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View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Chair, I too am very concerned about the reopening of schools, particularly as it pertains to first nations, and more so for children who are asked to go study off reserve, which is also a lived reality.
The reality of the situation is that there are provincial guidelines, but those are not necessarily maximums or minimums. We are working directly with communities for their specific needs and we will be there every step of the way.
The member will also well note today that we announced another $305 million in direct community support for first nations, Inuit and Métis, on a distinctions basis.
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View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, I would like to acknowledge my presence today on the traditional territory of the Algonquin people.
I would like to say a few words on the current social climate in Canada. Right now is a moment when Canadians are recognizing that there is unfairness built into our systems. These systems have always been unfair toward indigenous people.
I look to my colleagues in the House to reflect on why injustice toward indigenous people still happens and how we can move forward in the short, medium and long term. I know that in my capacity as Minister of Indigenous Services, I face those questions every day, as does my ministry. These are difficult and uncomfortable conversations, but important ones to have.
With that, I welcome this opportunity to provide the House with an update on our continuing effort to confront the evolving COVID-19 pandemic. I can assure members that the top priority of the Government of Canada during this time remains the safety and physical and mental health of all Canadians and indigenous people living in Canada.
As of June 16, Indigenous Services Canada is aware of 255 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in first nations. Of those, 210 individuals are considered to have recovered.
Indigenous Services Canada continues to work closely with communities to identify a surge in health infrastructure needs, supporting efforts to screen, triage and isolate individuals in the event of a possible COVID-19 outbreak. We will continue to work closely with communities and partners to coordinate resources and keep people and communities safe.
To date, the Government of Canada has provided indigenous peoples and northern communities with approximately $1.5 billion in funding to successfully fight COVID-19.
A large portion of this funding is found in the supplementary estimates (A), 2020-21. These estimates include more than $280 million to support health measures provided by Indigenous Services Canada in first nation and Inuit communities.
This is essential funding that will be used primarily to provide first nation and Inuit communities with the following: the services of additional health care providers; personal protective equipment; health infrastructure, in particular the repurposing of existing community spaces or the purchase of mobile structures to support isolation, assessment and shelter measures; and prevention and infection control measures at the community level.
In addition, these estimates reflect $305 million for the distinctions-based indigenous community support fund. Of this amount, $215 million was dedicated to first nations, $45 million to Inuit and $30 million to Métis nation communities, plus $15 million in proposal-based funding for first nations off reserve and urban indigenous organizations and communities.
An additional $75 million was also sought for organizations supporting first nations individuals off reserve and Inuit and Métis living in urban areas, as well as $10 million in funding for emergency, family violence prevention, shelters on reserve and in the Yukon.
As part of our COVID-19 response, we are also providing $270 million to respond to financial pressures on income assistance for essential living expenses due to COVID-19.
In addition to funding for our COVID-19 response, these estimates include funding to ensure that first nations children and families receive the services they need and to which they are entitled. We have committed $468.2 million to maintain the first nations child and family services program, which brings the program's total annual budget to $1.7 billion.
This includes support to implement the decisions by the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal issued before September 2019 and connected to the complaint by first nations child and family services regarding child and family services and Jordan's principle; coverage of expected maintenance costs for service providers; operating costs for the new agencies; response to pressure from provincial agreements; and implementation of a reserve fund to ensure that money is available should the actual numbers call for reimbursement.
The Government of Canada is committed to implementing Jordan's principle and ensuring that first nations children have access to the products, services and support they need in the areas of health, social services and education.
The Government of Canada is committed to implementing Jordan's principle and is taking action to ensure that first nations children receive the products, services and support they need in health, social services and education. The supplementary estimates also include $230 million to respond to the year-long financial pressures arising from the implementation of Jordan's principle.
Every year since its implementation, Jordan's principle has led to a significant increase in the number of approved applications submitted by individuals and groups. As a result, associated spending has increased significantly.
Since 2016, the Government of Canada has adopted an interim approach to Jordan's principle that has allowed it to inject more than $1 billion to meet the needs of first nations children. We are determined to continue to meet those needs and work to keep our promise on implementing the principle.
