OTTAWA — Prime Minister Mark Carney said he shares the view that Canada should be looking into “reforming or even abolishing the Indian Act” after meeting with First Nations leaders on Monday.
Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew first raised the issue publicly when he told reporters earlier in the day that Canada should abolish the Act and that such a move was “long overdue.”
Carney credited Kinew for his advocacy and said that he was open to the idea of modernizing, reforming or abolishing the Act, based on a consultation process that is still “to be determined.” The prime minister admitted that “not everybody” at the meeting with premiers and First Nations leaders was in agreement with the proposal.
“I am committed to a process that moves Canada beyond the Indian Act, and I am directing my ministers to work in partnership with First Nations to chart that path together,” said Carney on Monday.
Carney said that if the Indian Act is abolished, then “fully modernizing the governance relationship is the desirable end state.”
AFN National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak said she looked forward to discussing the idea with the Assembly of First Nations.
“There is a diversity of First Nations from coast to coast to coast. We’re in every province and territory in this beautiful country that we all share, and that question is going to be up to them to decide, right? And they’re going to have to decide for themselves,” said Woodhouse Nepinak.
The meeting in Ottawa brought Carney together with some provincial premiers, chiefs from the Assembly of First Nations and Woodhouse Nepinak. The gathering comes as Carney tries to win over First Nations leaders for a slate of planned major projects, including a pipeline from Alberta to the West Coast, that are already facing legal jeopardy .
Carney said the leaders also discussed a proposed First Nations Sovereign Wealth Fund, which he described as “an opportunity to share directly in the wealth that the country is creating.” Carney said he has instructed Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne to look into the fund and other ways that First Nations can benefit from the major projects.
The First Nations Sovereign Wealth Fund could also work in tandem with the Canada Strong Fund, the government’s proposed sovereign wealth fund, Carney said.
“There have been various models that have been suggested. I think all need to be explored. One could work alongside the Canada Strong Fund. Some in the room, not us, suggested that, or different models could be developed,” said Carney.
National Post
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