Federal Minister Responds to Premiers’ Objections Over His Comments on Natural Resource Rights

Justice Minister David Lametti prepares to appear before the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights in Ottawa on March 6, 2023. (The Canadian Press/Justin Tang)

Federal Justice Minister and Attorney General David Lametti has responded to objections from the premiers of Alberta and Saskatchewan regarding comments he made about historical natural resources agreements with the Prairie provinces.

Lametti told the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) Special Chiefs Assembly in Ottawa on April 5 that he would “commit to looking at” the 1930 natural resources transfer agreements in place with Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and Alberta after one indigenous chief called for the act to be rescinded and another said resources were given to the provinces without consulting with indigenous communities.

The justice minister’s comments prompted a swift response from Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on April 10. Moe called Lametti’s comments “outrageous and ill-informed” and said his province would be “relentless” in defending its jurisdiction and autonomy.

Smith said any attempt by the federal government to rescind the natural resources agreement “would pose an unprecedented risk to national unity” and called for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to immediately have his justice minister “retract and apologize for these comments.”

In a statement late in the evening on April 10, Lametti said that, as the minister responsible for implementing the United Nations Declaration Act (UNDA) into federal laws and policies, it was part of his job to meet with First Nations leaders and listen to their comments.

“Amongst the many questions I was asked, the Natural Resources Transfer Act was raised by First Nations Chiefs on a couple of occasions,” Lametti wrote.

“It is part of my job to listen to those concerns. To be clear, at no point did I commit our government to reviewing areas of provincial jurisdiction, including that over natural resources,” the justice minister stated.

Lametti said the focus of the federal government is to “co-develop an action plan with Indigenous partners that will show the path we must take towards aligning federal laws and policies with UNDRIP.”

Comments

At the Ottawa meeting with the AFN, Grand Chief Brian Hardlotte from Prince Albert Grand Council asked Lametti to “rescind the act, the Natural Resource Transfer Act, that affects the provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta. That’s what we’re asking you, minister, as an action item with a statement. It affects our treaty rights, of course, under the Sask. First Act, that we hear about. And it’s to do with natural resources, Indian natural resources.”

Chief Don Maracle of the Council of the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte said: “Canada exports natural resources to other countries. They earn trillions of dollars in revenues from those resources. Those resources were given to the provinces, without ever asking one Indian if it was OK to do that, or what benefits the First Nations expect to receive by Canada consenting to that arrangement.”

In response, Lametti said: “I take from Chief Brian and Chief Don Maracle the point about the Natural Resources Transfer Agreement. … You’re on the record for that. I obviously can’t pronounce on that right now, but I do commit to looking at that.”

“It won’t be uncontroversial, is the only thing I would say, with a bit of a smile,” he added.

The natural resources transfer agreements give constitutional control over respective natural resources to the three Prairie provinces—Saskatchewan, Alberta, and Manitoba.

Moe said on social media on April 10 that the agreements and the provinces’ control over natural resources have been entrenched in the Canadian Constitution since 1930.

“On what basis does the federal Justice Minister think he has the authority to unilaterally strip Saskatchewan and the other western provinces of our constitutional authority over our natural resources?” he said.

Reacting to Moe’s tweet, Smith tweeted on April 10, “Alberta condemns this federal threat in the strongest possible terms.”

Moe, Smith, along with Manitoba Premier Heather Stefanson issued a joint statement on April 11 demanding that the prime minister “needs to immediately retract these dangerous and divisive comments by his justice minister.”