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Global News
2 days ago
- Politics
- Global News
First Nations chief says infrastructure drive could trigger another Idle No More protest movement
A First Nations chief is warning that Canada is 'staring down the barrel' of another wave of protests like the Idle No More movement if governments pursue 'national interest' projects without their input and consent. Anishinabek Nation Regional Chief Scott McLeod has joined Indigenous leaders from across the country who say they're alarmed by government efforts to accelerate infrastructure development. The federal government is developing a 'national interest' bill to fast-track nation-building projects with a streamlined regulatory approval process as a substitute for reviews under the Impact Assessment Act. A handful of First Nations leaders told The Canadian Press Friday they were sent a letter Monday outlining the federal government's plans. They say Ottawa has asked them to report any concerns they have about those plans by Friday — even as wildfires continue to blaze in the Prairies and as chiefs in Ontario mount opposition to the province's own infrastructure bill. Story continues below advertisement McLeod said Anishinabek Nation was only formally briefed on Ottawa's plans on Friday. 'With Prime Minister Mark Carney, we don't even have a relationship yet,' he said. 'And trying to pass a bill in this way, without even talking to First Nations leadership, is a very rocky start for the Liberal government.' In Ontario, Premier Doug Ford is pursuing legislation — Bill 5 — that would enable cabinet to designate 'special economic zones' where companies or projects wouldn't have to comply with selected laws or regulations. Story continues below advertisement The government of British Columbia recently passed the Infrastructure Projects Act — which allows it to fast-track things like critical minerals projects it deems to be in the province's interests — over fierce opposition from First Nations. 3:50 Mixed reaction as B.C. infrastructure bill narrowly passes in legislature The Alberta government announced earlier this year it would move to speed up permit approvals for developments it considers low-risk. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy McLeod said chiefs have been sending provincial and federal officials 'warning shots' about the sorts of disruptions such projects could face if Indigenous communities are not properly consulted. National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak of the Assembly of First Nations issued her own warning to the provinces and Ottawa, saying it 'may not end well' if they make decisions about major infrastructure projects at next week's first ministers meeting in Saskatoon without First Nations involvement. Story continues below advertisement The Assembly of First Nations has long called for its inclusion at first ministers meetings but has only been able to secure secondary meetings with prime ministers ahead of the official meetings. Given the stakes of the upcoming meeting, Nepinak said First Nations exclusion is 'very disrespectful.' Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations Vice Chief David Pratt, meanwhile, is calling for governments to 'smarten up.' Woodhouse Nepinak said the Assembly of First Nations is only aware of 'bits and pieces' of the proposed federal legislation. 'We are concerned about what we are seeing from the government so far, and based on what I'm hearing about similar proposals in Ontario, in British Columbia and Alberta,' she said. 'I fear that this may not end well.' McLeod said the last time Indigenous leaders saw something like what the federal government is proposing now was 'in 2012 with Bill C-45, that had a lot of the same language and the same impacts on First Nations, which sparked Idle No More. 'We all know what happened then.' The Idle No More movement was triggered by that omnibus bill, introduced by then-prime minister Stephen Harper's government. Indigenous leaders said the bill, intended to ramp up resource development, would trample on their rights while giving governments and businesses more authority to develop resources without thorough environmental assessments. Story continues below advertisement Leaders allied with the Idle No More movement staged protests, rallies and blockades on railway lines and highways and earned widespread support from across the country. 'We're informing the grassroots people and they're going to take it upon themselves on what actions are required to deal with the government's inaction,' McLeod said. One of those grassroots people in Ontario is Anishinabek Nation youth councillor Terra Roy, who said young people will be 'watching very closely' what federal and provincial governments do next. 'We're not afraid to show up and to be loud about it,' Roy said.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Chief says infrastructure drive could trigger another Idle No More protest movement
OTTAWA — A First Nations chief is warning that Canada is "staring down the barrel" of another wave of protests like the Idle No More movement if governments pursue "national interest" projects without their input and consent. Anishinabek Nation Regional Chief Scott McLeod has joined Indigenous leaders from across the country who say they're alarmed by government efforts to accelerate infrastructure development. The federal government is developing a "national interest" bill to fast-track nation-building projects with a streamlined regulatory approval process as a substitute for reviews under the Impact Assessment Act. A handful of First Nations leaders told The Canadian Press Friday they were sent a letter Monday outlining the federal government's plans. They say Ottawa has asked them to report any concerns they have about those plans by Friday — even as wildfires continue to blaze in the Prairies and as chiefs in Ontario mount opposition to the province's own infrastructure bill. McLeod said Anishinabek Nation was only formally briefed on Ottawa's plans on Friday. "With Prime Minister