B.C. Conservative Leader John Rustad said Indigenous title rights and private property rights cannot co-exist with private property rights.
Rustad delivered a speech Thursday to local government leaders and officials gathered in Victoria for the Union of B.C. Municipalities (UBCM) convention.
He said a Conservative government would aim to repeal the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act, in favour of policies that focus on economic reconciliation.
“I believe very strongly that it’s long past time First Nations fully engage in the economy and have the opportunity to benefit,” said Rustad, who previously served as minister of Aboriginal relations and reconciliation in former premier Christy Clark’s cabinet.
“But it has to be so that all people in the British Columbia see the benefits that come together so that it can be truly for reconciliation and not done with friction,” said Rustad.
He said the recent B.C. Supreme Court decision in the Cowichan Tribes v Canada case is going to be a “huge problem” for communities across the province.
In an Aug. 7 ruling, the court found the Cowichan have Aboriginal title to the lands at their Tl’uqtinus village site in Richmond and the right to fish the south arm of the Fraser River.
The B.C. Conservatives are urging Ottawa to submit a reference question on the ruling to the Supreme Court of Canada.
The court’s response to a reference question would be a non-binding advisory opinion.
“The issue is that private property rights are not protected by our constitution, but indigenous rights for title are,” said Rustad.
“It doesn’t mean there isn’t a negotiation and compensation, but the two cannot co-exist,” he said. “We need to know from the Supreme Court of Canada what that answer is.”
The B.C. government has said it will appeal the decision. Other opponents have also filed notices of appeal, including the Musqueam Indian Band and the City of Richmond.
David Rosenburg, who served as senior legal counsel to the Cowichan Nation, outlined the case for UBCM delegates Thursday afternoon.
“This case was never about challenging fee simple with respect to privately owned land. The case was brought against the Crown for the return of public lands that were wrongfully taken from the Cowichan,” said Rosenburg.
Adam Olsen, former B.C. Green MLA for Saanich North and the Islands and current lead negotiator for the Tsartlip First Nation, said the issue needs to be “depoliticized.”
“This is not a political issue as much as it’s a legal issue in this province,” said Olsen. “My hope is that the leader of the official Opposition comes around and publicly acknowledges that Aboriginal rights and title and private property rights co-exist in this province.”
Olsen said Rustad’s vow to repeal DRIPA is “dangerous.”
“That’s political messaging that does not serve the future of this province in any way whatsoever,” he said.
Rustad also told delegates a B.C. Conservative government would establish a $1-billion annual fund for water and sewer infrastructure and dismantle Metro Vancouver to create a regional water and sewage utility for municipalities.
His speech steered clear of mental health, addiction and bail reform – issues that have dominated discussions at this year’s UBCM gathering.
“[Rustad] spent virtually no time talking about what municipalities said was their most pressing issue, literally killing people on the streets of their communities,” Surrey-Cloverdale MLA Elenore Sturko told reporters Thursday afternoon.
Sturko was booted from the Conservative caucus earlier this week and now sits as an Independent.
“That is not good leadership, that is not a strong opposition,” said Sturko.
