THUNDER BAY – Through the entire debate over what is happening in Attawapiskat, the help on the ground continues to arrive. The Red Cross is working on the ground and generating support from the public. On Friday, in the House of Commons, there were two more exchanges over Attawapiskat. Being a Friday, the numbers in the Commons were smaller than other days of the week. That left Kenora MP Greg Rickford the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs in the hot seat.
Here is the exchange from the House of Commons:
Ms. Jean Crowder (Nanaimo—Cowichan, NDP): Mr. Speaker, for the last year and a half, first nation chiefs have been asking to meet with the Prime Minister and discuss the housing crisis on first nation reserves. After years of government inaction, it tragically took this crisis in Attawapiskat for him to finally take up the invitation. More than just talk is needed.
Is the government finally prepared to work with first nations and take real action to solve this crisis?
Mr. Greg Rickford (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development, for the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency and for the Federal Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario, CPC): Mr. Speaker, the government works with first nations to deliver real results for their priorities. We have invested heavily in first nation schools, including in Attawapiskat, and in water and waste water infrastructure, health and housing, and we have done this all in full partnership with first nations.
We have a plan. We will continue to invest in practical solutions and real results.
Mr. Jonathan Genest-Jourdain (Manicouagan, NDP): Mr. Speaker, all of a sudden, the Conservatives are waking up and blaming everyone but themselves.
Federal public servants went to Attawapiskat not once, not twice, not three times, but 10 times in the past year. They must have submitted reports on the situation. Has there been any follow-up to these visits or is the department in the habit of leaving reports on shelves to gather dust rather than taking action as required?
Is the conclusion here that the government is completely indifferent to the living conditions of aboriginal people?
Mr. Greg Rickford (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development, for the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency and for the Federal Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario, CPC): Mr. Speaker, our first priority is to get residents into warm, dry and safe shelter. Each time we received a request from the community, we took immediate action. Our officials have been working with the community to address substantial renovation for immediate housing needs, and we continue to support implementing their emergency management plan.
At the same time, we will be working with the third party manager to ensure that federal funding directly benefits community members and that the community’s long-term needs will be met.
Mr. Kevin Lamoureux (Winnipeg North, Lib.): Mr. Speaker, under the guise of savings, the Prime Minister killed the Kelowna accord. That agreement had widespread support that dealt with aboriginal issues. Now they are blaming the community. Attawapiskat is being blamed for the government’s killing of the Kelowna accord.
Will the government now acknowledge that Canada is facing a first nations aboriginal housing crisis, and what is it prepared to do about it?
Mr. Greg Rickford (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development, for the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency and for the Federal Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario, CPC): Mr. Speaker, I can tell the House that we are doing a lot more than the Kelowna accord could ever have hoped to achieved.
I know, because I was living in those first nations communities throughout the nineties. The members opposite do not have a record on this matter.
Our government works with first nations to deliver real results for their priorities. We have invested heavily in first nations schools, water and waste water infrastructure, health and housing. We did this all in partnership with the Assembly of First Nations and other first nations communities and their leadership.
We have a plan and we will continue to invest in practical solutions with real results.
Mr. Kevin Lamoureux (Winnipeg North, Lib.): Mr. Speaker, under the guise of the government taking action, words are all we hear.
The Conservatives have had six years. They killed the Kelowna accord. There are children who do not even have running water. In the province of Manitoba there is a need for thousands and thousands of additional housing units.
The government has failed our aboriginal people. It has failed the first nations of this country. When will it start dealing with the issues that are facing the aboriginal people of Canada? When will we see a plan to replace the Kelowna accord?
Mr. Greg Rickford (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development, for the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency and for the Federal Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario, CPC): Mr. Speaker, whether we are talking about the joint action plan that we embraced and embarked on with the national chief of the Assembly of First Nations; a federal economic development framework for first nations; the water and waste water infrastructure program, which is focusing on capacity; or the reporting, monitoring and maintenance of critical infrastructure, we are prioritizing and objectivizing the critical infrastructure needs in this regard.
Legislation, as the Auditor General pointed out, was necessary to support these kinds of initiatives.
We are getting the job done.
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