that was a negative

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Well, it can be both, I guess, depending on how you look at it. Again, I have to go back to my original response, that I don't think that's the proper way to look at it, in my view. If we lose a decision by the tribunal, then I think we should have extended the courtesy to appeal