PM to speak with First Nations on major projects bill at Bill C-5 summit

Edzi'u Loverin · CBC News

· Posted: Jul 17, 2025 4:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 11 minutes ago

Prime Minister Mark Carney is scheduled to code First Nations leaders Thursday astatine a summit called to allay their concerns implicit the Liberal government's large projects legislation. 

The two-day acme astatine the Canadian Museum of History successful Gatineau, Que., launched Wednesday day and runs each time Thursday. 

Bill C-5, passed past month, allows for fast-tracked support for projects deemed to beryllium successful the nationalist interest, specified arsenic pipelines, mines and ports.

The measure sped done Parliament and was amended to necessitate provincial consent for nationalist projects but the Senate voted down Mi'kmaw Sen. Paul Prosper's projected proviso to see free, prior, and informed consent successful the connection of the bill.

"Our rights cannot beryllium implemented oregon respected without us, successful substance and successful process," said Assembly of First Nations National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak at a news conference successful Ottawa Wednesday.

"They cannot beryllium respected aft the fact."

Woodhouse said the implicit 600 First Nations from crossed the state person a diverseness of sentiment connected the authorities and the acme should person occurred anterior to the bill's passing.

She said she wants Carney to travel to the array with meaningful amendments to Bill C-5 and solutions to the "$350 cardinal spread successful infrastructure for First Nations kids successful this country."

At the AFN news conference, Joanna Bernard from Madawaska Maliseet First Nation, AFN determination main for New Brunswick, said Carney's acme isn't truly consultation.

"They're coming in, they're putting up the agenda, they're deciding however this is going to proceed, but decidedly it is not consultation. If it was we wouldn't beryllium here, we would beryllium moving the agenda, and this is not the lawsuit today," said Bernard.

WATCH | AFN National Chief connected the summit: 

Carney has said Indigenous consultation is cardinal to the large projects bill, but Indigenous leaders person said that's a hard committedness to spot without explicit amendments.

"Until an due process founded successful free, anterior and informed consent is established betwixt First Nations rights holders and the Crown, the Crown's ineligible obligations volition not beryllium met," said Woodhouse Nepinak.

"Chiefs person made it precise wide that First Nation consent for large projects is not optional."

On Monday, 9 First Nations successful Ontario filed a ineligible situation against Bill C-5, and an Ontario law, Bill 5. The First Nations privation the tribunal to find the 2 laws unconstitutional.

The Supreme Court has antecedently ruled First Nations person a close to beryllium consulted connected projects nether Indigenous rights and rubric — but they bash not person a last veto connected if a task goes ahead.