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Indigenous Relations & Reconciliation

Indigenous Children platforms

Here's what the 2021 Canadian election parties are promising.

Liberal

  • Ensure First Nations youth who reach the age of majority receive the supports they need for up to 2 additional years.
  • Implement orders of the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal.
  • Work with Indigenous partners to ensure compensation for those harmed by the First Nations Child & Family Services program.
  • Fully fund Jordan's Principle & Inuit Child First Initiative.
  • Fund needs of Métis children.

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Continue to fully implement the Act Respecting First Nations, Inuit, and Métis Children, Youth and Families and continue to support communities looking to lift up jurisdiction over child and family services.

Continue to reform child and family services in Indigenous communities.

Continue to work with Indigenous communities to help children and families stay together.

Permanently ensure that First Nations youth who reach the age of majority receive the supports they need for up to two additional years and implement the orders of the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal.

Forward. For Everyone., retrieved 2021-09-02

Continue to work with Indigenous partners to ensure fair and equitable compensation for those harmed by the First Nations Child and Family Services program.

Forward. For Everyone., retrieved 2021-09-02

Move forward on building an Indigenous Early Learning and Child Care system that meets the needs of Indigenous families, wherever they live.

Ensure more Indigenous families have access to high-quality programming.

Create 3,300 new spaces.

Invest in Aboriginal Head Start in Urban and Northern communities.

Continue to support before and after school care for First Nations children on reserve.

Forward. For Everyone., retrieved 2021-09-02

Continue to fully fund Jordan’s Principle.

Continue to fully fund Inuit Child First Initiative.

Continue to work with the Métis Nation to fund the unique needs of Métis children.

Forward. For Everyone., retrieved 2021-09-02

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We don't have any Conservative policies on Indigenous Children.
We don't have any Bloc policies on Indigenous Children.

NDP

  • Immediately take action to respect, support, & resource Indigenous jurisdiction over child welfare systems, backed up with long-term, predictable funding guaranteed in legislation.
  • Fully implement Canadian Human Rights Tribunal orders on funding of child welfare services on reserve.
  • Implement the Spirit Bear Plan.
  • Stop litigation against Indigenous children.
  • Fully implement Jordan's Principle.

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Indigenous children and young people have the right to culture, language and to be raised in their own communities – all of which are vital to overall well-being. By implementing the United Nations Declaration, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s 94 Calls to Action and supporting self-determination, New Democrats will make sure that all First Nations, Inuit, and Métis children, young people and families are treated with the justice, respect and care that they deserve.

New Democrats will take immediate action to respect, support and resource Indigenous jurisdiction over child welfare systems, and will back this commitment with long-term, predictable funding guaranteed in legislation so that Indigenous peoples can exercise their jurisdiction and authority over matters involving their own children and families.

We also commit to ending discrimination against Indigenous children, young people and families by fully implementing the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal orders which ordered the Canadian government to stop chronically underfunding child welfare services on reserve, and working with the First Nations Child and Family Caring Society to implement the Spirit Bear Plan. We will put an immediate end to government litigation against Indigenous children.

A New Democrat government will also fully implement Jordan’s Principle, working with the provinces and territories to end the delays and ensure equitable access to health services and educational supports for Indigenous children from coast to coast to coast. We’ll end the court challenge and ensure that Jordan’s Principle applies to children off-reserve. And we will create a Spirit Bear Day to promote awareness of Jordan's Principle and of the challenges faced by First Nations children when accessing government services.

Ready for Better, retrieved 2021-08-27

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Green

  • Recognise that Indigenous children in residential schools have been replaced by Indigenous children in foster care.
  • Stop fighting the Human Rights Tribunal Orders regarding compensation for child & family victims.
  • Ensure non-status First Nations' children living off-reserve have access to Jordan's Principle.
  • Adopt recommendations on funding for First Nations Child & Family Services from the Institute for Fiscal Studies & Democracy's 2020 report.

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● Recognize that Indigenous children in residential schools have been replaced by Indigenous children in foster care; Indigenous children account for 7.7 per cent of children in Canada, but 52.2 percent of children in care;

● Stop fighting the Canada’s Human Rights Tribunal orders requiring the government to compensate the child and family victims of Canada’s discrimination; and ensure non-status First Nations’ children living off reserve have access to Jordan’s Principle.

Be Daring., retrieved 2021-09-11

6. Adopt recommendations on funding for First Nations Child and Family Services from the Institute for Fiscal Studies and Democracy’s 2020 report.

● Adopt a results framework for the well-being of children, families, and communities, such as the Measuring to Thrive framework proposed in the report.

● Budget for results with a block funding approach 13 that addresses gaps and is linked to the results framework.

○ Undertake a full assessment of current capital stock.

● Establish a non-political First Nations policy and practice secretariat to support First Nations and First Nations Child and Family Services (FNCFS) agencies to transition to First Nations governance.

● Establish a group of FNCFS agencies and First Nations willing to be early adopters of the new performance and funding approach to model implementation.

Be Daring., retrieved 2021-09-11

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Looking for the parties' positions on other topics?

See our full 2021 Canadian election platform comparison