Carney tells Inuit leaders his new major projects law ‘fully respects treaty rights'
OTTAWA — Prime Minister Mark Carney told Inuit leaders that his government's major projects bill 'fully respects treaty rights' a week after several Indigenous leaders left a recent meeting with him in a state of frustration , saying their treaties were being undermined.
Article content
On Thursday, Carney was taking part in a meeting of the Inuit-Crown Partnership Committee, co-hosted by the president of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami Natan Obed, in Inuvik, NWT, to discuss Bill C-5, known as the One Canadian Economy Act.
Article content
Article content
In his opening remarks, the prime minister said he wanted to make 'absolutely clear' in the context of this forum on what the legislation could do and what it doesn't do.
Article content
Article content
'In fact, those will be essential for anything that we move forward,' he added.
Article content
Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations Rebecca Alty added: 'At the end of the day, treaties are above this law. They have to be respected, and that's always been the case with this bill.'
Article content
According to the government of Canada's website, treaties are agreements made between the Crown, Indigenous groups that define rights and obligations. They include historic treaties and modern treaties, also called comprehensive land claim agreements.
Article content
Article content
Treaties are enshrined in section 35 of the Constitution Act. In 2021, the Liberal government passed legislation to make sure all federal laws are consistent with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which relates to treaty rights.
Article content
Article content
Assembly of First Nations (AFN) National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak had raised some alarm bells about C-5 before it was tabled and passed in June, saying that the proposed bill suggested 'a serious threat' to the exercise of treaty rights by First Nations.
Article content
The legislation, which was fast-tracked in Parliament to become law in late June, gives Carney's cabinet the authority to designate projects, such as pipelines, ports and highways, in the 'national interest' and speed up the federal approvals process.
Article content
In response to criticism from Indigenous leaders who said they had not been properly consulted on the bill, Carney announced he would be holding three summits.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CBC
39 minutes ago
- CBC
'What took so long?' P.E.I. senator says Ottawa's bridge toll cut came a decade too late
Social Sharing Prime Minster Mark Carney's decision to cut tolls on the Confederation Bridge satisfied a Prince Edward Island senator's long-standing quest for equality — but it didn't come without a question. "What took so long?" said Percy Downe during an interview with CBC's Island Morning. Downe, who served as chief of staff to former prime minister Jean Chrétien before his appointment to the Senate in 2003, had long called the bridge tolls unfair to Islanders. His complaints began about a decade ago, when the previous Liberal government announced it was fully funding and removing tolls on Montreal's Champlain Bridge. Both that bridge and Confederation are assets owned by the federal government. "That was grossly unfair. It was unfair to Islanders," Downe said. "It was a problem that should have been addressed by prime minister [Justin] Trudeau. It was never addressed. I'm thankful Prime Minister Carney fixed the problem." Carney's announcement Monday saw the price of tolls on the Confederation Bridge, which connects P.E.I. with New Brunswick, fall to $20 from $50.25. Prices for transport trucks fell to a flat rate of $20. And there was no change in the cost to cyclists, pedestrians, shuttles or motorcycles. Those changes kicked in Friday. Downe said he's OK with the $20 toll, saying that money can go toward the bridge's maintenance. But it took a decade for Ottawa to right a wrong, he said, and Islanders paid the price during that time. "In those 10 years... Islanders spent hundreds of millions of dollars in tolls," he said. More than 990,000 vehicles crossed the Confederation Bridge in 2024, many of them paying at least $50.25 to pass. Also in Carney's announcement, news that fares for passengers, cars and commercial traffic on ferry services in Eastern Canada that are federally supported would go down by 50 per cent. The ferry service between Nova Scotia and Newfoundland also got a boost from Ottawa. Ticket prices were cut in half, though rates for commercial freight did not see a decrease. To make it all happen, it's estimated government will spend about $100 million of public money annually to offset the reduction of the bridge toll and ferry fares. An economic and social boost Despite the spending, the prime minister said the move will pump millions back into the Canadian economy. "If we are going to build a stronger, more united economy, and we are doing that, we are going to need to make it more affordable to travel around this country, for people and for businesses," Carney said during the announcement. That need is something Downe has seen first-hand "Just prior to the pandemic, I heard from an agricultural producer who spent $66,000 in bridge tolls that year — money that his competitor in Cap-Pelé, N.B., did not have to spend," Downe said. WATCH | Islanders and tourists excited about reduced price to leave P.E.I.: Islanders and tourists excited about reduced price to leave P.E.I. 4 days ago In seven years, full ownership of the bridge will transfer back to the federal government from it's current operator, Strait Crossing Bridge Ltd. Downe said he is "not worried at all" about whether tolls will remain low after that deadline. But advocacy for equitable, reliable travel can't end, he said, especially as the ferry service between P.E.I. and Nova Scotia continues to face delays and disruptions this season. "It has to be addressed," he said. "I won't be in the Sentate for another 10 years."
