Mr. Speaker, on April 1, 1992, the special committee on constitutional reform tabled an interim
report which outlined a multilateral negotiation process involving constitutional Ministers and leaders from the federal, provincial and territorial governments and the four national aboriginal organizations. The objective of the multilateral meetings on the constitution was to produce the best efforts on a constitutional reform package based upon reports prepared by governments and aboriginal organizations. The package would provide Quebec and all other participants in what has been termed the "Canada round" with a comprehensive approach to national constitutional reform.
Mr. Speaker, the special committee's April 1 interim report also included five principles and objectives which would guide our delegation in the negotiation process. They included: 1) ensuring territorial participation in public and private meetings and conferences on constitutional, economic and aboriginal matters; 2) constitutional entrenchment of an inherent right to aboriginal self-government; 3) changing the amending formula to return responsibility for the creation of new provinces to Parliament; 4) territorial recognition and participation in Canadian economic union proposals and mechanisms for decentralization of the federation; 5) territorial participation in Supreme Court nominations and a reformed Senate.
The multilateral process included 22 days of meetings from March 12 to June 11. With one exception, I represented the special committee at all of the sessions. I want to acknowledge and commend Mr. Gargan, Mr. Lewis, Mrs. Marie-Jewell and Mr. Bernhardt for their capable assistance during the last four meetings.
Mr. Speaker, on June 12 federal Constitutional Affairs Minister Clark, who also chaired the sessions, announced that while negotiations had produced some significant agreements, the process should be concluded, in part, because of fundamental differences over Senate reform. I cannot yet report to the House on what the next step in the process will be, although I expect there could be a decision sometime this week on whether another multilateral process or a First Ministers' conference should be convened. Another option the federal government is considering would involve proceeding unilaterally with their own constitutional reform package.
The special committee's report outlines our participation in the process and the agreements which were reached on territorial principles and objectives. At the end of my presentation today, I will move that the report be considered in committee of the whole.
I want to say on behalf of all my colleagues that the agreements reached through the MMC represent a significant achievement and further progress toward the realization of aboriginal and territorial constitutional objectives which our government, Legislature and aboriginal organizations have been working on for the last decade.
For example, the process produced agreements to entrench the inherent right to aboriginal self-government and also to return the authority for creation of new provinces to parliament and to recognize a role for territorial institutions in future constitutional reform initiatives. The special committee's report will provide further details on these achievements. However, the process is far from complete. Outstanding issues include Senate reform, Quebec's response to the proposals and their veto over changes to national institutions. These remain to be addressed before this phase of the Canada round is complete.
To be blunt, the potential still exists for these achievements to be modified or removed from the final constitutional reform package. Given these circumstances, the special committee remains committed to representing this House and northern residents for the remainder of the process.
In conclusion, Mr. Speaker, I want to state for the record the special committee's appreciation for the significant contribution which northern residents have made to the national reform process. These leaders include: Rosemary Kuptana, the president of the Inuit Tapirisat of Canada; the head of the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation, Roger Gruben, chairman; Mary Simon, the chairman of the Inuit Circumpolar Conference; John Amagoalik, negotiator with the Inuit Tapirisat of Canada; and the president of the Metis Nation, Gary Bohnet, and his advisor, Rick Hardy. Their presence at the negotiating table, I believe, contributed significantly to the northern and aboriginal achievements in the process.
I also want to acknowledge the dedicated service by officials from my office from Intergovernmental and Aboriginal Affairs, from the Department of Justice and the Department of Finance over the last three months. Thank you.
Motion To Move Committee Report 10-12(2) To Committee Of The Whole, Carried
Mr. Speaker, I move, seconded by the honourable Member for Yellowknife Centre, that the report of the special committee on constitutional reform on multilateral conferences on the constitution be received and moved into committee of the whole.