'We've had reassurances' Bill C-5 won't violate modern treaties, Inuit leader says
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National Observer
16 hours ago
- National Observer
Mr. Carney, please put your energy in the right place
Dear Prime Minister Carney, during these troubling times for Canada, as questions of unity and civic responsibility grow more pressing, we urge you to recognize a fundamental truth: Canada's national interest cannot rely on expanding fossil fuel projects. It's time to close the door once and for all on new pipelines — and stop using public money to support them. Canada has recently begun making real progress on the climate. New policies, regulations and strategies have finally started to deliver results. This was shown in the latest National Inventory Report on greenhouse gas emissions, which marked the beginning of a long-awaited downward trend. Yet these environmental advances risk being undone. Since your arrival on the federal political stage and your election as prime minister, your public statements have set Canada on a collision course with climate and economic reality. You have pledged to make the country an 'energy superpower,' banking on both renewables and so-called 'conventional' fossil fuels. The issue? These are opposing paths, and one will drive Canadians into a dead end. You have spoken of producing 'decarbonized oil' using carbon capture and storage. But let's be honest, producing more fossil fuels means more emissions, no matter how they are extracted. Canada, like all countries, must stop approving new oil and gas projects. The International Energy Agency has made it clear: limiting global warming to 1.5°C requires ending investment in new fossil fuel infrastructure. Encouraging expansion only worsens the global climate crisis and drives the world closer to a dangerous breaking point. Fires, storms, floods: is that the future you envision for Canada? While Parliament passed Bill C-5 under closure, we learned that the world has just three years of carbon budget left to stay under 1.5°C of warming. That alone should be reason enough to abandon new pipeline projects. We are particularly concerned that Bill C-5 would let Cabinet fast-track pipelines by overriding key environmental laws and encroaching on provincial jurisdiction. A new study released by Nature Quebec and the Université du Québec à Montréal shows that these projects do not add up economically. They are neither profitable, nor justified, nor beneficial to taxpayers. In an open letter, Alice-Anne Simard and Anne-Céline Guyon argue that renewables and so-called "conventional" fossil fuels are on opposing paths — and that the prime minister must choose the sustainable one. Consider the numbers: a pipeline like Energy East would cost over $150 billion today. GNL Quebec, more than $30.6 billion. Projects of this scale would require massive public subsidies to be built and made profitable — all paid for by Canadian taxpayers. Using public funds to build new pipelines is economically reckless and environmentally unjustifiable. The Trans Mountain Expansion Project is a clear example: initially estimated at $5.4 billion, its cost has ballooned to over $34 billion — all of it borne by hard-working Canadians. This massive overrun underscores the financial risks of betting on fossil fuel infrastructure in a world rapidly transitioning away from oil and gas. Rather than investing in outdated, high-risk projects that threaten the climate and offer little long-term return, public money should support clean energy, resilient infrastructure, public transit and affordable homes for all. That's what Canadians really need: investments that will strengthen our economy and improve life for everyone. In Quebec, we are used to standing up to pipelines. We refuse to be a mere transit route for oil and gas companies willing to watch the world burn. If new pipeline projects threaten our future, we will rise again. Expanding fossil infrastructure in a world transitioning to carbon neutrality makes no economic or climate sense. Global demand for oil is expected to peak in five years. The markets are unstable. Wasting taxpayer dollars on fossil projects will never be in Canada's best interest. Mr. Carney, you were once considered a global leader in sustainable finance. We now ask you to act like that leader once more and clearly state that Canada will never again fund new pipeline projects. Put Canada towards a just, sustainable future. Invest our public money and your energy in the right place. Executive Director of Nature Québec since 2019, Alice-Anne Simard is a biologist with a master's degree in biology on migratory caribou and a master's degree in business administration (MBA). With a master's degree in anthropology from Université Laval, Anne-Céline Guyon made the professional leap into the fight against climate change in 2016 by coordinating the coalition against the Energy East pipeline. In 2021, she joined the Nature Québec team as a climate and energy analyst.
