Indigenous Services Minister Patty Hajdu and Assembly of First Nations National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak are urging MPs across party lines to support legislation to ensure First Nations have clean drinking water in their communities.
The government has put forward a bill that seeks to do just that, and also seeks to protect source-water on First Nations territories.
Hajdu has called it the first piece of truly co-developed legislation between Canada and First Nations — even though some First Nations disagree with that framing.
The bill has been before a House of Commons committee for months, where MPs have heard chiefs and experts raise concerns that the legislation does not go far enough to protect their rights. They also question how robust it will be in ensuring their communities receive adequate funding to maintain and operate water treatment plants.
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Hajdu pointed the finger at the Opposition for delaying the bill.
“If we continue to see the kinds of obstruction …