The Senate resolved into a Committee of the Whole in order to study the subject matter of Bill C-39, An Act respecting certain measures to strengthen the economy.

Senator Audette: [Editor’s Note: Senator Audette spoke in Innu-aimun.]

Thank you for being here.

Will the government acknowledge that the governance of corridors must include not only the Indigenous peoples who are directly affected by the projects but also those upstream and downstream who will feel the environmental, social and economic impacts?

I’m going to fire off a second very important question. How will you support our First Nations to reduce the pressure that our Indigenous nations, communities and governments are feeling when it comes to employability and training? There’s been a lot of talk about consultations. How will you ensure that we do not end up in a situation like the one in Labrador and in Quebec where the Innu Nation doesn’t have a seat at the table when it comes to major projects that affect our territory? You can answer in writing if you don’t have enough time to answer, but I would like an answer to reassure those who are watching at home.

Thank you.

Mr. MacKinnon: I’ll start, and perhaps Mr. LeBlanc will want to add to my answer.

First, I’d like to point out another section of the bill that talks about Indigenous advisory committees for port authorities. That’s something we’ve never tried before. If you agree that everything eventually gets shipped through a port, then you’ll see the importance of including First Nations at that stage.

The best way to answer your question is to reiterate what I said to Senator Francis. It’s early days, I admit. However, including First Nations at the very beginning of the process, from the conception stage onwards — you talked about projects in northern Quebec and Labrador — will stimulate the creativity of local stakeholders, companies, and institutions of knowledge and training. These are often small communities, and folks there talk to each other. We are already seeing glimmers of inspiration regarding their involvement in the design process, which is not yet complete but which includes them from the start thanks to short timelines.

As a final quick point, you mentioned pressure. There’s also pressure on the group coming in to talk about —

The Chair: Thank you, minister.

Mr. MacKinnon: I’m sorry. That was a good point.