First Nations chiefs to sit with Carney, premiers Oct. 26

Regional chiefs of the Assembly of First Nations will join Prime Minister Mark Carney and the premiers in Ottawa on Oct. 26 for a First Nations-First Ministers’ Meeting, the first gathering of its kind in decades, the AFN and The Canadian Press have reported.

The meeting comes as First Nations and governments clash over the federal and provincial push to speed up major projects. The AFN said in an Aug. 21 bulletin that the meeting will take place on unceded Algonquin territory, with a day of ceremony on Oct. 25. The venue had not been officially confirmed.

The Canadian Press reported on Sept. 24 that the main room would have 28 seats: Carney, AFN National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak, 13 provincial and territorial leaders and 13 First Nations representatives, mostly AFN regional chiefs. An additional 44 invitees would include a youth representative and representatives of Treaties 6, 7 and 8.

Premiers asked Carney to hold the meeting after Woodhouse Nepinak raised the idea with the Council of the Federation in summer 2025, the AFN said. The bulletin said Carney confirmed at the AFN’s 2025 Special Chiefs Assembly that First Nations would set the agenda.

The Canadian Press reported that topics include long-term governance, such as rights and treaties, jurisdiction, health care, policing and land, along with economic partnerships. Woodhouse Nepinak called the meeting a “big test” of Canada’s ability to reconcile economic growth with First Nations rights, the news agency reported.

The AFN said it is pushing for the meeting to be as open and inclusive as possible and to be broadcast publicly. The Canadian Press reported that the meeting will be livestreamed, but it was unclear whether the public could watch.

The Privy Council Office said in August it was working with the AFN, modern treaty groups and self-governing First Nations on planning. Spokesperson Pierre Cuguen said in an emailed statement that “the meeting aims to advance nation-to-nation and government-to-government relations.”

Not everyone agrees on who should be at the table. Russ Diabo, a Mohawk policy analyst, told The Canadian Press that B.C. Premier David Eby will not attend because a provincial election has been called for Oct. 24, and that he is organizing a protest against the gathering. Eby’s office could not be reached for comment, the news agency reported.

The AFN takes direction from the chiefs of 630 First Nations through its assemblies. Opposition from some First Nations and organizations to the federal major projects bill, including Bill C-39, has sharpened the stakes for the talks, which come a little over two weeks away.

Via The Canadian Press. Sources: AFN bulletin; The Canadian Press.

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