To further safeguard food security in the north, our government has committed up to $25 million to support temporary enhancements to nutrition north Canada in these estimates. This funding will help ensure nutrition north Canada fulfills its mandate to improve access to healthy food through additional education and subsidies during the COVID-19 pandemic.
We have also invested up to $72.6 million to address urgent health care and social support needs in the territories in response to COVID-19, with $18.4 million allocated to Yukon, $23.4 million to the Northwest Territories and $30.8 million to Nunavut. In addition, we have provided up to $17.3 million to enable the continuation of northern air services to support essential resupply and medical services in the north. We do recognize the essential role that a focused and reliable air network plays in enabling the movement of essential goods and services to respond to the pandemic. Funding has already been disbursed for the urgent health care and social support needs in the territories in response to COVID-19 and to enable the continuation of northern air service supporting essential resupply and medical services in the north.
We have also committed to a needs-based funding approach that involves $23.4 million in Vote 10 grants and contributions, including $9.9 million to support research and higher education in Canada's north; $6 million to support planning activities of the Government of the Northwest Territories, for the proposed Taltson hydroelectricity expansion project; $6 million to respond to the final report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls and $1.5 million toward indigenous consultation and capacity support activities.
I thank members for the opportunity to speak about this crucial and important work. Meegwetch, nakurmiik, mahsi cho.
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View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for that very relevant question.
Ever since our government took office in 2015, we have used our budgets to close the gap for indigenous peoples and their future, their youth, with respect to education and the economy. Indigenous youth are the fastest-growing segment of Canada's population, which means they are Canada's future.
This group of people is facing intense pressure because of COVID-19. That is why we have invested $75 million in post-secondary education during the pandemic. We have multiplied our efforts to support children who have to stay home. This is an ongoing effort.
We know this is putting pressure on young people's mental health. That is why we are continuing to invest resources in communities so they can make decisions about their future and the future of their youngest members.
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View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, indeed, members will note that over $20 million are in the supplementary estimates that reflect the attribution of funds to fulfill this most important principle to closing the gap and ensuring equity for first nations children. The budgetary expenses are now at over $600 million.
Over and above, and more important than the number, we are speaking about children and the supports they need. I have been able to go into many communities, obviously prior to COVID-19 outbreak, and see some of the incredible work that is being done. That work continues. On equity, we are still working excessively hard to reach that by making those crucial investments. It is something we will continue to do year over year.
We have seen that increase particularly during COVID as to the needs and fulfilling Jordan's principle most notably. These investments help. Behind everyone is a child and it is very important to highlight that as we look at these large but crucial budgetary numbers in ensuring we are who we think we are in Canada.
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View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Madam Chair, this is again a crucial question. The responsibility obviously falls on the entirety of government, but it falls most notably in the ministry of the Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations. In moving our relationship progressively forward with indigenous peoples, we have seen some of the challenges we have faced in the last two years in ensuring this will be done in the most respectful way, listening, engaging, speaking, acknowledging differences and moving forward despite those differences.
One of the measures the member has alluded to is the interim measure for band support, which is allocated in the estimates in the approximate amount of $24 million. This allows to bolster the cornerstones of community and nation building by attributing crucial funds to band governance.
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View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Madam Chair, the preparation that the indigenous communities were able to do so well was not only to look at the patterns that were forming around the world, but to adapt their local communities quickly by closing communities, ensuring the supports were in the community to ensure the message of public health was getting across and that everyone had the financial support they needed. One of the key elements was getting money into the communities and ensuring they had the backing of the Government of Canada.
This distinctions-based funding of $305 million, which was very much the beginning of the discussion from a financial resources perspective, and indeed we have announced many after that, was key in ensuring communities had the flexibility and discretion to invest where they saw it fit and ensuring their communities were well protected and well prepared. We will ensure we will be there for second and third waves, as the case may be.
