I'll just make a few comments, following up on Chief Twinn.
I've worked with the Sawridge First Nation for over 26 years. So while I'm not first nations myself, I've had a lot of experience with the Indian Act. The act is quite short. It's only 122 sections. It looks very simple on its face, but over time it's gotten very thick and heavy with cases and interpretations. There are still provisions in it that, if you read them, are not true because cases have overturned them or struck them out, and Parliament hasn't cleaned that underbrush up yet.
There are a number of issues. You have to be careful when you try to make changes to that very complicated regime that has evolved over time because unintended consequences can happen.
In clause 2 of the bill, it talks about collaborations with first nation organizations. The chief has commented on that. There really should be consultation with first nations. It shouldn't be a collaboration and it shouldn't be with organizations. It's the first nations who the duty to consult is owed to, and that's who should be consulted. Prior to enactment or changes to the Indian Act, the first nations are the ones who are affected by the Indian Act, and they represent their people.
You've already commented on the barter and trade. If you take away ministerial approval, who approves the trade of materials? The resources that are on reserves will just be left in a vacuum. There should be a transition. Perhaps the chief and councils or some other system could be put in its place. Sometimes if a chief and council were put in the place of the minister, at least there would be somebody there to approve changes.
Under wills and estates, the biggest concern that I would have would be the repeal of subsection 44(3) and paragraph 46(1)(d). Both deal with lands. Those sections basically said the province didn't have jurisdiction to deal with the devolution of real property in reserves. Now, with the repeal of those sections, are we saying the provincial law applies to reserves? That is a transfer of jurisdiction, and I believe the CBA addressed that earlier.
The repeal of section 85.1 may cause problems for first nations. Sawridge doesn't have an intoxicant bylaw, but there are first nations that would definitely be affected if suddenly that power is taken away. I'm certain a court would say that power is not inherent in section 81. Otherwise why was section 85.1 passed in the first place? That history is not going to be erased.
One of my biggest concerns is proposed section 86.1. It requires the publication of laws. We've taken away the requirement of the minister to approve bylaws. But now in a very paternalistic way we've said, here's how you're going to publish your laws, instead of leaving it up to the first nation governments to publish their laws in a way that is appropriate for their first nation. It's quite onerous because if you have a thick land use bylaw, and you have to publish it in a local newspaper, that could be quite costly, and probably not too effective because the people who read that local paper might be largely uninterested.
Those would be my comments.