Hon. Judy A. White: Welcome, Madam Minister. It is an honour to have you here. To see an Indigenous woman serving as Minister of Indigenous Services is historic. It’s a powerful indicator that our voices are not only being heard, but they are leading. Thank you for that.

I want to go back to Bill S-2. My question regards that. I would like to hear what your ministry would want to see as the outcome of Bill S-2. My supplementary question, which I’ll introduce now, is this: How does your department plan to deal with the impacts of the second-generation cut-off with respect to gender-based discrimination?

Hon. Mandy Gull-Masty, P.C., M.P., Minister of Indigenous Services: Thank you. I will be very frank: My ideal outcome regarding Bill S-2 is that it will pass with immediacy to address those the bill was intended for, the 3,500 members looking to have reinstatement of status. This is what I put forward. My ideal outcome would be that we’re able to have an answer for them. There is a court deadline in place. As minister, I want to ensure I protect those facing enfranchisement issues.

In terms of the second-generation cut-off, since 2023, consultation has been undertaken. It is my duty as minister to ensure that I respect the process of consultation. I believe that for second-generation cut-off, the response is not one-size-fits-all for all of Canada. Nations, their needs and their relationships with their members are unique. I have to respect that and ensure that I bring a solution forward that is tailored to them. I can only get that through the consultation process.

Senator White: I have a supplementary question. Is there a time frame or a road map regarding when that consultation will be completed and/or how it will be approached?

Ms. Gull-Masty: Thank you. For consultations to occur, the community must determine the solution that they wish to identify. We have put in place a process that will conclude by December 2025. At the Standing Senate Committee on Indigenous Peoples, I offered to come back and speak to what I had heard.

I am not going to give a timeline, and the reason for this is very specific. I will not rush the communities that I work with to ensure that I’m finding a solution that meets the timeline of an outside institution. We have to be sure that we respect our partners in consultation. We have to give them the space they need to do that work. I know and sense that there is true urgency from the Senate to try to address this. I share that urgency.