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View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Madam Chair, I must confess I am having some difficulty seeing the member opposite on the other side of the House. It is much more comforting to have her here, although she does keep us quite heavily to account, as people paying attention can clearly hear.
The member will have noticed, and underlining her point is the fact that the national action plan is not a static document. Vote 10 in particular has $6 million appropriated to continue engagement with members, including families and subscribers, for the calls to justice.
The member will also have noted last week that we announced $40 million for 10 new shelters across Canada. This is not a static document.
I will take the time to also say that this is not a federal document. This is a document that involves input from provinces, from territories and, most importantly, from indigenous peoples who guide the way forward as to how we move forward as a nation. The funding response is one element. We did not wait to do so.
There is a legislative response that is embodied in Bill C-91 on indigenous languages and in Bill C-92 on child and family services. These are all part of what we call a whole-of-government approach, but underscoring that, more important should be the fact that this is about keeping people safe and keeping the most vulnerable people, indigenous women and children, safe in our country as we move forward. Again, the document is not a static document. It will be a guide for how we move forward as a nation.
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View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Madam Chair, that is an exceedingly important question.
In budget 2019, there were tens of millions of dollars invested in infrastructure and support for friendship centres. This was a historic amount. As we have seen, we have received pressure from urban indigenous groups that are serving indigenous peoples, indeed half of the indigenous population off reserve. Clearly that pressure from a financial perspective has been seen and felt. We deployed $15 million on an emergency basis to supply indigenous communities or service organizations that needed it to help people in urban settings. We also recently allocated $75 million to further respond to the overwhelming demand that we received at Indigenous Services Canada.
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View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, indigenous people living in urban centres do indeed face a unique set of needs and challenges. We heard loud and clear that more support would be needed for indigenous organizations working and operating in urban centres. That is why last week's announcement by the Prime Minister of an additional $75 million for organizations supporting first nations, Inuit and Métis living and working in urban areas off reserve marks a fivefold increase in that initial funding.
This new funding will support indigenous community-based solutions that address critical needs during this crisis to fight COVID-19 and to serve indigenous populations living off reserve, principally in urban areas.
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View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, as the member well knows, the memorandum of understanding establishes a path forward for subsequent discussions toward final agreements describing future governance and implementation of the Wet'suwet'en rights and titles. This is not an agreement on the implementation and crystallization of those rights, but a shared commitment to begin that work.
Once reached, any such agreement would be taken back to all Wet'suwet'en people for approval through a process that must clearly demonstrate the consent of the members of that nation.
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View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Madam Chair, indeed, $15 million of the community support fund was reserved for urban indigenous initiatives. The initial set of funding was intended to go out to first nations, Inuit and Métis in the most expeditious manner that we have at Indigenous Services Canada. We have therefore asked, in a call for submissions, for amounts to be put forth to our department so that we can do an immediate triage and attempt to push out as much money as we can to urban initiatives. Fifteen million dollars will not be enough, and we will be moving even more quickly to do a triage of the other initiatives in order to move quickly with further funding to those initiatives that have been put forward to our department.
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View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Madam Chair, these are initiatives that are part of a number of ministries across our government. We are working, as part of the call for submissions for urban indigenous and off-reserve groups, to put forward those submissions. We work with them on a case-by-case basis, and we will be moving quite quickly to get those initiatives out. We will work specifically to prepare for and deal with the COVID outbreak, particularly in urban settings but also for off-reserve communities.
Again, they do not naturally fit into the funding models that we have within Indigenous Services Canada. I have asked my team to be flexible, because we are talking about dealing with an epidemic and it does not discriminate as to whether an indigenous group is on or off reserve.
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View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Madam Chair, this is not a question of being at the table; this is a question about engaging with my ministry, engaging with our staff to express need and to let us know what communities need.
Again, these are emergency funds, emergency resources, that we are pushing out. There are also resources that money cannot necessarily buy, such as deployment or surge capacity, a number of multi-faceted elements that we deal with as we look at the epidemic curve if and when it hits an indigenous community. It is really done on a distinctions basis, and as a community expresses need, we will deal with it as quickly as we can.
