Wildfires forced residents to evacuate Wabaseemoong Independent Nation
Wildfires have forced more than 800 residents to evacuate their northwestern Ontario First Nation. Chief Waylon Scott of the Wabaseemoong Independent Nation, which sits about 100 kilometres northwest of Kenora near the Manitoba border, says rain and cooler temperatures have kept several fires at bay, but the blazes still pose a major threat. In a video conference with reporters Sunday, he said crews are trying to beat back flames from a 0.3-square-kilometre wildfire burning just over a kilometre from the community. Scott says roughly 100 firefighters, including 20 flown in from British Columbia, are battling that blaze as well as two much bigger fires — one roaring across 90 square kilometres and from which the smaller fire jumped. Scott says sprinklers are now set up outside about 80 per cent...
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Liberal government to table federal budget this fall, PM Carney says
By Nick Murray Prime Minister Mark Carney said Sunday the Liberal government will present a federal budget in the fall, allowing time for clarity on some key economic and fiscal issues to emerge. Speaking to reporters Sunday in Rome, Carney defended his government’s decision not to deliver a budget this spring, saying there is little value in rushing the process. Carney noted a new session of Parliament begins with a throne speech on May 27, but the House of Commons is due to rise less than a month later. Opposition parties recently attacked Carney for being vague about his plans after his government said it would not table a budget before members of Parliament leave for the summer. Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne said instead of a spring budget, the government...
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Systemic racism in Yukon schools harming First Nation students: review
By Talar Stockton, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Yukon News The Yukon First Nation Education Directorate and the Yukon Child and Youth Advocate Office have released calls to action to address systemic racism in the Yukon education system. Contained within a report entitled “For Our Children: Systemic Racism in Yukon’s Education System,” the calls to action address the Yukon government. There are twenty-five calls to action, categorized into areas of philosophy, pedagogy (the method of teaching), relations and operations. The contents of the report look at the experiences of systemic racism within schools in the Yukon. Study authors analyzed data collected from Yukon schools between 2014 and 2024. They engaged with 300 participants, including citizens of all 14 Yukon First Nations. They also formally engaged with eight Yukon First Nations. The...
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$1 million awarded to Council of Yukon First Nations program supporting expecting families
By Talar Stockton, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Yukon News Bibia Nàtsät Ku — a project by the Council of Yukon First Nations — has won $1 million through the Arctic Inspiration Prize. The name of the program translates to “Strong Babies House” and is an extension of the Bibia Nàtsät (Strong Babies) program which CYFN has been operating for the past two years. The money will now allow CYFN to establish a space to house the program. In April, CYFN’s executive director, Shadelle Chambers, told the News the space could provide a place to stay for families travelling into Whitehorse for healthcare. It could also provide daytime programming, supports and services for families, she said. Chambers, speaking to the News from Ottawa where the Arctic Inspiration Prize ceremony was held...
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Canada Infrastructure Bank surpasses $1 billion mark in funding to Indigenous projects
By Sam Laskaris, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Windspeaker.com The Canada Infrastructure Bank (CIB) has reached a major milestone, but officials from the Crown corporation insist they will not be resting on their laurels. The CIB has officially surpassed the $1 billion mark in funding for Indigenous projects across the country. Launched in 2017 to financially support revenue-generating infrastructure projects across the country, the CIB’s Indigenous Community Infrastructure Initiative (ICII) began in 2021. In 2023, the ICII’s early successes led the CIB to add another stream of funding called the Indigenous Equity Initiative (IEI). The IEI stream provides loans to Indigenous communities so they can buy equity in energy and electricity projects. A total of 28 Indigenous projects have been funded through the two streams so far. “We are not done...
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Alberta Premier Danielle Smith shuffles her cabinet, splits health portfolio
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has announced an overhaul of several government ministries, creating two new health services portfolios and replacing her Indigenous relations minister. Former health minister Adriana LaGrange has been sworn in as minister of primary and preventative health services, while former jobs minister Matt Jones is in charge of hospital and surgical health services. Previous Indigenous relations minister Rick Wilson is now minister of mental health and addiction. He replaces Dan Williams, who moves to municipal affairs. Rajan Sawhney will head Indigenous relations. Smith says the shuffle was needed to fill the vacancy left by former municipal affairs minister Ric McIver, who is taking on the role of Speaker of the assembly. “Once you move one cabinet minister, you have to start moving a few others,” Smith said...
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New federal ministers signal hope
By Marcus Bankuti, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Eastern Door The grand chief of the Grand Council of the Crees, Norman A. Wapachee, was ecstatic on election night as his predecessor, Mandy Gull-Masty, inched past the competition and won a seat in Parliament representing the riding of Abitibi-Baie-James-Nunavik-Eeyou. “We had a group, and when the results came in, it was tight. Very emotional. It was like going through a roller coaster,” said Wapachee. But the excitement of her victory would soon be rivalled when Wapachee turned on the TV this week and saw Gull-Masty standing behind prime minister Mark Carney as he unveiled his new cabinet. “I was like, ‘What the hell?’” he said. “What is she in?” The answer? Gull-Masty is the new minister of Indigenous Services, making her...
