SoVote

Context: House Hansard - 339 - Sep/19/24

Mr. Adam van Koeverden (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change and to the Minister of Sport and Physical Activity, Lib.)

Sep/19/24 7:04:57 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I appreciate the opportunity to address the House of Commons on this important issue with my friend and colleague from British Columbia. Our government has repeatedly committed to supporting indigenous peoples in their efforts to reclaim, revitalize, maintain and strengthen indigenous languages. We recognize the important work that has been accomplished by indigenous communities across the country since the passage of the Indigenous Languages Act, and we remain committed to working with them to continue implementing the act. Guided by the principle of “nothing about us without us”, every aspect of the implementation of this act is carried out jointly with first nations, Inuit and Métis partners, recognizing that indigenous peoples are best positioned to lead the revitalization of their languages. For example, our government has implemented new funding models for indigenous languages that prioritize indigenous peoples' autonomy and control over financial decisions based on their priorities. We have also introduced long-term funding agreements to support multi-year strategies. This approach respects first nations' governance structures and decision-making processes. I recognize the unique circumstances of indigenous languages across Canada, particularly in British Columbia. Those include first nations in British Columbia. Therefore in December, the Minister of Canadian Heritage met with the First Peoples' Cultural Council in B.C. to discuss indigenous language issues. The First Peoples Cultural Council is a long-standing partner, and its efforts serve as a model for managing Canadian Heritage's indigenous languages funding, providing support to first nations communities and organizations in developing resources and innovative approaches to advancing indigenous language preservation and revitalization. This is one of the reasons the department signed a memorandum of understanding in June 2022 with the Province of B.C. and the First Peoples Cultural Council, which establishes a framework for ongoing collaboration and commits to the parties to advance predictable and sustainable funding for the revitalization of first nations languages, cultural heritage and the arts. Under the memorandum of understanding, a five-year agreement for $103.9 million, starting in 2023-24, was signed with the First Peoples Cultural Council. Our government recognizes that reclaiming, revitalizing, strengthening and maintaining indigenous languages requires a long-term commitment on our part. We will continue this important work in collaboration with our indigenous partners.

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Context: House Hansard - 339 - Sep/19/24

Mr. Gord Johns

Sep/19/24 7:07:59 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am actually calling for the government to right this wrong at the earliest opportunity and commit to including adequate long-term funding for first nations language programs in British Columbia in the fall economic statement. An essential part of reconciliation is addressing the enormous harms first nations have experienced throughout their 200-year history of colonization, including the devastating loss of language and culture. The government needs to listen to what first nations need and fulfill its legal obligations with respect to language revitalization. In the Indigenous Languages Act, the government declared it was “committed to providing adequate, sustainable and long-term funding for the reclamation, revitalization, maintenance and strengthening of Indigenous languages”. However, the current funding is not enough to maintain existing programming let alone meet the growing demand. Will the government take its obligations seriously and commit to ensuring fair, adequate and long-term funding for indigenous language programming to benefit generations to come?

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Context: House Hansard - 339 - Sep/19/24

Mr. Adam van Koeverden

Sep/19/24 7:08:57 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I will reiterate that the memorandum of understanding I referenced was signed just in June 2022. In collaboration with the First Peoples Cultural Council, the government signed an unprecedented five-year funding agreement for almost $104 million, which started last calendar year, and which was signed with the First Peoples Cultural Council. This year also marks the fifth anniversary of the royal assent of the Indigenous Languages Act. The current government has been steadfast in our commitment to work with indigenous peoples to ensure that the act's full implementation is done as quickly as possible, which is why this much work has been undertaken. However, we realize that there is more work to do, and we remain dedicated to working with indigenous peoples to support their efforts to reclaim, revitalize, strengthen and maintain indigenous languages.

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