CBC
2 hours ago
- CBC
The Eastern Energy Partnership: Atlantic Canada's big pitch for Carney's nation-building list
Social Sharing On a gravel road by the side of the Trans-Canada Highway, New Brunswick's natural resources minister, John Herron, gazes down a long clearing cut through the forest. He sees poetry — national poetry, that is. Herron hopes one of New Brunswick's proposed "projects of national interest" will connect to an existing natural gas pipeline running under that clearing. "This is a nation-building project that checks every box," Herron says. The plan is to extend a gas line that now ends in Quebec City into New Brunswick to link with the Maritimes and Northeast Pipeline beneath the minister's feet. The line carries Alberta gas routed through the United States, or gas extracted in the U.S., into Atlantic Canada. But the Quebec extension would bypass American territory completely, creating an all-Canada route. "The poetry kind of goes like this: You have Western Canada gas going into Ontario, through the province of Quebec, [by] adding additional pipe from Quebec City into Atlantic Canada," the minister says. "That additional pipe, aspirationally speaking, would be made of Ontario steel.… This is a made-in-Canada solution. This is energy sovereignty." The proposal is on New Brunswick's list of projects submitted to Mark Carney's government for expedited regulatory approval under Bill C-5, which was adopted into law in June. Carney underscored his own build-Canada agenda again on Friday, after the deadline passed for a trade agreement with the U.S. and U.S. President Donald Trump raised tariffs on many Canadian exports. "Canadians will be our own best customer," Carney said in a statement. The Eastern Energy Partnership The prime minister's call for proposals has stirred interest from provincial governments across the country, not least in Atlantic Canada, where premiers see a new opportunity to boost their economies and meet a growing demand for electricity. Many of their proposals fall under the label of the Eastern Energy Partnership, which envisions the four Atlantic provinces generating more electricity and transmitting it to each other, to Quebec and to other buyers. They range from upgrading the subsea cable between Prince Edward Island and the New Brunswick mainland — likely one of the quicker, simpler projects — to a Nova Scotia proposal to build enough offshore wind turbines to generate a quarter of Canada's electricity needs. Winning the "project of national interest" designation gets proponents a faster regulatory review process but doesn't guarantee federal funding. It's also not a sure thing that Ottawa will approve the Eastern Energy Partnership projects as a whole. "I don't want the perfect to be the enemy of the good," says Nova Scotia Liberal MP Sean Fraser, the minister responsible for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency. "I think we have an opportunity — and in fact an obligation — to move as quickly as possible on the components of the partnership that are ready," he says. Many of the projects face obstacles. Bill C-5 has provoked a skeptical reaction from some First Nations leaders concerned that accelerated reviews will compromise their right to be consulted. In New Brunswick, however, some chiefs are open to making deals. Pabineau First Nation Chief Terry Richardson supports the New Brunswick government's proposals, which include an expansion of nuclear power generation in the province. "I'm OK with it, because we need a solution. We need a baseline source of energy and right now we don't have any," says Richardson. "I mean, renewables are great, but what do you do when the wind don't blow, the sun don't shine, and the water don't flow?" Assembly of First Nations regional chief Joanna Bernard says many bands are keeping an open mind but will insist on equity stakes in projects. "Back in the day, it was 'Here's some scholarships,' or 'Here's capacity building so maybe your people can work on the pipeline.' Those days are gone," Bernard said. "We're going to own part of the company. We're going to be there on the ground, making sure environmental issues are of the highest priority. And the profits will go to the First Nations." Wind and nuclear power Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston's Wind West plan to develop thousands of offshore turbines and export the electricity to other provinces could be a boon for national efforts to decarbonize its power sources, if it came to fruition at that scale. Scott Urquhart, the