Push to make public First Nations views

Nathan Cullen, Skeena-Bulkley Valley MP, is calling for a report presented to the Prime Minister in June to be made public. In spring, the government directed Douglas Eyford, as the special federal representative on west coast energy infrastructure, to engage with First Nations in northern B.C. and Alberta on their views regarding future resource development. “To hide (what he found) and make it inaccessible to Canadians just further builds the cynicism,” Cullen said during a news conference. Natural Resources Minister Joe Oliver said keeping the report private is the only way the process could be conducted fairly. Cullen says the secrecy from the federal government could be because the feedback Eyford is receiving is negative. Eyford’s appointment was met with criticism. Said Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation Chief Allan Adam in an earlier interview with Sweetgrass, “And where does the Prime Minister sit? He doesn’t sit at the interests of the First Nations people. It’s pretty obvious at this point.”