Latest news with #consultation
BBC News
3 days ago
- Business
- BBC News
Residents urged by Rother District Council to have say on housing
Residents in an area of East Sussex are being urged to air their views on the future of housing and homelessness services following an increase in Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Strategy Consultation will help shape how Rother District Council delivers housing and homelessness services between 2025 and consultation closes at midnight on leader Doug Oliver said demand for services relating to housing, homelessness and temporary accommodation have "a significant impact on the council's budget". The strategy's key themes are reducing homelessness, increasing housing accessibility, and improving both temporary accommodation and Oliver added: "I would encourage all residents and businesses to respond to the consultation, but particularly those at risk of homelessness, or from the building industry and organisations involved in the housing sector."
CBC
3 days ago
- General
- CBC
You can't 'fast-track' Indigenous acceptance: Grand chief on Carney's projects bill
Grand Chief of the Algonquin Anishinabeg Nation Tribal Council Savanna McGregor tells Power & Politics that Ottawa is not giving First Nations communities enough time to consult on Prime Minister Mark Carney's expected legislation to fast-track certain nation-building projects.
Globe and Mail
6 days ago
- Business
- Globe and Mail
Carney and Ford show two different paths for ‘unleashing' Canada's economy
The governments of Ontario and Canada are both moving to fast-track development in the Ring of Fire region – but they are going about it in very different ways. According to a May 23 letter from Canada's Privy Council Office obtained by The Globe and Mail, Canada has invited Mushkegowuk Council Grand Chief Leo Friday to Ottawa to 'consult and cooperate' on proposed legislation around projects identified to be in the national interest. It says new legislation is coming in early June that would facilitate regulations and development by creating a new Major Projects Office. And in the letter, Canada promises to uphold the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) and the duty to consult: 'Now more than ever, the future of Canada's economy depends on a collaborative and coordinated approach among federal, provincial, territorial and Indigenous governments.' Ottawa gave the Mushkegowuk Council, which represents First Nations communities along the western side of James Bay, seven days to meet or submit their thoughts. That is a compressed timeline, to be sure – but an effort to consult is better than nothing at all. Changes to Bill 5 possible amid warnings of Indigenous protests, Ontario ministers say Ontario Premier Doug Ford has offered nothing to First Nations concerning the passage of the ham-fisted Bill 5, the Protect Ontario by Unleashing Our Economy Act, which has ignored any input from 133 Ontario First Nations and would breach their Constitutional rights under Section 35. That bill, which is being rammed through the committee process, proposes creating 'special economic zones' where mining companies can develop as they like while ignoring certain regulations or the requirement for Indigenous consultations – in other words, effectively creating lawless areas. Bill 5 also guts the province's Endangered Species Act, a move that threatens the livelihoods of wolverines, caribou, migratory birds, bears, and whales, among others. The Toronto Zoo even warned the bill could undo decades of conservation efforts and drive species to extinction. Ottawa's overtures indicate that Prime Minister Mark Carney's government at least knows what UNDRIP says and what consultation means. It goes without saying, meanwhile, that Mr. Ford is ignoring UNDRIP. Ontario, a signatory to Treaty 9, has decided to set the stage for confrontation. 'We have to keep fighting,' Grand Chief Friday told me after he passionately testified in the Ininimowin language on Monday at a Queen's Park committee hearing. 'This will not work for us. It is the same procedure as in 1905. They just come in and say they want signatures.' What our ancestors understood in 1905 – when Treaty 9, which encompasses most of northern Ontario from the Manitoba border to James Bay, was signed – was that all the land and resources would be shared in an honourable way, not stolen. 'Our people were expecting so much wealth to come up for them and for good communities as well. They were told they were going to be given what they required for communities, and that never happened,' he told me. Instead, being boxed in on reserves and kept out of Canadian society happened. Indian Residential Schools happened. Genocide happened. And now, U.S. President Donald Trump and the world are hungry for the resources underneath the territories we have walked on for thousands of years. It feels as though Ottawa and Ontario are playing good cop, bad cop concerning critical mineral extraction. But what Canada and the provinces must understand is that First Nations will not be sidelined from building Canada; after all, this country was created from the treaties our ancestors signed. First Nations leaders warn of confrontation over Ontario's 'special economic zones' in omnibus bill On Monday, Indigenous leadership warned Ontario that Bill 5 must be scrapped, or they risk blocked or stalled projects, court interventions and further escalation of conflict. 'Ontario is trying to legislate us out of the conversation. That won't work,' Anishinabek Nation Grand Chief Linda DeBassige said. 'Withdraw Bill 5. There is no path forward with this legislation in its current form. Repeal it. Start again. Work with us … so that we can create something that will allow us to ensure not only that our economies survive, but that our environment, our lands, our waters, our animals, are here for our great-great-great-grandchildren, those who we will never meet but who we are responsible for." As an Anishinaabe woman, she continued, 'it is not lost on me that it is our women who historically gave direction and sent out our warriors to what is necessary. I know they are listening today.' She added: 'If this bill proceeds in its current form, we will be idle no more.' Once again, Canadian governments are looking to Indigenous Peoples and their lands to save them. But they are coming to First Nations communities who have nothing left to lose – and everything to defend.