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View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Madam Chair, indigenous businesses are the backbone of indigenous communities and their economies. Indeed, they are the backbone of the Canadian economy.
On the weekend the Prime Minister announced $306 million in support for indigenous businesses in forms of loans, repayable loans, emergency support. These are initiatives that fill a gap that the announcements we made before have not necessarily been able to address.
I would note that a number of indigenous businesses in particular are run by women. They are smaller in nature and are in need of the support of the Government of Canada. We will not leave them behind.
I would like to thank NACCA for its support. The 59 aboriginal financial institutions that we will flow these funds principally through will be the principal administrators of them.
If the member opposite has a particular group that he would like to see funding for or that is in particular need, I would ask him to contact my office, but more importantly, the aboriginal financial institutions that serve these businesses so well.
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View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Madam Chair, that is a very important question and we need to frame the premise. Indigenous Services Canada has said that it will leave no community behind. To date, we have delivered over 550 PPE orders and equipment into communities, ones that come principally on demand from those communities. They are in addition to any PPE that is provided by the provinces or the territories, or in the case of British Columbia, from NHA. It is not an absolute number, but it is a very important indication of the amounts we have deployed into communities.
We have a limited appreciation of knowing what the burn rate is on that personal protective equipment, so communities are engaged with my staff, and indeed my staff is working around the clock to get that equipment out as quickly as it can. Again, if a community needs PPE, it should engage directly with me if it does not feel it is getting it from other sources.
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View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Madam Chair, as the member notes, indeed, the historical vulnerabilities of indigenous communities compound the risk and exposure and potential consequences that indigenous communities may face. This is something that my department and the Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations' department is seized of. We have invested physical resources into surge capacity to ensure that those communities are not left behind.
When it comes to the flood season or even the fire season, these issues again compound the risk.
Should the member want a full briefing, for example, on the efforts that we are deploying into Kashechewan to address the complexity COVID-19 poses to that community in particular and to other communities that are at risk, I would be glad to brief him and my department would do so readily.
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View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Chair, I do want to highlight the incredible work that the member opposite has highlighted with respect to the friendship centre in his riding. Indeed, the ones across Canada do amazing work with very, very limited funds. This is why in part in budget 2019, the government invested $60 million in infrastructure supports over five years for these friendship centres that again do critical work for the most vulnerable indigenous communities in urban settings. Given that urban settings are at the core and are the target of the COVID-19 pandemic, these supports are incredibly needed right now.
We have indeed received a submission from the national friendship centres network. This is something we are working on at this time and we will endeavour to get those funds out as quickly as possible because we know that the need is real. We know they do so much with so little and that that need needs to be supported on a constant basis.
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View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, we recognize that despite historic investments in housing, there are deeply concerning conditions of housing infrastructure that many indigenous communities face. We are continuing to work toward a long-term solution.
In light of COVID-19, we are exploring all options to address these challenges, including providing temporary isolation facilities and additional health staff for communities, as needed. These supports for indigenous communities are absolutely not limited by financial capacity.
We continue to work closely with communities to coordinate resources. They are and will be there.
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View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member opposite for attending the technical briefing this morning with my staff. The funding announced yesterday as part of the budget 2019 emergency investments is a start that enables us to take immediate action in communities to reduce the risk of spread as well as respond should cases arrive on reserve.
The reinforcement support for indigenous communities is not limited by financial capacities, and we are working closely to coordinate those resources with communities. We are providing supplies such as bottled water, hand sanitizer and personal protective equipment to communities as needed.
We will continue to work with our partners to ensure that indigenous communities are prepared to respond to COVID-19 and will continue to adapt our plan as needed.
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View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, I will remind the member opposite that in budget 2019, way before the coronavirus broke out, we invested $79 million over five years to improve and prepare support for health emergencies and health-related impacts of natural disasters and health disasters on reserves. This includes dedicated support for one health emergency management coordinator in every region and two coordinators in Ontario and Manitoba.
