QUESTION PERIOD — Ministry of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs
Truth and Reconciliation Commission Calls to Action
November 26, 2024
Welcome, Minister Anandasangaree. It is lovely to see you. Your mandate letter sets out the expectation that you will lead the work of all ministers to accelerate the implementation of the TRC Calls to Action and the MMIWG Federal Pathway. Particularly, as we approach the 2025 deadline established by the TRC for eliminating the overrepresentation of Indigenous peoples in federal prisons, and as this overrepresentation unfortunately continues to increase, what concrete steps are you taking to ensure accountability among ministers and departments for the timely implementation of the Calls to Action and the Calls for Justice as well as to assess the adequacy of implementation?
Thank you, Senator Pate. Thank you for your leadership and work in addressing issues of over-incarceration and overrepresentation of Indigenous people, particularly within the criminal justice system. Let me focus on that for my response.
We have taken unprecedented steps toward addressing some of the issues around over-incarceration. I think Bill C-5 is probably the most concrete example we can provide because, for the first time in Canadian history, it undoes some of the mandatory minimum penalties that have resulted in the over-incarceration of Indigenous people, particularly Indigenous women.
The reports that we get from the Correctional Investigator, Mr. Zinger, each year really highlight the need for us to double down on the work. I can assure you that I’m preoccupied with ensuring that both Corrections and Justice are working toward addressing the underlying issues.
I will note that we have an Indigenous Justice Strategy that is now in the co-development stage. We have done extensive consultation. You would have seen the What We Learned Report. We look forward to its implementation.
Thank you. The 2021 National Action Plan on Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls identified among its short-term priorities — as part of a means of including the missing and murdered but also incarceration rates — that a national guaranteed livable income be implemented and that work on that start by 2024. Can you please clarify how short-term priorities were identified and what concrete next steps we can expect on this and other short-term priorities?
The action plan is a co-development process. We have it on an annual basis. I will also note that we have the UNDA Action Plan that is now part of the Minister of Justice’s work in bringing together the different departments.
The issues around universal basic income are a bit more complex. I believe that is something that has been the subject of some discussion here in this place as well as in the House of Commons. I wish to assure you that we have Indigenous-provincial-federal meetings. We’ll have the third —
Thank you, minister.
