Overview
- Delegates at the Winnipeg assembly failed to reach the 60% threshold on a resolution that sought to include First Nations infrastructure ventures in the national projects agenda and to authorize AFN interventions in related lawsuits.
- Many chiefs maintain Bill C-5 risks bypassing the Crown’s duty to consult and insist national‑interest projects will not proceed without meaningful First Nations participation.
- Several Alberta chiefs warned in a letter that AFN has no mandate to interpret or represent Treaties, arguing proposed resolutions could erode individual Nations’ jurisdiction.
- AFN has asked Ottawa for $800 million over two years to fund a First Nations review of designated projects as part of its pre‑budget priorities.
- The federal government is standing up a Major Projects Office with an Indigenous advisory council, with officials saying the council will be announced next week, while Manitoba is exploring a Crown‑Indigenous corporation model for project frameworks.