Mark Carney, we don't even have a relationship yet," he said. "And trying to pass a bill in this way, without even talking to First Nations leadership, is a very rocky start for the Liberal government." In Ontario, Premier Doug Ford is pursuing legislation — Bill 5 — that would enable cabinet to designate "special economic zones" where companies or projects wouldn't have to comply with selected laws or regulations. The government of British Columbia recently passed the Infrastructure Projects Act — which allows it to fast-track things like critical minerals projects it deems to be in the province's interests — over fierce opposition from First Nations. The Alberta government announced earlier this year it would move to speed up permit approvals for developments it considers low-risk. McLeod said chiefs have been sending provincial and federal officials "warning shots" about the sorts of disruptions such projects could face if Indigenous communities are not properly consulted. National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak of the Assembly of First Nations issued her own warning to the provinces and Ottawa, saying it "may not end well" if they make decisions about major infrastructure projects at next week's first ministers meeting in Saskatoon without First Nations involvement. The Assembly of First Nations has long called for its inclusion at first ministers meetings but has only been able to secure secondary meetings with prime ministers ahead of the official meetings. Given the stakes of the upcoming meeting, Nepinak said First Nations exclusion is "very disrespectful." Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations Vice Chief David Pratt, meanwhile, is calling for governments to "smarten up." Woodhouse Nepinak said the Assembly of First Nations is only aware of "bits and pieces" of the proposed federal legislation. "We are concerned about what we are seeing from the government so far, and based on what I'm hearing about similar proposals in Ontario, in British Columbia and Alberta," she said. "I fear that this may not end well." McLeod said the last time Indigenous leaders saw something like what the federal government is proposing now was "in 2012 with Bill C-45, that had a lot of the same language and the same impacts on First Nations, which sparked Idle No More. "We all know what happened then." The Idle No More movement was triggered by that omnibus bill, introduced by then-prime minister Stephen Harper's government. Indigenous leaders said the bill, intended to ramp up resource development, would trample on their rights while giving governments and businesses more authority to develop resources without thorough environmental assessments. Leaders allied with the Idle No More movement staged protests, rallies and blockades on railway lines and highways and earned widespread support from across the country. "We're informing the grassroots people and they're going to take it upon themselves on what actions are required to deal with the government's inaction," McLeod said. One of those grassroots people in Ontario is Anishinabek Nation youth councillor Terra Roy, who said young people will be "watching very closely" what federal and provincial governments do next. "We're not afraid to show up and to be loud about it," Roy said. This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 30, 2025. Alessia Passafiume, The Canadian Press Sign in to access your portfolio
Hamilton Spectator
2 days ago
- General
- Hamilton Spectator
Green-Stacey departing Kahnawake Environment Office
As his young family continues to grow, Benjamin Green-Stacey has decided that it is time for him to turn his attention to them, leaving his role as director of the Kahnawake Environment Protection Office (KEPO) on June 27. 'Everyone has been really supportive and understanding,' said Green-Stacey, who joined KEPO in September 2022 after working for the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) as a senior policy analyst. Green-Stacey said he originally joined KEPO in 2022 to be able to spearhead tangible changes at the community level. 'That role involved a lot of national-level advocacy with the federal government, and it was kind of high-level work. There were not a lot of tangible outcomes associated with that advocacy. It involved helping to shape programs, but not necessarily being able to use those programs to actually make change on the ground,' said Green-Stacey. At KEPO, he feels he's been able to do exactly that. While he said the tasks he has undertaken at KEPO are not something with a defined endpoint necessarily, calling his work a 'project of projects,' he's happy with what has been accomplished so far. 'I feel like I have been able to do a lot in the time that I have been with KEPO,' said Green-Stacey. That includes setting up the Kahnawake Environment Advisory Committee (KEAC), the members of which are currently being finalized. 'That's going to be a very powerful tool for engaging with the community and making sure that their priorities are reflected in KEPO's focus going forward,' said Green-Stacey. Part of that engagement process has also been having KEPO be present at community events to help educate Kahnawa'kehró:non on the environment around them - the animals and plants that are there and should be there and the invasive species that should not, for example. There have also been the various cleanup efforts, which included the restoration of creeks on the territory. Internally, he has also put the emphasis on establishing Kanien'kéha as an everyday language, with hopes of having it be the primary language of work by 2030. 'We started off with informal steps, but we're trying to create more formal mechanisms to encourage that transition,' said Green-Stacey. But the big event of Green-Stacey's time at KEPO is the 2024 Chateauguay fuel spill, with KEPO and Green-Stacey being a big part of the Crisis Response Team. 'That was something that KEPO was not necessarily designed for,' said Green-Stacey. 