CBC
6 days ago
- Business
- CBC
Nova Scotia chiefs say province needs to improve consultation on natural resources
The Nova Scotia Assembly of Mi'kmaw Chiefs says the provincial government needs to do a better job of consultation as it pushes to develop the province's natural resources. Chief Tamara Young of Pictou Landing First Nation told the legislature's natural resources committee Tuesday that the chiefs have "serious concerns" over how recent decisions have been made without advance notice. "We should not hear about important developments that Nova Scotia is making from the evening news," said Young. "This includes when policy or legislative changes are being proposed in the mining sector." In March, the Progressive Conservative government of Premier Tim Houston passed legislation that lifted a long-standing ban on uranium exploration and mining and a moratorium on hydraulic fracturing for natural gas. Houston has said the legislative changes were needed to boost the province's economy as it deals with the challenges posed by U.S. tariffs. However, the chiefs responded by issuing a news release on March 28 saying they were firmly opposed to any legislation that opens the door to hydraulic fracturing, a process more commonly known as fracking. 'Not a box to be checked' The chiefs said they were considering legal action and they accused the province of making decisions on unceded and traditional Mi'kmaw territory without properly consulting them. Young told the committee it was time for the government to re-engage in consultations that are "early, consistent and meaningful." "Consulting the Mi'kmaq is simply not a box to be checked," she said. "We will not support any process that treats our constitutional rights as an afterthought." Young also called on the province to update its consultation practices and to involve the Mi'kmaq in shaping the changes. "There must be transparency and predictability around what triggers the duty to consult, including mining projects on private lands," she said. 'Rocky and inconsistent' Earlier this month the province updated its list of priority critical minerals to include uranium and also announced that it was issuing a request for proposals for uranium exploration at three privately owned sites. A mineral can be added to the list based on certain factors, including whether they can help the province meet its emission targets or global demand. The priority list is also meant to highlight minerals of strategic economic importance for the province. Patrick Butler, senior Mi'kmaw energy and mines adviser, confirmed during the hearing that chiefs were also not consulted about the move to boost uranium exploration. Butler described the relationship with the Natural Resources Department as "rocky and inconsistent" over the last year, although he said there is a mineral resource working group that had established "a good working relationship" in the past. "It has been very difficult in trying to keep up with the changes," he said. Consultation would occur 'project by project' The department's deputy minister, Karen Gatien, said the government is committed to consultations, but she agreed that it should be done earlier where possible. Gatien told the committee that future consultation would occur "project by project." "It's difficult for us right now to consult on something that doesn't exist in terms of a concrete project in a particular area, but I think it will be really important to have rigorous consultation and meaningful consultation as the projects get developed," said Gatien. The deputy minister confirmed to reporters following the hearing that there were no formal documents or communications with the chiefs to inform them of the government's legislative changes. Meanwhile, the committee also heard from mining industry representatives Tuesday who called for major changes to the province's permitting process for mining development, which they described as too lengthy and a hindrance to investment. 'Our concerns are with red tape' "Permitting is a major bottleneck in the process. That is why jurisdictions across Canada and around the world are taking steps to expedite permitting while continuing to ensure the highest environmental standards are applied," said Sean Kirby, executive director of the Mining Association of Nova Scotia. Kirby called for permitting to come under a single department, saying the process is currently handled across several. "We are not asking for regulatory oversight to be less stringent. Our concerns are with red tape, unclear requirements and lengthening timelines," he said.
CTV News
6 days ago
- Business
- CTV News
Nova Scotia chiefs say province needs to improve consultation on natural resources
Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston speaks to reporters at the Nova Scotia legislature in Halifax, Thursday, Feb. 29, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darren Calabrese HALIFAX — A representative for the Nova Scotia Assembly of Mi'kmaw Chiefs says the provincial government needs to do a better job of consultation as it seeks to develop the province's natural resources. Chief Tamara Young, of Pictou Landing First Nation, told a legislature committee today that the province's duty to consult with the Mi'kmaq needs to be more than an afterthought or a 'box to be checked.' Patrick Butler, the senior Mi'kmaq energy and mines adviser, confirmed during the hearing that chiefs were not consulted before legislation that was passed in March lifted a ban on uranium and a moratorium on fracking for natural gas. Butler says they also weren't consulted when the Natural Resources Department said it was issuing a request for proposals for uranium exploration at three sites in the province earlier this month. He described the relationship with the department as 'rocky and inconsistent' and says it's always better when the Mi'kmaq are informed as early as possible when it comes to natural resources development. The department's deputy minister, Karen Gatien, says the government is committed to consultations, but she agrees that it should be done earlier where possible. This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 27, 2025.
