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It says inadequate access to clean drinking water continues to pose a major health threat which continues to impede the advancement of Indigenous rights in Canada, "one of the world's most water-rich countries." The report also says Canada is a top G7 greenhouse gas emitter, and says it is the world's top financier of fossil fuel producers. "Canada is contributing to the climate crisis taking a growing toll on human rights around the globe," the report says.
In previous elections, the Liberals promised they’d end long-term boil-water advisories. Those are advisories that have been in place for more than a year and that warn residents to boil water for at least a minute before drinking it or using it to cook. Now, the Liberal Party is promising they’ll finish the job they didn’t get done in previous terms in Parliament. In the platform, they say they’ll make “any investments necessary to eliminate all remaining advisories.” That promise doesn’t specify that they’d have to be long-term drinking water advisories — which is something that appeals to one advocate.
The Trudeau government can say, if re-elected, that it’s pouring massive amounts of taxpayer money into Indigenous issues. What Canadians can’t be sure of is to what extent this new spending will improve the lives of Canada’s 1.7 million First Nations, Metis and Inuit people. In her April budget, Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland, announced a “historic new investment of over $18 billion over the next five years to improve the quality of life and create new opportunities for people living in Indigenous communities.” Spending this fiscal year will be $24.5 billion — 87% above what her budget described as the “historical growth rate” for Indigenous issues. That’s a reference to the 2% annual increase in base funding set by former Liberal prime minister Jean Chretien in 1995.
