First Nations groups demand Ottawa withdraw Bill C-39

Four First Nations organizations called on the federal government Oct. 8 to withdraw Bill C-39, the Building Canada Strong Act, saying its one-year project timeline puts Ottawa’s schedule ahead of Indigenous rights.

The Chiefs of Ontario, the Assembly of First Nations Quebec-Labrador, the British Columbia Assembly of First Nations and Nishnawbe Aski Nation issued a joint statement after the bill cleared its first vote in the House of Commons and moved to committee study.

“We reject Bill C-39 because First Nations rights cannot be made secondary to federally imposed project timelines,” Ontario Regional Chief Abram Benedict said in the release.

Nishnawbe Aski Nation Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler said the government is “writing legislation about our lands and our future without us at the table.”

The 243-page omnibus bill builds on last year’s Building Canada Act. According to the groups and APTN News, it expands the government’s “one project, one review, within one year” approach to major infrastructure. It sets five national-interest criteria for fast-tracked projects, including economic benefits, a high likelihood of successful execution and advancing Indigenous interests.

The bill would also create “regions of national interest,” where consultation and environmental assessment would cover a whole region instead of individual projects. Ottawa describes the one-year limit as a 365-day countdown, and ministers would have to give a reason if a review ran longer.

The First Nations groups said that structure leaves too little room for consultation. “Free, prior, and informed consent cannot be squeezed into a predetermined federal project timeline,” the four organizations said in their statement, as quoted by APTN.

They also argued the bill weakens environmental oversight, limits First Nations’ influence over decisions on their territories and conflicts with the United Nations Declaration Act. They said regional or economic development designations should not be treated as blanket consent for projects.

BC Assembly of First Nations Regional Chief Terry Teegee urged the prime minister to withdraw the bill from the order paper until First Nations are involved in redrafting it. The groups also want Section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982, which protects Aboriginal and treaty rights, upheld in any new version.

Francis Verreault-Paul, regional chief of the Assembly of First Nations Quebec-Labrador, said partnership is the route to certainty for investors and communities alike. “True certainty is built through partnership and respect,” he said.

APTN reported that the bill could allow national-interest projects to be exempted from some laws, such as the Species at Risk Act. The groups said the bill was drafted without their input.

Political opposition to the bill has come from other directions. Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre called it “watered down” and proposed an amendment to shorten the process to between six months and a year, APTN reported. Green Party Leader Elizabeth May called it an “omnibus of omnibuses.”

The Chiefs of Ontario release said the bill is headed to a House of Commons legislative committee while a Senate special committee studies it at the same time, with Royal Assent targeted for December. APTN did not name a second committee. The groups described “two committees now racing against the same clock.”

The federal government has said the bill would speed up project reviews, attract investment and uphold Indigenous rights. APTN’s report did not include a direct government response to the First Nations statement, and Canada News Media has not yet received one. This story is developing.

For readers outside the debate, the stakes are practical. If the bill passes as written, decisions on pipelines, mines and ports in or near First Nations territory could come on a fixed federal clock. Court challenges over the duty to consult are a recurring outcome when governments move quickly on such projects, so how the committees handle the timeline may matter as much as the bill’s text.

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Via APTN News and a joint release from the Chiefs of Ontario. Sourcing note: figures and quotes come from the joint release and APTN News. Committee details are as stated by the groups and were not independently confirmed.