Winnipeg Free Press
a day ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Don't look away: Human trafficking is happening here
1. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney travelled to the North last week to present Bill C-5 and meet with the Inuit-Crown Partnership Committee. By most accounts, this meeting went far better than the disastrous 'summit' with First Nations leaders in Ottawa earlier in the month. This time, Inuit leaders proposed 79 projects that would fit the parameters of 'projects in the national interest.' Carney appears to have learned from his mistakes after his meeting with First Nations leaders, as he is now regularly (and very publicly) promising to 'fully respect treaty rights' and appeared regularly with president of the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami Natan Obed (even co-chairing the summit with him). Prime Minister Mark Carney walks with Duane Smith, left, chair and CEO of the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation, and Natan Obed, right, president of the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, to a meeting of the Inuit-Crown Partnership Committee in Inuvik, N.W.T., on July 24. (Darryl Dyck / The Canadian Press files) Next up for a 'summit' on Bill C-5: the Métis. But: who will represent the Métis in view of the federal government? The Manitoba Métis Federation and the Métis National Council — arguably the two largest representative entities in the Métis world, do not associate with one another, with the MMF questioning the legitimacy of the MNC. 2. Indigenous programs can expect federal cuts worth nearly $4.5 billion as Carney's government promises to divert funding to higher military costs and tax cuts, among other changes. The cuts to Indigenous programs represent nearly a fifth of total cuts across federal programs, according to the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. The funding reductions will result in 'deep cuts' to First Nations education, health care, policing, and infrastructure projects. Indigenous Services warned 'difficult decisions' were on the way in an internal email when the department announced these cuts nearly three weeks ago. Carney has told the Assembly of First Nations that education, health care, policing, and infrastructure on First Nations do not qualify for forthcoming 'projects in the national interest.' 3. A majority of Canadians believe the country is making 'good progress' on reconciliation with Indigenous peoples, according to a new online poll from the firm Leger. The survey was conducted between June 20 to 22. Nearly half of those polled self-identified as Indigenous. An age divide appeared: 40 per cent of respondents aged 18 to 24 said Canada was making progress, while 67 per cent of respondents 65 and older said the same. Another kind of odd fact: Roughly six in 10 non-Indigenous respondents said they trusted Indigenous people, with the highest percentage in Nova Scotia (71 per cent) and Ontario (64.3 per cent) and lowest in Saskatchewan (38.3 per cent), P.E.I. (43.8 per cent) and Manitoba (44.8 per cent). Online surveys such as this one cannot be assigned a margin of error because they do not randomly sample the population. 4. Indigenous-led cannabis and hemp businesses in North America are exploding — from dispensaries to agricultural operations to construction companies that create building blocks from fibre. The boom follows a June 2023 Senate of Canada report that offered 13 recommendations to expand the cannabis industry in Indigenous communities. Indigenous-led cannabis operations are also expanding in the United States, with many tribal nations applying federal laws in savvy ways to target a potential market in Europe. The U.S.-based Indigenous Cannabis Industry Association released the first-ever map of tribal cannabis and hemp programs this past May. 5. Due to the wild fire situation in Manitoba and its impact on many Indigenous communities in the province, the First Nations Pavilion will not be part of this year's Folklorama Festival. It's the first time in recent memory the First Nations pavilion has not been a fixture at the annual summer festival. Folklorama is on from Aug. 3 to Aug. 16. Dancers perform at the Folklorama First Nations pavilion in 2023. (John Woods / Free Press files) An Indian taco is served up at the First Nations pavilion. (Jen Doerksen / Free Press files) IN PICTURES A dancer in Indigenous clothing performs during a celebration to mark the 700th anniversary of the founding of Tenochtitlan, known today as Mexico City, in the capital's main square on July 26. (Eduardo Verdugo / The Associated Press files) A dancer dressed in Indigenous clothing blows on a conch shell during the 700th anniversary celebration in Mexico City. (Eduardo Verdugo / The Associated Press files) RECONCILI-ACTION OF THE WEEK Every week I highlight an action, moment, or milestone