DRIPA won’t be amended or suspended this legislative sitting after all. That’s the latest word from Premier David Eby on the matter this week in what’s been a rollercoaster couple of months for the first-of-its-kind Indigenous rights act.
At first, Premier David Eby said amending the act was non-negotiable. That came after the Gitxaala ruling last December, which found the Province’s mineral tenure system was inconsistent with DRIPA. Eby said at the time, that the precedent the ruling set had opened the flood gates for all BC laws pre-dating DRIPA to be appealed.
When that ambition was met with unanimous opposition from First Nations, Premier Eby decided to suspend sections of DRIPA instead, initially pursuing the measure as a confidence vote. But, the First Nations Leadership Council called that bluff, saying it was not different than an amendment.
After members of his own party opposed the move, and following last minute talks with First Nations Leaders over the weekend, Eby had officially backed down from the pause plan this past Sunday. Now, Eby says he’ll work with the First Nations Leadership Council to find a different route which upholds Indigenous rights, while addressing legal concerns.
How the legislation will look isn’t clear, but it won’t come until the opening of the next legislative sitting in October.
This article incorporates files from CFNR’s Jeff Blagden
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