Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Yes. We see that policy would be able to address the matter, but it's not going to be enshrined forever. Once you pass it in law--

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Yes, absolutely.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  No, they don't, but they're going in the right direction. When you put together a consultative agency like a business centre, that's not going to have a cashflow from the crude oil coming out of the ground to the retail sale and retail gas station outlet right away. It's going t

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Yes.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  You're going in the right direction, but it's not enabling legislation enshrined in a statute. It will become a policy within the department. Like everybody who's worked in the department knows, there will be a reorganization. We were way down the road in discussions with the dep

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  I'm an independent volunteer in this lobby. We started our whole initiative through the consultation process with the Indian Resource Council when Roy Fox reached out to involve other first nations communities, when he went downstream to talk to the independent gas stations at Ak

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  That list you refer to, is it going to be established in a federal statute? Or what's the government program?

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  This is why we're here in the Indian Oil and Gas Act. We want it as a federal statute so when we have to deal with people in the Department of Indian Affairs, we could tell them, look, this is the law. Be assured that when I was here back in 1974, on the Indian Oil and Gas Act th

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Well, in the act it says “shall”.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Yes, it has to be properly--

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  But there's reference to it. Now, because there's so much opportunity here, we want this whole stimulus initiative enshrined in a federal statute. Because when you deal with different departments.... If they're prepared to put their economic development stimulus into a federal

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  I agree fully with you on that argument. When they brought forward the Indian Oil and Gas Act, in 1974, we asked why you should need another act when paragraph 57(c) under the Indian Act allows the government to make regulations to cover all this. In our collaborations on Monda

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  No, but you have to be very, very skilful to find ways to do all that we're promoting. The reason we present this is to provide a stimulus to promote vertical integration and value activities to create opportunities that will assist economic development within Indian communities.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  I submit that--

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  --from day one to present, if you do the accounting, there has probably been more money taken from oil and gas and other resources on Indian lands than the total Department of Indian Affairs budget all put together.