First Nations leaders gather in Prince Albert during a conference on the NRTA in 2019. (Nigel Maxwell/paNOW Staff)

By Derek Craddock

‘A better path forward’: What’s next for First Nations as the debate on the NRTA continues

Apr 16, 2023 | 8:00 AM

The debates over the Natural Resources Transfer Agreements (NRTA) won’t go away anytime soon, according to a First Nations lawyer.

Last week saw the federal and provincial governments battle over comments made by the Federal Justice Minister over the NRTA.

David Lametti was asked by First Nations leaders whether he can rescind the agreements to which he answered he could look into the NRTA.

Provincial leaders in Saskatchewan, Alberta, and Manitoba have criticized the answer but Lametti and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau acknowledge that rescinding the NRTA was never in the cards.

But what about First Nations communities and leaders who believe the agreements have brought more pain than good for them over the years?

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“It’s been a long-standing concern with the NRTA,” said Kate Gunn, a partner with First Peoples Law. “My impression is that the comments from the minister are welcome.”

The question on the NRTA was originally asked by PAGC Grand Chief Brian Hardlotte who broached the topic so that Indigenous people could have a voice on the issue.

READ MORE: What is the NRTA, and can the government change or scrap it?

Hardlotte and the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations (FSIN) have been calling for their voices to be heard on the NRTA, saying it infringes on Treaty rights.

“The NRTA has been really seen as a violation of the Treaty relationships,” said Gunn “They entered into Treaties on the understanding that they were confirming an agreement to live peacefully and co-exist and then with the introduction of the NRTA, it really changes the script and places so much control over resources and in the hands of the provincial government.”

Gunn said that rather than governments asserting their authority over natural resources, all parties involved need to have a serious conversation about them.

“There does need to be a meaningful conversation about the NRTA both in terms of what it is and what it says and then also how it’s been interpreted and applied by the courts,” she said. “I think that’s a conversation that would involve Indigenous communities and that there’s really important space there for the federal government as well as the province’s.”

Despite the federal government saying the NRTA will not be rescinded, Gunn said the discussions will not go away anytime.

“I think a better path forward would be to really sit down and work with the Indigenous treaty parties and the federal Crown to understand and find a better path forward.”

READ MORE: First Nations leaders renew call for share of resource revenues

The NRTA was signed by the federal government and the provinces in 1930 and gave control of natural resources to the prairie provinces.

The agreement is enshrined in the Constitution and Gunn along with Constitutional lawyers acknowledge the process to amend the Constitution is nearly impossible.

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derek.craddock@pattisonmedia.com

Twitter: @princealbertnow