Omission of reconciliation 'glaring' and 'alarming' in budget speech, First Nations leaders say

First Nations leaders are panning this year's federal budget and demanding a renewed commitment from the Liberal govern‐ ment, after Finance Minis‐ ter Chrystia Freeland failed to mention reconciliation in Tuesday's budget speech.

"It's alarming," said Na‐ tional Chief Cindy Wood‐ house Nepinak, head of the Assembly of First Nations (AFN), at a Wednesday news conference.

The AFN represents chiefs countrywide and Woodhouse Nepinak said it will renew cal‐ ls for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to organize a first ministers meeting this year to discuss a path forward on reconciliation and the long‐ standing issues facing First Nations.

Cathy Merrick, grand chief of the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs, also expressed disap‐ pointment with the "glaring omission" in the budget pro‐ cess.

"I was there yesterday to be able to hear - and I did not hear any words pertaining to reconciliation," she told re‐ porters in Ottawa.

Freeland's 2024 budget pledges $9 billion in new cash for Indigenous Peoples, with major line items cover‐ ing child and family services, education, health, housing and on-reserve income assis‐ tance.

But her 3,500-word, 40minute speech in the House of Commons mentioned none of this. Instead, it dou‐ bled as an expansive political manifesto targeting millenni‐ al and Gen Z voters facing a housing and affordability crunch - and aggressive courting from the opposition Conservatives.

Now compare that with her speech in 2021.

Freeland, who is also deputy prime minister, men‐ tioned Indigenous Peoples nine times when delivering that budget - which included $18 billion for Indigenous communities.

'We're absolutely con‐ cerned'

The change in tone sparked worry the government and country may once again turn their backs on First Nations amid increased general economic anxiety, Wood‐ house Nepinak said.

"We're absolutely con‐ cerned," she said.

"We wouldn't be standing here if we weren't."

A spokesperson for Free‐ land cited the 181 per cent increase in Indigenous spending since 2015, a key figure from the budget book itself, as a measure of the Liberals' commitment.

"The deputy prime minis‐ ter and the government are absolutely committed to rec‐ onciliation with Indigenous Peoples," wrote Katherine Cuplinskas.

Despite concerns, the na‐ tional chief welcomed the in‐ vestments in some key areas but expressed disappoint‐ ment with the lack of action on housing and infrastruc‐ ture.

She told CBC Indigenous on Tuesday she gave the budget a score of five out of 10. Woodhouse Nepinak ini‐ tially gave it four out of 10, but upped it a point because of the $5 billion in loan guar‐ antees for natural resource and energy projects, she said.

The Liberals have pledged to close the Indigenous infra‐ structure gap by 2030, which pre-budget estimates as‐ sessed at more $425 billion for First Nation, Inuit and Métis.

David Monias, chief of

Pimicikamak Cree Nation, roughly 750 kilometres north of Winnipeg, told reporters 2,000 people are on a list in need of homes for his com‐ munity.

"Good news for Canada, bad news for the First Na‐ tions, that's what it comes down to," Monias said of the budget.

At the current rate, "we will be far from having a clo‐ sure of that gap by 2030," ad‐ ded Brendan Mitchell, the AFN's Newfoundland regional chief.

Ministers defend record

Others were less critical.

The Métis National Coun‐ cil praised the plan but did point to "critical gaps" re‐ maining for Métis in areas like health and emergency management.

"This is a step in the right direction," said President Cassidy Caron in a state‐ ment.

David Chartrand, presi‐ dent of the Manitoba Métis Federation, which is not affili‐ ated with the national coun‐ cil, was similarly pleased with the budget but echoed the desire to see more Métisspecific commitments.

WATCH | First Nations chiefs react to federal budget:

Natan Obed, president of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, which advocates for 70,000 Inuit in Canada, was encouraged with the budget but disap‐ pointed with the lack of fund‐ ing for tuberculosis elimina‐ tion.

In 2018, the Liberals promised to eliminate the disease in Inuit regions by 2030 and cut rates in half by 2025, a target some say they are on pace to miss.

The Liberals' tendency to make big promises and set ambitious goals but fail to spend what's needed to meet them raises questions about what path the govern‐ ment is really on, Obed said.

Inuit would benefit from "a more grounded relation‐ ship" with the entire country "to ensure that we don't waste our time, that we don't set unrealistic expectations, and that we show the good relationship," Obed said.

For their part, the minis‐ ters in charge of Indigenous affairs rejected the sugges‐ tion that reconciliation has dropped in priority.

"I wouldn't say $9 billion is dropped in priority," Indige‐ nous Services Minister Patty Hajdu told reporters on Wednesday.

"That's a big investment." Hajdu suggested the gov‐ ernment's spending is still substantial despite the enor‐ mous infrastructure gap her own government promised to bridge.

"If you take $450 billion, and let's say you divide it over 10 years, that's still $45 billion per budget over the next 10 years," she said.

"I think our ambitious in‐ vestments have gone a long way."

Crown-Indigenous Rela‐ tions Minister Gary Anan‐ dasangaree said the Liberal relationship with Indigenous Peoples remains strong.

"I think there may be a need for recalibration of the relationship, but there's cer‐ tainly no need for reset," he said.