Nishnawbe Aski Nation leaders and community members gathered to drum between consultation sessions on Bill 5 at Queen’s Park last Thursday.Sammy Kogan/The Globe and Mail
The Ontario cabinet ministers overseeing the government’s Bill 5 – which would allow “special economic zones” where any provincial laws could be suspended to speed up development – now say they are open to legislative changes, as First Nation leaders warn of protests.
However, Premier Doug Ford dismissed the bill’s opponents as “radical environmentalists” and said he hoped it would be passed soon.
Ontario’s Energy and Mines Minister Stephen Lecce and Indigenous Affairs Minister Greg Rickford said Monday they could amend Bill 5, which is currently before a legislative committee. They also pledged to consult Indigenous leaders on the proposals, which are aimed at accelerating mining in the northern Ring of Fire region.
Indigenous Affairs Minister Greg Rickford.Cole Burston/The Canadian Press
First Nations chiefs warned the committee studying the bill on Monday that passing it could spark a revival of the wave of “Idle No More” Indigenous protests launched in 2012. Indigenous leaders have said for weeks that Ontario failed to consult First Nations before unveiling the bill last month.
Speaking earlier in the day on Monday, Mr. Ford batted away the idea of rewriting Bill 5.
“There’s opposition with the radical environmentalists, not everyone else,” he told reporters at Queen’s Park. “People want jobs. They want to create wealth and opportunity and prosperity, that’s what they want.”
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The bill would allow the government to designate “special economic zones,” where it could eliminate any provincial law or municipal bylaw – including environmental or labour rules – for companies it deems “trusted proponents.”
The idea, which Mr. Ford has suggested could also be used for his vision of a massive tunnelling project under Highway 401, has been condemned by opposition leaders and the Canadian Civil Liberties Association as anti-democratic.
Environmentalists say other sweeping changes in the bill would gut endangered species protection. The bill also includes clauses meant to shield the government from legal challenges. Other provisions aimed at speeding up Ontario’s mining permit system have been welcomed by the industry and even the Opposition NDP.
Ontario’s Progressive Conservative government has refused NDP requests to hold an extra day of committee hearings on the bill in Thunder Bay, where more Indigenous people could be heard. In 2023, the same committee held two days of hearings on a previous mining bill in Timmins, Ont.
Minister of Energy and Mines Stephen Lecce.Arlyn McAdorey/The Canadian Press
On Monday, Mr. Lecce said Bill 5 is needed to speed up Ontario’s sluggish mining approval process, which the government says can take up to 15 years and lags those in most other countries. But he said he and Mr. Rickford spoke to First Nations leaders over the weekend and heard their concerns.
“I do believe, for Minister Rickford and I, that we can continue to work in good faith with First Nation leaders to strengthen the bill to get it right,” Mr. Lecce told reporters.
Last week, Mr. Rickford pledged to make unspecified changes to the bill‘s legally unenforceable preamble, after a meeting with Ontario Regional Chief Abram Benedict at Mr. Ford’s home.
But Mr. Benedict, who heads the Chiefs of Ontario, said on Monday that he told the two politicians the entire bill was unacceptable. Speaking to a legislative committee, Mr. Benedict said he supports responsible mining and other development, if done in a way that benefits Indigenous people and respects their rights.
But he warned that Bill 5 could result in widespread protests and end up slowing development, citing the Indigenous Idle No More movement that sprung up in opposition to legislation passed by the federal Conservative government of Stephen Harper.
“Development stalled and investment became risky, and that government proceeded in the wrong direction,” Mr. Benedict said. “We should learn from those lessons.”
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NDP MPP Sol Mamakwa also warned of a reprise of Idle No More: “There will be closures, blockages of mines, roads. That’s what I’m understanding. And that’s the direction.”
Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler of the Nishnawbe Aski Nation, which represents 49 First Nations across Northern Ontario, called Mr. Ford’s comments about radicals “idiotic.” He warned Prime Minister Mark Carney not to follow Ontario’s lead with similar federal legislation.
“It’s not how you want to start your mandate as Prime Minister.” Mr. Fiddler told reporters.
Asked for comment, a spokesperson for federal Environment Minister Julie Dabrusin, Hermine Landry, said in an e-mailed statement that “nation-building projects” must be advanced in a way that ensures both Ottawa and provinces fulfill their legal duty to consult First Nations.
“Getting this right is critical to accelerating projects of national interest and avoiding delays caused by legal challenges,” the statement reads.
With reports from Laura Stone