NDP

Commons could soon pass legislation to study environmental racism

Commons could soon pass legislation to study environmental racism

The House of Commons is close to adopting Canada's first-ever legislation on environmental racism — environmental hazards that disproportionately affect Indigenous, Black and other racialized communities. Bill C-226 comes up for a vote today and is expected eventually to pass through the House of Commons with the support of the Liberals, the NDP and the Green Party. Those parties hope the bill can be fast-tracked through unanimous consent and bypass several procedural hoops. That's not likely without the support of the two other opposition parties.

NDP prepared to withhold votes in Parliament, including on the Liberal budget: Singh

NDP prepared to withhold votes in Parliament, including on the Liberal budget: Singh

The "concrete action" Singh is demanding includes guaranteed paid sick leave for workers and a halt to clawbacks of financial supports for low-income pensioners who collected pandemic benefits. Ensuring Indigenous communities have clean, safe drinking water is another priority.

Jagmeet Singh to prioritize Indigenous rights during NDP caucus meeting

Jagmeet Singh to prioritize Indigenous rights during NDP caucus meeting

Jagmeet Singh is to tell the first meeting of the NDP caucus that pursuing Indigenous rights including access to clean drinking water will be a key priority for the party in this Parliament. The first meeting of all New Democrat MPs since the election will take place in Ottawa on Wednesday afternoon. Five new MPs will be introduced at the caucus meeting, including Blake Desjarlais, a two-spirit Metis leader, who defeated the sitting Tory in Edmonton Griesbach. The NDP returned 25 MPs one more than last time and was the only major party to increase its share of the vote.

BARRIE-INNISFIL: Q-and-A with NDP candidate Aleesha Gostkowski

BARRIE-INNISFIL: Q-and-A with NDP candidate Aleesha Gostkowski

3. We are a rich country in many ways, but many Indigenous reserves still don't have clean drinking water. The tragedy of residential schools has ripped open the hurt and trauma many of our Indigenous families have felt for generations. Many of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission recommendations remain unheeded. How would you address these issues and help heal these wounds? As Jagmeet Singh previously stated, we wouldn't be asking this if it were Toronto or Vancouver that didn't have clean drinking water. The plan is to provide clean drinking water to reserves, there should be no hesitation. It is not enough to just simply provide water treatment plants either, we need to think long term. For example, my cousin lives near Tsiigehtchic, which has a water treatment plant, but every eight months the plant needs maintenance which nobody in the community knows how to do. We should be investing in training operators, preventative maintenance, and upkeep. I understand that there isn’t a blanket solution for clean drinking water on reserves but if we prioritize this issue we can get it done. All people who live in Canada deserve access to clean drinking water.

Singh hopes to build momentum on tour of Indigenous communities

Singh hopes to build momentum on tour of Indigenous communities

When the evacuation of Neskantaga First Nation due to tainted water made international headlines last fall, then-chief Chris Moonias encouraged the prime minister and other federal politicians to visit the remote northwestern Ontario community to see for themselves how people live under Canada's longest on-reserve boil water advisory. On Monday, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh became the first federal leader to take up Moonias's invitation during a tour of Indigenous communities.

Affordable housing, universal access to clean water among topics addressed during NDP town hall

Affordable housing, universal access to clean water among topics addressed during NDP town hall

With ongoing boil water advisories in more than 100 communities across the country, Angus said the federal government’s “blanket approach” just isn’t working, and that each community needs to be looked at independently. “For example Attawapiskat, they’re getting their water from a stagnant water pool. I don’t care how much chemicals you pour into that stagnant water, it’s not going to be safe water. Why are we not looking at getting water from a clean source? In Northern Ontario, we have multiple clean water sources. It just means the government has to spend a little more money, put the pipes a little further.”

Ottawa to probe contractors hired to fix longest-standing boil water advisory

Ottawa to probe contractors hired to fix longest-standing boil water advisory

Indigenous Services Minister Marc Miller is preparing to launch a third-party investigation into the business practices of consultants and engineering companies hired to end Canada's longest-standing boil water advisory — a probe that could extend to other communities, CBC News has learned. "The problem is we have a system for delivering infrastructure that always goes with the lowest bidder," Angus said. "When you have a big-ticket item, like a water plant that's very expensive to build in a community, costs and corners get cut and that's the danger. Neskantaga has been a nightmare situation."