https://www.ola.org/sites/default/files/node-files/hansard/document/pdf/2019/2019-11/28-NOV-2019_L133.pdf

TREATIES RECOGNITION Mr. Sol Mamakwa: Good morning, Speaker. My question is to the Gitchi ogemeh, the Premier. The Matawa Chiefs Council came to Queen’s Park this week to address the concerns they had with Bill 32, at committee. They stated that it was inappropriate for Ontario to address inherent Aboriginal and treaty rights within the schedule of the red tape reduction bill. The chiefs council came here to speak to Ontario, not just as partners but as investors of certainty that is required for anyone to do business in the north.

6468 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF ONTARIO 28 NOVEMBER 2019 Mr. Speaker, why does this government not understand the financial impact of not properly partnering with First Nations?

Hon. Christine Elliott: Minister of Indigenous Affairs.

Hon. Greg Rickford: I want to thank the member opposite for his question. Of course, the Better for People, Smarter for Business Act, 2019, provides certainty to the mining sector. The proposed amendments to the Mining Act hold the government to make a decision about filing or returning a closure plan amendment to 45 days. But there are no impacts to treaty and Aboriginal rights as a result of these proposed changes. All consultation, importantly, needs to be completed up front with the consultation report before any certified closure plan is received. Mr. Speaker, we take our duty to consult and accommodate and, more importantly, build relationships with the Matawa communities—like the $30-million investment into their broadband to ensure that they have an information highway; hopefully, a corridor to prosperity; and a better life overall.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Supplementary question? Mr. Sol Mamakwa: Ontario’s north has the potential to be the next economic engine of the country. But any development in what Ontario calls “the Far North” cannot and will not be imposed without the consent of First Nations. The omnibus legislation of Bill 132 is being fasttracked by this government without giving First Nations an appropriate engagement mechanism and time to respond. Will the government remove schedules 8 and 16 from the bill and establish a respectful process for engagement with First Nations, yes or no?

Hon. Greg Rickford: It’s important to understand the history of the Far North Act. No one should dispute, on either side of this floor, Mr. Speaker, that that Far North Act lacked any consultation or accommodation for the Indigenous communities in the Far North. I happened to be living up in those communities when that act was being shoved down their throats. The only piece of it that was salvageable was land use planning. We intend and we continue to support the communities in those important activities, because they will have a say. The fact of the matter is that I just had a conversation with Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler, who is looking forward to an important dialogue moving forward that will transform the opportunity for those communities in the north. But while I’m on my feet, Mr. Speaker, I have to ask the member opposite: When it comes to voting against the aviation fuel test, why did he say no to something that would, in actual dollars, reduce the cost of food transportation in and out of the isolated communities in his—