QUESTION PERIOD — Ministry of Indigenous Services
Funding for Programs
May 7, 2026
Madam Minister, thank you for being here. I was in Timmins last month and had the honour of meeting with Mushkegowuk Council. I have two questions stemming from that meeting.
First, they have developed an ambitious plan to protect spaces where polar bears den and shoreline birds nest along the James Bay coast. The space would be co-managed with Parks Canada and funded through the Project Finance for Permanence, but agreement is needed with the Province of Ontario. How is Canada supporting Mushkegowuk Council to make sure this conservation area is successful?
Second, we know changes to Jordan’s Principle funding have created a lot of uncertainty for families and communities. When I spoke with them, Mushkegowuk Council was concerned about funding for Camp Chikipak. This supports children and is, in fact, so popular that registration fills up in under an hour. Will ISC commit to more clarity on funding and more staffing to respond within its timelines?
I want to acknowledge the exceptional work that Mushkegowuk have done in this space. I’m very familiar with this file. I had the opportunity to work with them in my capacity previously as a Grand Chief because we were simultaneously doing protection work on the other side of James Bay, and we wanted to make sure the work we undertook was harmonized. I really must speak to the testament of the work that they’ve done, because they really did push Canada.
I believe my colleague Minister Dabrusin at Environment and Climate Change Canada, or ECCC, is innovating in this space to ensure that we work with Indigenous communities to protect areas of conservation, both terrestrial and marine. I’m proud to see the work that they’re doing because it is really traditional knowledge that is driving in that space.
I’ve had the opportunity to speak to the Chief and Grand Chief, but I believe that this is one of the areas where innovation and protection are also — we’re always there to support the community, because Indigenous knowledge is going to be the thing that ensures that the harmonization of conservation is in place and is looking into the future on a very substantive timeline. I know many people here are aware that Seven Generations forward is the planning that Indigenous communities do.
With regard to your question on Jordan’s Principle, I do want to call attention to the work that we’ve been doing on the operational bulletin —
Thank you, minister.
