"Carney's 'nation-building' projects bill passes into law — but not without Indigenous pushback", 26 June 2025

The Senate passed Prime Minister Mark Carney's landmark 'nation-building' projects bill unamended Thursday, giving the federal government extraordinary new powers to fast-track initiatives that have the potential to boost the economy as Canada grapples with the U.S. trade war.

Carney's cabinet can now streamline the approvals process by allowing some projects to bypass provisions of federal laws like the Impact Assessment Act, which has long been criticized as a hindrance to getting things approved in a timely manner.

...Carney has signalled it could be used to greenlight new energy "corridors" in the east and west, including possible pipelines and electricity grids, new and expanded port facilities, mines and other resource-related initiatives...

While the bill was approved by members of the upper house, some senators strenuously opposed it, most of them citing Indigenous rights as the reason. Some members proposed amendments that would have delayed the bill's passage if adopted, but all were voted down.

The legislation itself states the government will recognize, affirm and "respect" Indigenous Peoples' constitutional rights when considering a project to fast-track.

But there's a fear among some leaders that the consultation process with First Nations, Métis and Inuit communities will be inadequate given Carney campaigned on making final decisions within a two-year timeline. These leaders want protections for what's called "free, prior and informed consent" in the Indigenous legal sphere.

Paul Prosper, a Mi'kmaw senator from Nova Scotia, led the charge against the legislation in a speech to the chamber Thursday, quoting other First Nations leaders who called C-5 "not reconciliation" but a "betrayal of it."

While saying he generally supports development, Prosper said he didn't want to quickly pass a bill that has been panned by some Indigenous leaders as the product of inadequate consultation with affected communities.