N.B. election: Blaine Higgs says Indigenous people ceded land many, many years ago – New Brunswick [Video]

New Brunswick is “ceded” land, the province’s Progressive Conservative leader said Friday on the campaign trail, highlighting his party’s position regarding a major lawsuit involving First Nations.

In a speech in Moncton, N.B., Blaine Higgs said the fundamental premise of the lawsuit “is whether the land (title) is ceded or unceded, and certainly we have evidence to say it was ceded many, many years ago.”

Higgs restated the party’s position while accusing the Liberals of failing to give an accurate costing of potential legal settlements with First Nations.

Indigenous groups in the province, however, don’t see it that way. They say First Nations never relinquished or legally signed away their lands to the Crown. A land claim filed in December 2021 by the six chiefs in the Wolastoqey Nation says private and public corporations have long exploited resources on Wolastoqey lands. The chiefs want land returned, compensation for the use …