Federal-Aboriginal Relations and Governance

• Created and are now reviewing the 94 recommendations released by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which had been established by the Conservative government in 2007 as part of the Indian Residential Schools Agreement along with a formal apology for Residential Schools (1, 5, 19)


• Signed the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in 2010 after initially opposing it in 2007, and refers to it as an aspirational document (19, 24)


• Believes the Indian Act and related legislation should be replaced with a modern framework that grants full legal and democratic responsibility for First Nations, and the Inuit, within the overall constitutional framework of our federal state (6)


• Three Conservative Party candidates running for election are Aboriginal, including Leona Aglukkaq, Minister for Health, as of the time of writing (23)


• More details on the Conservative Party's’ Aboriginal Platform are expected soon

• Pledged to enact the recommendations of the Truth & Reconciliation Commission (1, 2)


• Would ensure that all new legislation passed by the Federal Government abides by the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (1)


• Pledged to deliver a nation-to-nation relationship with Indigenous peoples (9)


• Will create a cabinet-level committee, chaired by the Prime Minister, to ensure federal government decisions respect treaty rights, inherent rights of Aboriginals, and Canada's international obligations (1, 2, 11)


• Twenty-three NDP candidates running for election are Aboriginal, as of the time of writing (23)


• More details on the NDP Aboriginal Platform are expected soon

• Pledged to enact the recommendations of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (1, 2, 11)


• Pledged to implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (1, 9, 11)


• Pledged to conduct a full review of legislation unilaterally imposed on Aboriginal peoples by the Harper government and scrap those laws if they do not respect Aboriginal rights (1, 9)


• Pledged to meet with First Nations, Métis, and Inuit leaders each year of a Liberal government’s mandate (12)


• Pledged to repeal changes made to the Elections Act by the Conservative government, which they believe make it unfairly more difficult for Aboriginal people to vote (12)


• Plan on introducing an Educational Program to provide all Canadians with an understanding of the history and background that have created the issues currently confronting Aboriginal Peoples in Canada (10)


• Sixteen Liberal Party candidates running for election are Aboriginal, as of the time of writing (23)

• Supports the adoption of all recommendations of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (2, 16)


• Holds that one of Canada’s first priorities should be to move forward and implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (14, 16)


• Believes that all Canadians must become more aware about the history and contributions of Canada’s First Peoples (15)


• Opposes policies of assimilation of Aboriginal Peoples (16)


• Supports the allocation of Senator seats for Aboriginal representatives in a number proportional to the percentage of Aboriginal peoples within Canada’s population (17)


• Will review all existing federal policies on Aboriginal self-government to ensure that this right is respected (1, 16)


• Will create a Council of Canadian Governments which will include leaders of Aboriginal groups as well as provincial and territorial leaders (25)


• Seven Green party candidates running for election are Aboriginal, as of the time of writing (23)

Social Services

• Pledged $215 million to provide skills development and training for Aboriginal peoples (1, 3, 27)


• Committed $567 million over five years to help build stronger communities (1)


• Earmarked $1 billion dollars over five years for Aboriginal education and $500 million over seven years for Aboriginal educational infrastructure beginning in the 2014 and 2015 budgets (1, 2, 13)


• Have an additional $900 million available for Aboriginal education to accompany education reform, but have not delivered it due to the collapse of First Nations Education Act (13)


• Introduced Bill C-33, which would have ensured Aboriginal control of education, provided a statutory funding guarantee, provided $1.9 billion over several years, tied new funding to standards set and monitored by Ottawa, and ensured recognition of First Nations languages and culture. Placed Bill C-33 on hold after opposition from First Nations chiefs (4, 5)


• Reduced Aboriginal budget from current levels by $1 billion dollars by 2017-2018 in their most recent budget (5)


• Pledged $30 million for a land management scheme aimed at expanding a plan to help communities create their own land management laws and improve economic development on reserves (1, 2)


• More details on the Conservative Party's’ Aboriginal Platform are expected soon

• Will remove the 2% annual cap on funding increases to Aboriginal programs (7, 23)


• Introduced a Bill in 2007, which passed unanimously in the House of Commons, to support ‘Jordan’s Principle’ which would ensure care for vulnerable populations regardless of conflict over jurisdictional disputes within levels of government (7, 8)


• Believes the government must expand maternal and palliative health care for remote communities to ensure that mothers and elders aren’t forced to leave their communities to receive treatment (7)


• Promised that the federal government and Aboriginal communities will be full partners in the development and implementation of health and wellness programs for communities (7)


• Pledged to increase funding for Aboriginal education and repair educational infrastructure on reserves (9, 22)


• Pledged to contribute federal funds to build an all-weather road for the Shoal Lake 40 First Nation (1)


• Are committed to increasing consultation with Aboriginal groups and improving language rights for Aboriginal languages (6)


• More details on the NDP Aboriginal Platform are expected soon

• Pledged to lift the 2% cap for funding for Aboriginal programs and services (1, 13, 23)


• Pledged to increase funding for education in Aboriginal schools (kindergarten to grade 12) by $515 million a year, for a total of an additional $2.6 billion over four years (1, 13)


• Pledged to invest an additional $500 million for educational infrastructure (1)


• Promise to ensure that First Nations have control over First Nations education (1, 23)


• Will make new funding available to help preserve Indigenous languages (1, 23)


• Will allocate $50 million to the Post-Secondary Student Support Program (PSSSP), which provides financial assistance to Aboriginal students who attend post-secondary schools (13)


• Pledged to contribute federal funds to build an all-weather road for the Shoal Lake 40 First Nation (1)

• Pledged to remove the 2% funding cap on Aboriginal programs and would fully fund the program backlog at a cost of $424 million (1, 16)


• Support increased health and education funding on and off reserve lands (16)


• Pledged to restore the $5.1 billion commitment and specifics of the Kelowna Accord over five years to improve: education funding, housing conditions, access to potable water, and community economic development (16, 19)

Land Claims and Natural Resources

• Allocated $54 million over two years in 2013 to speed up resolution of specific land claims, as demanded by Aboriginal leaders who met with Mr. Harper in 2013 (3)


• More details on the Conservative Party's’ Aboriginal Platform are expected soon

• More details on the NDP Aboriginal Platform are expected soon


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• Will create a national strategy to deal with Aboriginal land claims and ensure consultation within a reasonable time frame (10)


• Pledged to create a ‘Federal Reconciliation Framework’ with mechanisms to resolve grievances associated with existing treaties and modern land-claims agreements, and to review all legislation introduced to ensure that laws respect Aboriginal rights (1, 9)


• Will create a process for Aboriginal peoples' participation in natural resource issues to ensure that they have a share in revenues generated from resources on their lands (10)

• In partnership with Aboriginal Peoples, would work towards the creation of an Aboriginal Lands and Treaties Tribunal Act to establish an independent body to deal with specific land claims, ensure treaty negotiations are financed and conducted fairly, and ensure that claims resolutions do not result in extinguishment of Aboriginal and Treaty Rights (1, 16)


• Commit their support to those First Nations who have taken leadership in opposing supertankers and pipelines from going through their territory (15, 18)


• Pledged to negotiate and legislate hunting, fishing, trapping, and logging rights for Aboriginal peoples on traditional lands, particularly those under federal jurisdiction, subject to standards of sustainable harvesting (1, 16)


• Will ensure that governments and corporations honor and abide by the Sparrow Decision and the Tsilhqot'in ruling, which recognize Aboriginal right to fish and Aboriginal title respectively (16, 23)


• Pledged to amend laws to recognize Indigenous approval of natural resource projects as equivalent in weight to federal government approval (2)