'So there were some gaps in terms of where different organizations take responsibility for different things. Just by working through it collaboratively, we've been able to identify clear processes where we've got pretty well understood roles and responsibilities, and that's continuing to be more formally fleshed out. We kind of went through it in real time.' While that internal collaboration has been going well, proactive collaboration with neighbouring communities is another big point of contention that has come from the spill. 'We were able to figure out kind of new processes internally on how to respond, but I think we also need to develop those interfaces with external jurisdictions, and that's something that is a much bigger conversation, and it's not just environment, it's external government relations in general, and that's always been a challenge,' said Green-Stacey. The departing director is happy of the steps KEPO has taken to serve the community, and he feels he is leaving the organization in good hands, no matter who ends up replacing him. He is not saying never to a return, though. 'That's something that I would like to do, at some point in the future, if the circumstances allow,' said Green-Stacey. olivier@ Olivier Cadotte, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
Hamilton Spectator
2 days ago
- Politics
- Hamilton Spectator
Chief says infrastructure drive could trigger another Idle No More protest movement
OTTAWA - A First Nations chief is warning that Canada is 'staring down the barrel' of another wave of protests like the Idle No More movement if governments pursue 'national interest' projects without their input and consent. Anishinabek Nation Regional Chief Scott McLeod has joined a chorus of leaders from across the country who say they're alarmed by government efforts to fast-track infrastructure development. The federal government is developing a 'national interest' bill to fast-track nation-building projects with a streamlined regulatory approval process as a substitute for reviews under the Impact Assessment Act. In Ontario, Premier Doug Ford is pursuing legislation — Bill 5 — that would enable cabinet to designate 'special economic zones' where companies or projects wouldn't have to comply with selected laws or regulations. McLeod said chiefs have been sending provincial and federal officials 'warning shots' about the sorts of disruptions such projects could face if Indigenous communities are not properly consulted. National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak of the Assembly of First Nations issued a warning to the provinces and Ottawa, saying it 'may not end well' if they make decisions about major infrastructure projects at next week's first ministers meeting in Saskatoon without First Nations involvement. The Assembly of First Nations has long called for its inclusion at first ministers meetings but has only been able to secure secondary meetings with prime ministers ahead of the official meetings. Given the stakes of the upcoming meeting, Nepinak said First Nations exclusion is 'very disrespectful.' Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations Vice Chief David Pratt, meanwhile, is calling for governments to 'smarten up.' McLeod said the last time Indigenous leaders saw something like what the federal government is proposing now was 'in 2012 with Bill C-45, that had a lot of the same language and the same impacts on First Nations which sparked Idle No More. 'We all know what happened then.' The Idle No More movement was sparked by that omnibus bill, introduced by then-prime minister Stephen Harper's government. Indigenous leaders warned the bill, intended to ramp up resource development, would trample on their rights while giving governments and businesses more authority to develop resources without thorough environmental assessments. Leaders allied with the Idle No More movement staged protests, rallies and blockades on railway lines and highways and earned widespread support from across the country. This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 30, 2025. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
Toronto Star
2 days ago
- Politics
- Toronto Star
Indigenous leaders again left out of first ministers meeting as tensions grow
OTTAWA - The national chief of the Assembly of First Nations is warning the provinces and Ottawa it 'may not end well' if they make decisions about major infrastructure projects at the upcoming first ministers meeting without First Nations involvement. First Nations leaders in Ontario, meanwhile, have a rally planned for Monday at Queen's Park to protest the provincial government's controversial Bill 5, legislation meant to speed up development. Assembly of First Nations National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak says the lack of First Nations representation at the first ministers' table is 'very disrespectful.' ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW The Assembly of First Nations has long called for its inclusion at first ministers meetings but has only been able to secure secondary meetings with prime ministers ahead of the official meetings. Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations Vice Chief David Pratt says governments should 'smarten up' and warns that it's 'not good business to offend and disrespect us so that we have to blockade.' He says governments should view First Nations as 'equal partners around the table,' adding that if First Nations were in decision-making positions and proposed developments in their cities, 'MPs would be up in arms.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 30, 2025. Politics Headlines Newsletter Get the latest news and unmatched insights in your inbox every evening Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. Please enter a valid email address. Sign Up Yes, I'd also like to receive customized content suggestions and promotional messages from the Star. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Politics Headlines Newsletter You're signed up! You'll start getting Politics Headlines in your inbox soon. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page.