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Carney travelling to Rome to join other world leaders at Pope’s inaugural mass
By Nick Murray Prime Minister Mark Carney is set to depart Canada Friday night for his first official trip to the Vatican, where he will attend Pope Leo XIV’s inaugural mass on Sunday. Carney is a devout Catholic but was unable to attend Pope Francis’s funeral on April 26 because it fell two days before the federal election. The inaugural mass, which serves as a swearing-in of sorts for a new Pope, is drawing many international leaders and Carney is expected to have bilateral meetings with several of them during the trip. U.S. Vice-President JD Vance, French Prime Minister François Bayrou and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese are among those who have confirmed they’re attending. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Prince Edward will also be in attendance. Assembly of First...
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Kicking off Police Week with annual Family Fun Day
By Kimberly De Jong, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Brant Beacon Well over 700 people helped to kick off Police Week with a Family Fun Day event, held at the Children’s Safety Village of Brant, on Saturday, May 10, 2025. This year’s Police Week is running from May 11 to May 17, and with the underlying theme of “Committed to Serve Together,” police stations across the province have been highlighting the role that officers play in community safety, and how members of the community can take an active role in keeping Ontario safe. During the event, visiting families had the chance to meet various local law enforcement officers and get an up close look at what they do to keep the community safe every day. “During Police Week, there’s lots of...
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A ‘foot in the door’: BC First Nations buy into Enbridge pipeline
By Sonal Gupta, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Canada’s National Observer For decades, a natural gas pipeline has cut through the territories of dozens of First Nations in BC — moving billions of dollars’ worth of gas with zero ownership and little return to the communities. Now, 36 First Nations have bought in. “For decades, the nations have watched resources leave their communities with very minimal benefit,” said Justin Napoleon, from Saulteau First Nation and director of Stonlasec8, a newly formed, Indigenous-owned, limited partnership made up of 36 First Nations in BC, including Treaty 8 members. In a landmark deal announced today, Stonlasec8 revealed its plan to invest approximately $715 million to acquire a 12.5 per cent ownership in Enbridge Inc.’s Westcoast natural gas pipeline system that stretches from BC’s remote...
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CP NewsAlert: Alberta Premier Smith shuffles cabinet, splits health portfolio
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has announced an overhaul of several government ministries, creating two new health services portfolios and replacing her Indigenous relations minister. Former health minister Adriana LaGrange has been sworn in as minister of primary and preventative health services, while former jobs minister Matt Jones is in charge of hospital and surgical health services. Former Indigenous relations minister Rick Wilson is minister of mental health and addiction. He replaces Dan Williams, who moves to municipal affairs. Rajan Sawhney will now head Indigenous relations. More coming. ...
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Police watchdog responds to calls for change after Nunavik shooting
By Cedric Gallant, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Nunatsiaq News Quebec’s police watchdog says it will release results from its investigations in English and Inuktitut when they are ready — and no sooner. The Bureau des enquêtes indépendantes was responding to calls for change at the agency issued this week by Kativik Regional Government and Makivvik after the second police-involved shooting death in the region in six months. Kativik Regional Government demanded in a May 9 statement the Bureau, which investigates incidents in which civilians are seriously injured during contact with police, accelerate the speed of its investigations. It also called for reform of the way the provincial government organization carries out its investigations, for it to hold public meetings in affected communities, publish its findings in Inuktitut, and commit to...
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Eskasoni woman goes from Mi’kmaq warrior to Mi’kmaq lawyer
By Rosemary Godin, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Cape Breton Post She’s still fierce. It’s more than ten years later, and Suzanne Patles’ demeanour is a little more mellow, but when she looks at you with those grey-green eyes you know you wouldn’t want her facing you in the courtroom. This is a woman who has gone from Mi’kmaq Warrior and on the RCMP “threat list” in 2014 to graduating from Dalhousie School of Law later this month. And not only graduate but with the honour of being the 2025 recipient of the coveted Donald Marshall Jr. Memorial Award from the Schulich School of Law. “I’m interested in seeing what kind of impact I can make within the legal system,” says Patles speaking from her home community of Eskasoni. “I knew...
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Commission report recommends Canada Post phase out daily door-to-door mail delivery
The Industrial Inquiry Commission report on the labour dispute at Canada Post recommends phasing out daily door-to-door letter mail delivery for individual addresses, while daily delivery to businesses should be maintained. It also says the moratoriums on rural post office closures and community mailbox conversions should be lifted. “My recommendations are based on my conclusion that there is a way to preserve Canada Post as a vital national institution,” commissioner William Kaplan wrote in the report released Friday. “I have designed them to respond to the present problem: to arrest and then reverse the growing financial losses by putting into place the necessary structural changes both within and outside the collective agreements.” The report was called for after Ottawa asked the federal labour board to send postal employees back to...