We know that first nations and Inuit are susceptible and more vulnerable to coronavirus. We are prepared as a ministry to engage in surge activities should they be required. Let me say that we are ready to act and we are working closely with those communities in order to augment their capacity.
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View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, as the Minister of Indigenous Services, I can confirm that I am on the committee.
I will reassure the member opposite that regional offices are working with first nations leadership and communities on awareness. To assure that necessary resources are in place, we are actively engaged with the Public Health Agency of Canada, other departments and provincial and territorial counterparts to protect the health and safety of first nations and Inuit people.
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View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, the answer is no. We have always been focused on finding a peaceful, lasting resolution and on establishing trust and respect among everyone involved.
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View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, my deepest condolences go out to the family and the entire community of Garden Hill First Nation for their loss.
My department has been in contact with the first nation's leadership to identify and deliver support to ensure the well-being of the community. We understand the stressful nature of the situation. I will continue to work with first nation partners on timely and appropriate supports.
As a matter of policy, as government, we are striving to close that socio-economic gap that has existed for far too long. With historic investments in infrastructure and housing, we strive to get there, and we will get there.
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Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for her question.
We are still available to meet any time with the hereditary chiefs in British Columbia. Now more than ever, we can agree that dialogue should remain open.
To tackle possible solutions, as the member proposed, we need to have that dialogue. The hereditary chiefs have not yet opened the dialogue.
We are here, and we are willing to talk, but both sides need to work together.
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View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, I thank the member opposite for his question.
As everyone knows, the Wet'suwet'en hereditary chiefs are now en route to Tyendinaga to pursue a peaceful resolution, which is the solution we are all seeking. That dialogue needs to happen as soon as possible. That is what we are doing.
The Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations and I are prepared to engage in that dialogue now so we can achieve a peaceful resolution.
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View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, I think I speak for everyone when I say that we all feel encouraged by the new development with the RCMP in British Columbia, which offered the hereditary chiefs an opportunity to sit down and work on a long-term plan that could involve a reduced presence in their territory, obviously.
As everyone knows, we are prepared to engage in a respectful dialogue, but we have a very clear plan to defuse the situation, which we are not going to disclose to the public for now, of course. We are again asking Canadians to be a little bit patient. I am confident that this will all get sorted out.
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View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, I think we can all be heartened by the development that has happened in B.C. that the RCMP has extended to hereditary chiefs. It is an opportunity to sit down and continue that dialogue. This is a positive development.
The move of the Wet'suwet'en hereditary chiefs in Tyendinaga is a positive development. I think everyone in this House is dedicated to a peaceful resolution to this.
There are clear steps to de-escalation. The Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations and I stand ready to engage with the leadership in Tyendinaga. As early as tonight we will go and meet them and discuss this peaceful resolution.
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View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, everyone pretends to know what the requests are. We cannot know what those requests are unless we actually ask the people. It is not a question of looking at the banners on the street. It is actually talking to the leadership in question, and that is precisely what we have done.
The entire cabinet is seized of this incredibly urgent issue. It is a situation that evolves minute by minute. I and the Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations, as well as other ministers, stand ready to engage on a moment's notice and that is precisely what we will do.
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Lib. (QC)
Mr. Speaker, I would remind the member that Wet'suwet'en hereditary leadership are on their way to Tyendinaga to discuss these important issues in the next few days. There is a clear plan of action for de-escalation, but that involves dialogue.
To all Canadians out there suffering, we understand that this is a very difficult period and we are working diligently. Indeed, the whole cabinet is seized of this, and we will work hour by hour, minute by minute to resolve this situation peacefully.
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View Marc Miller Profile
Lib. (QC)
Madam Speaker, I want to share with this House something very personal, that I have not shared with anyone other than close friends and family, about an incident that occurred 30 years ago.
Thirty years ago, at the age of 16 turning 17, I decided to enrol in the Canadian Armed Forces. Along with my other brothers and sisters in arms who decided to sign on that dotted line of unlimited liability, I was prepared to lay my life down for the country that I love. I did the infantry basic training and did okay, and that summer I was deployed to Valcartier, along with another group of people in my platoon, to work and dedicate that summer to serving in the Canadian Armed Forces.