forwarding reconciliation, illustrating how far Canada has come — and how far the country has yet to go. This week's reconcili-action is for my friend Dan Lett, my Free Press colleague and Niigaan and the Lone Ranger podcast co-host, who announced his semi-retirement and departure from Winnipeg this week via his newsletter, Not For Attribution . Dan and I have done 54 episodes of our 'pod' together, and we've had an incredible time bringing local, national and international stories together with banter, chats, and the occasional argument. The two of us will continue to offer NTLR episodes, but not on a regular schedule. You're likely familiar with Dan's dynamic political columns, but you may not know he's become a leading voice in Canada for commenting deftly and uniquely on Indigenous issues. Check out this 2013 piece, for example, on the Brian Sinclair inquest, or his career-long commitment to advocating for the wrongfully convicted — many of whom are Indigenous. Truth be told, I have learned a lot from Dan's vast and intricate knowledge of Canadian election campaigns, Manitoba political history, and his rich sense of music and humour. There is, of course, his sarcasm and blunt way of speaking the truth, too. Although I'd never tell him to his face, I'll miss the Lone Ranger and I wish him and his wonderful wife Danielle good travels. I look forward to seeing them both down the trail.
Cision Canada
2 days ago
- Cision Canada
The Government of Canada launches a call for interest to join the Indian Residential Schools National Monument Steering Committee (First Nations, Métis and Inuit) Français
Indian Residential School Survivors and intergenerational Survivors are invited to join the next cohort of the Steering Committee OTTAWA, ON, TRADITIONAL UNCEDED LAND OF THE ALGONQUIN ANISHINABEG NATION, July 29, 2025 /CNW/ - The Government of Canada, in collaboration with the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation (NCTR), is launching a public call for interest for membership of the Indian Residential Schools National Monument Steering Committee (First Nations, Métis, and Inuit). Residential School Survivors and intergenerational Survivors who identify as First Nations, Inuit or Métis are encouraged to apply and help lead the next phase of this important project. In response to Call to Action 81 of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, the Indian Residential Schools National Monument (First Nations, Métis and Inuit) will honour Survivors, their families and communities—and commemorate the children who never returned. The Monument site, located on the unceded traditional territory of the Algonquin Anishinabeg on the West Terrace of Parliament Hill, was selected by the Steering Committee with the permission of the Algonquin Anishinabeg Nation, following a process rooted in collaboration and consensus. The Steering Committee will continue to ensure that the Monument project remains grounded in Indigenous values and perspectives. Committee members will help guide the next phase of the project, including the design selection process, the development of educational and outreach materials, and future on-site programming. Applications will be accepted until September 9, 2025. Interested individuals can visit for more information on applying. Quotes "The Indian Residential Schools National Monument (First Nations, Métis and Inuit) is a response to a profound truth in our shared history, one that calls for remembrance, accountability and healing. Survivors' voices have guided this work from the beginning, bringing their lived experience, knowledge and strength to the next phase. I also want to express my deep gratitude to the outgoing members of the Steering Committee, whose dedication and vision have laid the foundation for this Monument." —The Honourable Steven Guilbeault, Minister of Canadian Identity and Culture and Minister responsible for Official Languages "Survivors and intergenerational Survivors hold the truths that this country must never forget. Their voices are essential in shaping this Monument—not just as a place of remembrance, but as a living testament to strength, resistance and the ongoing journey of healing." —Stephanie Scott, Executive Director, National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation Quick Facts The Indian Residential Schools National Monument Steering Committee (First Nations, Métis and Inuit) was established in 2022 to oversee the Monument project. Members have played an instrumental role over the past two years in establishing the Steering Committee's groundwork. Their efforts in selecting the Monument's site and providing foundational visioning have created a strong basis for its development, ensuring it remains guided by Indigenous values and perspectives at every step. National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation SOURCE Canadian Heritage
