Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Mr. Russell, it's nice to see you again as well. To answer your question, there's always ongoing consultation with both the Métis National Council and the Congress of Aboriginal Peoples on their educational needs and aspirations with respect to the full range of education. Having said that, in INAC's programs right now the PSC program we have does not apply to Métis students.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  I guess that one's for me. Mr. Russell, thank you for the question.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Thanks for that. There are a couple of things. To state the obvious, there is no post-secondary program for Métis similar to those for first nations. I can't say what the underlying reasons for that are, but I can surmise, I think. Traditionally, the federal government is of the view that, notwithstanding the fact that Métis are in the Constitution, for the most part our legal and constitutional responsibilities are much greater towards first nations as distinct from Métis.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  I'll let the post-secondary renewal people answer a part of that question, but I can say that we have been, I guess “lobbied” is the word, by the Métis National Council to continue providing support to the institutions they've set up. There is some consideration of those proposals within government, within OFI, and government will have to make a decision as to how it wants to proceed on this.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Thank you. I'll take that question, Ms. Neville. Just to answer the last one first, the office of the federal interlocutor moved from the Privy Council Office over to the Department of Indian Affairs in July 2004. So we took our mandate and our policies with us at that time, and that included, of course, the urban aboriginal strategy.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Again, I would need to have a look at the estimates year over year, but it seems to me that the budget we've carried over from Privy Council is pretty much the one we've had, adjusted accordingly as we've acquired new authorities in the past couple of years, but nothing in the past year, I don't think.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  That's a legal question. I don't believe the government has made that determination.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  I can answer some of those questions, Mr. Russell. Thank you for the questions, and thank you, Chair, for the opportunity. In terms of the LMN claim, that really is a claims answer that someone else in the department is going to have to give you. That's been before the department, I think, for 15 years or so.