Why I did so was multifold. I wanted people to be proud of me. I wanted to serve my country. I wanted to learn some discipline that is not natural to me; it comes with difficulty and I still have not gotten there, but my effort and my heart was in it. I wanted to learn discipline and do things that I could not do outside the classroom.
That summer was a difficult summer for Canada. There were in my platoon four Mohawk brothers in arms. As everyone knows, 30 years ago the Oka crisis exploded. There was one night in Valcartier as we were all out, that word came down that the Royal 22e Régiment would deploy and put under siege their community. The next morning, they were no longer there. They were asked to make a difficult choice, choosing between the country that they would lay down their life for and their families. For them, the choice was clear.
It was a privilege for me not to have to make that choice myself. I have not thought about that day much, for a long time. However, we all know or should know what happened at Oka. We should know that no individuals should have to choose between their families, their nation and the country that they would readily lay their lives down for. We vowed that this would never happen again, and it should not happen again.
When we called on indigenous people in our hardest times, they served us. They defended us. They form statistically the highest percentage of people who serve in our armed forces. We should never forget that this relationship, for many communities, is based on alliance and loyalty.
I know that the recent events in B.C. and in various places across the country are deeply concerning to all Canadians. It is a very difficult situation for everyone, for those people who are non-indigenous but especially if they are indigenous. All of Canada is hurting and we are all hoping and working for a peaceful resolution. This is a challenging situation that is evolving by the hour, and the safety of all involved is of primary importance. We all want to get the same conclusion. There are some disagreements, some deep ones, as to the steps. We all want peace, we want to get rail traffic going again across this country and we want prosperity for all peoples of Canada.
There is time for all parties to engage in open and respectful dialogue to ensure this situation is resolved peacefully. To that end, I want to acknowledge the leaders of the NDP, the Bloc Québécois and the Green Party for their support and partnership in seeking a peaceful resolution. This work is not easy and it will require all of us working together in the immediate future and in the long term. We cannot move forward without honest and respectful dialogue, and that is why I am happy to take the opportunity to share my thoughts this evening and to take questions from members of this House.
Seeking an honest, open and respectful dialogue is essential for renewing the relationship and building a strong future for indigenous peoples and Canadians alike. The untold story that should be told today is that despite years of tarnished relationships, we all want to see peace and our relationship renewed, and to have a relationship based on the recognition of rights, respect, co-operation and partnership.
It is in this spirit of peace and co-operation that I went this past Saturday and gathered with members of the Mohawk nation along the rail tracks in Tyendinaga to discuss peace and friendship with a nation that has not felt part of this country. We pursued an open dialogue and made concerted efforts to move toward a peaceful resolution.
Modest but important progress was made through this dialogue. Parts of this conversation were very difficult, very painful and very personal. Upsetting stories were shared about this country's troubling treatment of indigenous peoples. There was an immense amount of suspicion toward my presence; fear that it was a ruse and that the police would move in. It is not every day that people are surrounded by police, and the reactions are normal. They are a peaceful people, and they reiterated it time and time again. We shared laughs, and as tradition dictates, we had a meal before the discussion. We listened to one another with openness and with a shared goal of finding a path forward.
I made a commitment to share our conversation with the Prime Minister and my colleagues, and I did so that night. Yesterday we had a more fulsome conversation at a meeting of the incident response group, which was convened by the Prime Minister in response to the urgent and considerable need to further open the dialogue and continue the dialogue we started in Tyendinaga on Saturday morning.
My colleague, the Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations, also remains in communication with the Province of B.C. and hereditary leadership, with the hopes of meeting in person soon. She also had a very productive conversation with the leadership to open up that path to de-escalation. It will not be an easy one. There are many demands, many historical grievances, but there is a clear sense that there is a protocol to be observed and a pathway toward de-escalation.