Cape Breton-born CEO of a Copenhagen-based wind energy company, says the project is doable, with the wind off Nova Scotia being "pretty much best in the world." WATCH | How challenging is Nova Scotia's offshore wind project? What it will take to get Nova Scotia's offshore wind project off the ground 2 months ago Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston has plans to license enough offshore wind farms to produce 40 gigawatts of electricity — which could supply 27 per cent of Canada's total electricity demand. But what will it take to get there? The CBC's Tom Murphy spoke with Thomas Arnason McNeil of the Ecology Action Centre. But it may take a decade or more to get turbines turning, and at a considerably higher cost than the $5 to 10 billion the premier is forecasting, according to Halifax energy consultant Heidi Leslie. "The estimate is really low," she says. Wind power prices in a recent U.S. bidding process were far higher than what Ontario customers are now charged on their residential power bills, Leslie says. At that rate, "you're losing money on every kilowatt" from Wind West, she says. "And the further away it is from the place that's using it, the more expensive it is, because you need to build the transmission to get it there." New Brunswick and Nova Scotia are doubling their transmission links, but "that will certainly not be enough to handle what is required," says Larry Hughes, an energy expert at Dalhousie University in Halifax. New Brunswick's ambition to expand nuclear generation is also provoking questions. The province's existing nuclear power plant, Point Lepreau, has been plagued with costly problems since it began operating in 1983. It is responsible for a large part of the provincial power utility's $5-billion debt. More nuclear power — whether that is a second large reactor at Point Lepreau or small modular reactors — will only add to the financial burden, says David Coon, leader of New Brunswick's Green Party. "It's insane," Coon says. "We all get nuclear power bills of a size that no one is happy with because of the extremely expensive cost of owning a nuclear power plant." Affordability top of mind New Brunswick Premier Susan Holt says she gets it. Holt won a big majority last year after campaigning on affordability issues, and she's already faced blowback from residents about their power bills. She hopes neighbouring provinces will share the expense of more nuclear generation in exchange for some of the electricity that will be produced. "When I'm trying to deliver affordability for New Brunswickers, I'm looking at who's shouldering the burden with us," she says. "How do we reduce the cost to New Brunswick ratepayers while still pursuing our objectives of clean power and reliable power?" In addition to nuclear power, New Brunswick's electricity is generated by a combination of fossil fuels, hydro, and to a lesser extent, wind and biomass. Without its emissions-free nuclear reactor, the province would need to burn four times as much coal, making it even harder to lower emissions, says Brad Coady, its vice-president of business development. Meanwhile, the province's largest hydro dam, Mactaquac, needs a major upgrade that could cost up to $9 billion. Lori Clark, the CEO of N.B. Power, says there's an onus on the federal government to help defray the costs of decarbonizing the power supply, rather than passing costs on to customers. "I do really believe that the federal government has a role to play in this as well. They've set the deadlines for net zero," Clark says. Herron is also looking for federal support, invoking the possibility of a government ownership stake in the natural gas line extension. "I think there's an opportunity to de-risk the project if the project is initially state-owned and First Nation-owned," he says. That would speed up permitting "and it de-risks that investment for the private sector at a future date." Fraser would not commit to that — but he didn't close the door either, citing the precedent of the federal government's 2018 takeover of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project in British Columbia. "More often, the right outcome will be that we create the environment that will incentivize investment, that will allow private companies to set up to succeed and to employ people in the region," he adds. "But we don't want to write off the possibility that certain kinds of investments may be required for particular projects to make them viable if we believe the long-term interests of Canadians will be served."