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Northern local government conference highlights climate action, housing, and reconciliation
By Radha Agarwal, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Prince Rupert Northern View The second day of the North Central Local Government Association (NCLGA) conference spotlighted the Nisga’a Nation’s pioneering efforts in climate adaptation, sustainable housing, and reconciliation through projects in partnership with the Community Energy Association (CEA). The May 14 plenary session featured a presentation by Gaëtane Carignan, who works in climate leadership and energy retrofits at CEA (a non-profit society), and Kaitlyn Robinson, climate coordinator with the Nisga’a Lisims Government. Participants are undertaking an ambitious housing energy retrofitting initiative in the Nisga’a Nation, aiming to renovate approximately 900 homes across four villages located in northwestern British Columbia. Robinson explains that housing needs in her Nation are extremely urgent, with a large number of homes facing serious structural issues such as...
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Alberta legislature adjourns after passing 19 bills, both parties lose caucus members
By Jack Farrell and Lisa Johnson The spring sitting of Alberta’s legislature began under the cloud of a health-care contract corruption scandal and ended with a firestorm of renewed separatist angst. The sitting, which wrapped late Wednesday, saw Premier Danielle Smith’s United Conservative government pass 19 pieces of legislation. Included were bills to lower the bar for citizen-initiated referendums to take place, force those suffering from addiction into treatment without consent and to set the stage for a provincial police force. Also passed was legislation to regulate online gambling, overhaul the provincial auto insurance scheme to something similar to a no-fault system, and strip municipal councils from having codes of conduct. Smith’s government also passed a budget that delivers a long-promised tax cut while forecasting a $5.2-billion deficit, which might...
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First Nations in B.C. want New Democrats to kill fast-track bills
By Wolfgang Depner First Nations leaders are calling on Premier David Eby to immediately “kill” two pieces of legislation that would fast-track projects in response to U.S. government tariffs. The statement from the First Nations Leadership Council comes after Premier David Eby met with leaders, who say they are “deeply disappointed” that he rejected their quest to withdraw the two bills. Bill 14 is aimed at streamlining permitting for renewable energy projects, such as wind farms, while Bill 15 would accelerate public and private infrastructure projects. Grand Chief Stewart Phillip of the Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs says the government is asking them to trust that it won’t misuse the powers the bills provide, but its unclear what the trust would be based on because it failed to adequately...
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Onion Lake Cree Nation to proceed with its legal challenge of Alberta sovereignty act
By Lisa Johnson Alberta’s bill lowering the bar for a separation referendum has spurred a First Nation to push ahead with a legal challenge against the premier’s flagship sovereignty act. Danielle Smith has said her Alberta Sovereignty Within a United Canada Act is needed to push back on what the province believes is unconstitutional federal encroachment into provincial jurisdiction. But Onion Lake Cree Nation Chief Henry Lewis said that law has always been about undermining federal authority and asserting provincial control, which goes against his community’s Treaty 6 relationship with the Crown. “I want to respectfully remind the premier that this land that we stand on today is treaty land and is not yours to take or make sweeping decisions about,” he said at a news conference in Edmonton on...
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Reshaping a B.C. court to include Indigenous values
By Nora O’Malley, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Ha-Shilth-Sa Tofino, B.C. – Direct efforts are underway to address the distrust and problematic history First Nations face within Canada’s justice system. At the beginning of May, Tofino Provincial Court was relocated from the Tofino Community Hall to the Tin Wis Conference Centre on Tla-o-qui-aht-First Nations traditional territory. Court will continue to be held at this new location on Tla-o-qui-aht land for the next few years. Tin Wis is the former site of Christie Indian Residential School. “It used to be the gymnasium of the residential school. It holds a lot of significance,” said Tla-o-qui-aht Justice Manager Curtis Joseph (Tayiisimčił). Members of the newly formed Tla-o-qui-aht Justice Committee will also be present during the sentencing process to ensure community members are represented –...
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Hudson’s Bay to sell name, stripes, brands to Canadian Tire for $30 million
By Tara Deschamps Hudson’s Bay is getting a second life with a new owner — Canadian Tire Corp. Ltd. Canadian Tire said Thursday that it will pay $30 million for intellectual property belonging to the retailer, which is Canada’s oldest company. The sale includes the overarching Hudson’s Bay brand, its iconic, multicoloured stripes motif, its coat of arms and other brand trademarks. The deal allows products under these names to be sold by Canadian Tire, which also owns SportChek, Party City, Mark’s and Pro Hockey Life, at their 1,700 stores. The exchange includes houseware brands Gluckstein and Distinctly Home, as well as apparel line Hudson North, said a source familiar with the deal, who is not being named because they were unauthorized to speak about it. Canadian Tire CEO Greg...
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