NAN says federal budget weakens Treaty commitments
Leaders with Nishnawbe Aski Nation say the federal government’s new budget weakens Treaty commitments and undermines progress toward closing major gaps in housing, infrastructure, and health across Northern Ontario.
The comments come during Treaties Recognition Week, with NAN leadership gathering for their Fall Assembly in Thunder Bay.
Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler said the budget “offered little comfort” for First Nations, pointing out that funding for Indigenous Services and Crown–Indigenous Relations has been reduced, without clarity on where those cuts will fall.
“Treaties Recognition Week should be a time to honour the sacred agreements that built this country,” said Fiddler. “Instead, we are watching those commitments weaken — in Parliament, in budgets, and on the lands our ancestors protected for all future generations.”
NAN leaders say shifting funding from long-term investments to short, year-to-year cycles will make it harder to plan and sustain community development.
They also raised concerns about resource and infrastructure projects moving ahead in their territory without proper consultation.
“We are not opposed to development, but that means truly together — not us left behind while others drive through our lands toward their own prosperity,” said Eabametoong First Nation Chief Solomon Atlookan.
Ginoogaming First Nation Chief Sheri Taylor added that Canada “cannot write its own future based on the erosion of our rights and our lands,” noting many communities still struggle with unsafe water, housing shortages, and limited road access.
NAN is calling on both the federal and provincial governments to uphold their constitutional and Treaty obligations, and to work in true partnership with First Nations.
Fiddler says closing the gaps that keep northern communities from sharing equally in Canada’s prosperity must be prioritized ahead of profit.