Winnipeg Free Press
3 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Recognizing a state, and making a point
Opinion Canada will recognize a state that does not exist. A state that may never exist. A state that has yet to meet the internationally accepted attributes of statehood: a permanent population, a defined territory, an effective government, and exercised sovereignty. This is Palestine. Palestine is not yet a reality, but Canada is recognizing another reality. The reality of war, hunger, hardship, and politics. Almost two years after the horrific Hamas massacre of Israelis and others on Oct. 7, 2023, Israel is locked into a grinding war of lethal attrition against Hamas in Gaza. No immediate ceasefire prospects and no clear end game by any of the protagonists except the destruction of the other exists. ABDEL KAREEM HANA / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FILES A Palestinian boy carrying a plastic jerry can of water walks past buildings destroyed during Israeli air and ground operations in Gaza City on July 25. The most volatile neighbourhood in the world has seen more than 50 wars, insurgencies, coups, and rebellions of one sort or another since the end of the Second World War. The pattern is violently familiar and, therefore, depressingly inuring to most of us. Many expected Gaza to follow this same pattern. Israel's right to exist in peace and the monstrous scale of the Hamas terrorism gave it the legal and moral agency to strike back, hard. Retaliation by Israel would be harsh but somehow acceptable. Few shed any tears when key Hamas leaders were hunted down and eliminated. The tears came afterwards. The relentlessly dangerous and difficult task of eradicating a deeply embedded terrorist network in dense urban areas has meant more civilian casualties and visible suffering than much of the international community could stomach. With no end in sight. This is what prompted Prime Minister Mark Carney's momentous decision to recognize the State of Palestine during the next United Nations General Assembly this fall. 'The deepening suffering of civilians leaves no room for delay in co-ordinated international action to support peace, security, and the dignity of all human life', he said in a formal statement this week. There is something else, though. Canada has concluded that the Israeli government of Benjamin Netanyahu will never accept a two-state solution of a fully sovereign Palestine living side by side with Israel. This has been the bedrock foreign policy principle of Canada — and many other countries — for peace in the Middle East. Unwilling to dismiss this principled approach, the Canadian prime minister has decided to dismiss the Israeli prime minster's approach to the principle. 'Regrettably, this approach is no longer tenable', Carney said. 'Prospects for a two-state solution have been steadily and gravely eroded' he went on, listing four reasons, three of which identify Israeli actions, making clear where most of the blame resides. With zero influence over how Israel is prosecuting the war, Canada is joining other countries to influence what happens after the war. In that sense, Canada is remaining consistent with the United States. Not the U.S. of President Donald Trump but the U.S. of former president Joe Biden. One month into the war, in November 2023, the U.S. set out a 'day after the war' declaration for Gaza and Israel. Meant to prevent a wider conflict from erupting, that declaration stated: 'The United States believes key elements should include no forcible displacement of Palestinians from Gaza. Not now. Not after the war. No use of Gaza as a platform for terrorism or other violent attacks. No reoccupation of Gaza after the conflict ends. No attempt to blockade or besiege Gaza. No reduction in the territory of Gaza.' Weekday Evenings Today's must-read stories and a roundup of the day's headlines, delivered every evening. This may yet come to pass, but it appears very far off right now. Politicians though live in the here and now. They see hunger lines in Gaza and become distressed. They read motions to annex the West Bank from the Israeli Knesset or statements by the Israeli prime minister to never agree to a fully fledged Palestinian state and become disturbed. They see no end in sight and are frustrated. All this is leaving Israel more politically isolated today than it was before Oct. 7. But it is also more militarily powerful, capable, and dominant in the region than ever before. And it has a fast friend in Donald Trump creating a superpower 'alliance of two' giving it more licence to act as it sees fit in Gaza and the region. It is doing so, and countries have taken notice. Short of declaring war, recognizing a governing entity, no matter how tenuous, as a sovereign state is as declaratory you can get in international relations. Canada, like France and Great Britain, is utilizing the entirely precedented and legal discretion it has under international law to unilaterally recognize another state. But doing so now, absent a negotiated peace settlement to create such a state, is not so much a diplomatic gesture of support for Palestinians, but a diplomatic rejection of Israel's actions in Gaza and the West Bank. For Canada, the momentous part is not breaking with international law by declaring its recognition of Palestine as a state but breaking with its own international tradition of allying with the U.S. on key international issues. Indeed, this decision signals a widening chasm with America. Trump wants 'to break us, so that America can own us', said Carney on election night. What he didn't say is that maybe Canada has to break with America first. David McLaughlin is a former clerk of the executive council and cabinet secretary in the Manitoba government.
