Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has made reconciliation with Indigenous people a key priority of his government. Mr. Trudeau answers reporters questions during an event in Ottawa on March 6.Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press
The federal government has announced more than a dozen Indigenous agreements in recent weeks, adding up to more than $11-billion, as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau prepares to leave office.
Those agreements include an $8.5-billion deal to reform First Nations child welfare in Ontario, as well as a flurry of other announcements worth a total of at least $3.1-billion.
Mr. Trudeau has made reconciliation with Indigenous people a key priority of his government. His initiatives include addressing many long-term drinking water advisories on reserves (though he promised in 2015 to end all of them within five years); signing a devolution agreement with Nunavut that gives the territory more control over its natural resources; and launching a national inquiry into murdered and missing Indigenous women and girls.
Since the beginning of February, Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada has made at least 18 announcements, including significant funding deals, cabinet directives and ministerial representative appointments. The announcements include more than $1.7-billion in agricultural benefit claims for 14 First Nations communities, and the Prime Minister’s Office announced that it is recognizing Haida aboriginal title to Haida Gwaii, a group of more than 200 islands located about 100 kilometres west of the northern coast of British Columbia.
The latest announcement on Friday was a self-government agreement for the Musqueam Indian Band in what is now greater Vancouver. The agreement, according to the government, will recognize Musqueam’s jurisdiction within its reserve lands for various functions, including governance, membership and financial management and accountability.
Indigenous Services Canada has made at least four announcements since Feb. 1 worth about $200-million.
Gregory Frame, spokesperson for Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Gary Anandasangaree, and Jennifer Kozelj, spokesperson for Indigenous Services Minister Patty Hajdu, said the agreements have been budgeted for previously, meaning that it is not new money.
The Liberal Party is set to elect a new leader on Sunday, clearing the way for Mr. Trudeau to leave office after announcing his departure in January. A federal election is expected to be called before Parliament returns from prorogation on March 24.
Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami president Natan Obed says that he has encouraged Mr. Anandasangaree to take advantage of the current time, given that Canada is heading into a period of uncertainty owing to the Liberal leadership race and an expected election.
“We know what we can do today, and what I’ve encouraged Minister Anandasangaree to do is just take advantage of every possible day he’s within that office and with that portfolio, and he’s done it,” he said.
Mr. Anandasangaree said in an interview that announcements were accelerated when Mr. Trudeau announced his resignation, but many actual agreements were concluded much earlier.
“We actually put together a 90-day work plan end of December, but we had to accelerate it, just given the Prime Minister’s mandate ends on the 9th,” he said. “So, we’ve just been accelerating that by a few weeks, and we’ve been concluding and announcing things that we have worked on for so long.”
He added that many nations have been working on these initiatives for many years.
Other announcements from Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs include a $570-million land claim compensation agreement with Cumberland House Cree First Nation in Saskatchewan, and an agreement in principle with Île-à-la-Crosse boarding school survivors, also in Saskatchewan.
Smaller but still significant announcements included appointing an Inuit leader to externally review Nutrition North Canada, which also included $20-million for that program; apologizing for the Dundas Harbour relocations in Nunavut, which included $4.5-million in compensation; and a $30-million advance payment to Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation for a future land claim agreement.
“It feels like one step closer to the end,” said Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation Chief Claire Sault, adding that negotiations started in 2022.
Indigenous Services Canada also announced the groundbreaking on Asubpeeschoseewagong Netum Anishinabek’s mercury care home and wellness centre in Ontario, where the government reaffirmed its $82-million commitment for capital costs and nearly $69-million in trust for operations.
Ms. Kozelj said in a statement that no announcements have been accelerated, as they depend on the pace communities set.
“Many of these announcements are welcome, but they should not have taken so long,” said Assembly of First Nations National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak. She said she thinks many of these announcements could have been finished within the past year.
Mr. Anandasangaree says that the government has been proceeding at a pace that respects the relationship and follows the lead of the Indigenous nations. He acknowledges imperfection, but says the government has accelerated timelines.
Ms. Woodhouse Nepinak praised Mr. Trudeau for his commitment to reconciliation with First Nations. She said there is still plenty more work to do and she looks forward to doing it with the next prime minister and all political parties.
Mr. Obed said the announcements are the culmination of years of work and have often involved multiple departments, such as the cabinet directive on the implementation of the Inuit Nunangat Policy, or the recent conservation announcement with the Qikiqtani Inuit Association and other partners. He added that he hopes the Liberals will consider Inuit interests in their next steps.