Overview
- Confidential briefing notes dated Sept. 10 that were published in mid‑October revealed a proposal to transfer about 400 Crown land parcels to First Nations and to change how the province pays forestry tenure holders.
- David Eby and NDP campaign spokespeople say the measure was a draft intended to lower the fiscal cost of completing treaty and reconciliation commitments and that cabinet authorized stakeholder engagement in July.
- The draft would limit compensation to tenured forest companies and set a threshold under which holders would receive no payout if less than five per cent of their logging rights were taken.
- Forest industry leaders and opposition politicians condemned the secrecy and warned the proposal could put company assets and jobs at risk after firms were shown the plan only under non‑disclosure agreements.
- The plan was paused when the snap election was called and the controversy has turned the leak into a central campaign issue tied to debates over DRIPA, property protections and how the province balances reconciliation with fiscal constraints.