We are a country built on the values of peace, order and good government. We hear it all the time. We need to make sure we remain focused on those ideals. One of the steps necessary to achieve peaceful progress in an unreconciled country is to continue that open dialogue at the very highest levels of government based on a nation-to-nation and government-to-government relationship, and that is exactly what has guided and underlined our actions over the past few days.
Unfortunately, in the case of indigenous peoples, we have too often discarded the first pillar, which is peace, for the sake of order and good government. I am someone who spent a long time in private practice. I have two law degrees and am accredited to practise in two jurisdictions. Let me say that the rule of law is very dear to me. I have spent my life and career upholding it.
I hear from the indigenous communities I serve, to which I have a fiduciary obligation that goes back before Canada to the Royal Proclamation of 1763, to uphold the honour of the Crown. Those people say too me too often that rule of law has been invoked to perpetrate historical injustices. We need only look at the examples of Louis Riel, Big Bear and Poundmaker to have some of the more poignant examples, as well as those perpetrated on a daily basis.
People have said to lock them up. Guess what, that has been tried. The level of incarceration is six times higher for the indigenous population of Canada, and in some provinces, much worse. These are very serious issues that demand our attention and have demanded it for hundreds of years, and there is no place in this discussion for rhetoric and vitriol.
The question I find myself asking time and time again as I look at my children is whether we are going to do things the way we have always done them, which has brought us to this point in our relationship, or whether we are going to take a new approach that prioritizes open dialogue built on respect, one that engages us in a true government-to-government relationship. The conversations we started on Saturday, and those my colleagues have offered to have across the country at the highest level, will help us find a more collaborative and therefore constructive way forward.
It is only through meaningful engagement with those who have felt ignored and disrespected for too long that we can find a way forward that builds peace and prosperity for all.
For almost 500 years, indigenous peoples have faced discrimination in every aspect of their lives. The Crown, at times, has prevented a true equal partnership from developing with indigenous peoples imposing, instead, a relationship based on colonial, paternalistic ways of thinking and doing.
As I mentioned in introduction, many of our relationships were based on military alliances to ensure our own sovereignty. Let me say, they stepped up when we needed them. A little over a year ago, this whole House rose to celebrate Levi Oakes and the untold story of the last Mohawk code talker. Sadly, a few months later after this lifting up that was long overdue, he passed away. He was born in Snye, Akwesasne, part of Quebec. He served in the U.S. Armed Forces.
A story that has not been told is why he did not serve Canada. He did not serve Canada because his brother was beaten up by a policeman, and he vowed never to serve in our forces. We need to think about that, when we think about the people who serve us best. Those who came back from having served overseas, arm in arm, brothers in arms, sisters in arms were not treated that way. They were discriminated against. They could not get their pensions or medical benefits. The list is long and it is painful.
Here we are today. It has been mentioned by members of the opposition and it needs to keep being mentioned that we face a historic challenge, an injustice that we keep perpetrating towards the most important things in our life, children, in this case, for indigenous peoples, their children. There is a broken child and family system where indigenous children up to the age of 14 make up 52% of kids in foster care and care, even though they represent 7.7% of all Canadian children. There are shocking rates of suicide among indigenous youth causing untold pain and hurt that will plague families and communities for generations to come. There are untenable housing conditions, where water that is unsafe to drink or even bathe in comes out of the taps.
In Lac Seul where we lifted a boil water advisory for the first time in 17 years, the kids in the room had never had clean water from their system. One of the elders I spoke to giggled with a sense of humour that we see in, and is almost unique to, indigenous communities. She said to me that now it would not itch after she took her bath.
There are communities where overcrowding and mould are far too common. There are communities that do not have reliable access to roads or health centres or even schools. That approach has left a legacy of devastation, pain and suffering, and it is unacceptable and untenable.
For hundreds of years indigenous peoples have been calling on the Canadian government to recognize and affirm their jurisdiction over their affairs, to have control and agency over their land, housing, education, governance systems, and child and family services. We have undeniable proof that self-determination is a better path to take. For example, look at the Mi’kmaq communities in Nova Scotia. In 1997, the governments of Canada and Nova Scotia signed a historic agreement with nine Mi'kmaq communities, restoring their control over their education system. The result is that now more than 90% of Mi’kmaq students graduate. It is higher than the average in most provinces.
That is what comes when Canada steps out of the way and accepts the necessity of self-governance and self-determination. This is what has to happen in every sector. This is what communities are asking for now, and have been asking for for far too long. It is what is at stake when we speak about self-determination. Self-governing indigenous peoples have better socio-economic outcomes because they know best what to do with their resources. More children finish high school. Fewer people are unemployed. Health outcomes are better. Self-determination improves the well-being and prosperity of indigenous communities, and that is something all Canadians should strive to support.
When we formed government, we took a different approach founded on partnership and co-development, built from a place of listening to indigenous leaders, elders, youth and community, working with members, and working to support the attainment of their goals based on their priorities.
It is important to highlight this while the events gripping the nation are on the front page of the newspapers. The progress, while slow, has been determined, forceful and backed up with historic amounts. Since 2016 we have invested $21 billion into the priorities of indigenous partners, and together we have made some progress. Sixty-nine schools were built or renovated. Some 265 water and waste-water infrastructure projects were completed and 88 long-term drinking water advisories were lifted. We are contributing toward the establishment of a wellness centre in Nunavut in partnership with the Government of Nunavut and Nunavut Tunngavik Incorporated. We are supporting the national Inuit suicide prevention strategy and ensuring that Inuit children have access to the health, social and educational supports they need. We are working with the Métis nation to advance shared priorities such as health, post-secondary education and economic development.
However, we still have a long way to go to close the unacceptable socio-economic gaps that still exist between indigenous and non-indigenous peoples. Our government is committed to working in partnership on improving the lives of first nations children, and our track record of the past four years shows this. We have almost doubled funding to first nations child and family services agencies, from close to $677 million in 2016 to $1.2 billion in 2018-19. That funding is based on actual needs and with an emphasis on prevention.
There have been 508,000 requests for Jordan's principle approved, which ensures first nations children have the health, education and social supports they need, when and where they need them. I was in Whitefish River First Nation about three days ago, and I saw the work that Jordan's principle does for children who need it, and we are striving to ensure they get substantive equality.
We are providing predictable funding to education that is provincially comparable. We know this is essential to strengthen first nations education and improve outcomes, because indigenous peoples must have control over first nations education systems. We know when that is done indigenous graduation rates are the same, if not better, than non-indigenous graduation rates. We have launched a new funding formula for kindergarten to grade 12 education that has resulted in regional funding increases of almost 40%. The number of first nations schools offering elementary full-day kindergarten, for example, has increased by over 50%.
We have a tough road ahead of us. As I mentioned, this road will be demanding on all of us. We will have to work together very hard and listen even when the truth is hard to hear. We will have to continue discussions even when we do not agree. We will have to keep working together, looking for creative ways to move forward and finding new paths towards healing and true understanding.
We have all seen what happens when we do not work together and engage in dialogue. We end up with mistrust and confusion over who should speak on behalf of rights holders on issues like consent, as well as the rights and titles of indigenous peoples. This confusion can lead to conflict, as we are seeing now, and prevents us from moving forward together.
I realize that the challenges we face are many, but I know that the difficult road ahead of us is worthwhile. It is worthwhile for the youth in the next generation and for those who will follow. It is worthwhile for all those who will grow up knowing that together, the Crown and indigenous peoples are working hard to create a future, to improve their quality of life and to heal. We will not fail another generation of indigenous children.
I have spoken about a lot of the difficulties, a lot of the pain and a lot of the successes that are progressive, yet slow, that we have done as a government. We have a lot more to do, and we cannot discount mistakes, but we do it in good faith and in good partnership with indigenous communities.
I ask everyone in this House as they contemplate the next few days to look at their children or those that are young and are dear to them and ask themselves what they will tell them when this conflict resolves. We cannot repeat the errors of the past, and there are many to base ourselves on.
[Member spoke in Mohawk]
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