A B.C. politician is calling for the attorney general to step in after Premier David Eby backed down again on the pausing of key parts of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (DRIPA), scrapping plans to table a suspension bill this legislative session.
“I am at a bit of a loss, and I think all British Colombians are, is that we have a premier that has lost control,” BC Conservative interim leader Trevor Halford told Global News on Monday.
“And I actually can’t even tell you who’s leading this province right now because clearly it’s not him. So for us, you know, we’ll be ready to debate any legislation that comes forward. But you know the problem is he’s going into one room saying one thing, going into another and saying another.”
Halford asked if Attorney General Niki Sharma is prepared to step in at this point.
“We’ve got a premier who said that there’s 20 cases before the courts right now, that decisions can come at any time, extreme legal liabilities, and yet he is he’s running for cover right now,” Halford said.
Eby said on Monday that this pause is crucial to getting the next steps right.
“I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the support both in and outside of caucus from people who want to help us get this right because it is crucial that we do get it right, providing certainty for British Columbians, for industry, providing a path forward to deal with long-standing social issues and injustices in our province,” he said.
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On Sunday, the premier’s office said in a brief statement that it “can confirm that the government will not be introducing legislation on DRIPA during this session.”
Initially, legislation to suspend parts of the DRIPA was set to be tabled this week.
It follows an open letter sent to B.C. MLAs by the First Nations Leadership Council, the First Nations Summit, the Union of BC Indian Chiefs and the BC Assembly of First Nations, laying out pushback had the bill be introduced.
“Any attempt to interfere with the courts’ role, and First Nations’ access to justice, will be met with collective resistance from First Nations and allies across the province,” the letter reads.
DRIPA has been at the heart of several B.C. court rulings on mineral and land rights and Eby has previously said that those decisions have put the province at risk of litigation.
In a statement, the BC Green Party said it presented Sharma last week with a “constructive path forward on its advancement” when it comes to DRIPA.
“The Government has spent months avoiding and delaying good faith negotiations with First Nations. We hope that they have now realized that the only path forward is active reconciliation, as defined in legislation,” BC Green House Leader Rob Botterell, MLA for Saanich North and the Islands said in a statement.
“The problem isn’t DRIPA. The problem is the government’s failure to implement DRIPA. We provided a constructive plan to resolve tension, increase certainty, and advance DRIPA to the government.”
BC Green Leader Emily Lowan said Eby should be taken off the reconciliation file.
“Premier Eby bears full responsibility for the social and economic disruption of attempting to weaken the rights of Indigenous people,” Lowan stated in the release.
“The spineless waffling week by week is not leadership. It has undermined trust in government and weakened the foundation reconciliation requires. The Premier has fomented misinformation and allowed hate to spread. The government has a long road to repair that.”
Eby’s government and First Nations leadership plan to work together on a solution over the summer.
And to the people in this comments section who think First Nations want to push people off their land, don’t give in to the conservative propaganda. In thr Haida recognition agreement, municipalities remain, school boards etc… tbis is about governance, at a higher level than municipalities, that’s it. The Musqueam reconciliation agreement prevents more Cowichan type decisions which costs tax payers millions to backstop mortgages, because it provides certainty. And the Musqueam deal didn’t even transfer/ recognized any lands to do so in the process. Read those links in my prior comment for more information
Sorry boss you missed the point…the controversy is giving the land back to those who were here first…if we all moved to Italy…the Italians would be mad…
Just because you are Chinese, South Asian, Japanese etc doesn’t mean you weren’t born in Canada..we are NOT all white..we are ALL Canadian 😊
Doesn’t matter what race you are, we all live here and are CANADIAN citizens, no matter where our origin is…
Lol…not to go down the rabbit hole…but the Chinese people are from China…different continent. Not relevant…either are the French, English, Germans, Italians, Filipinos, Australians, Greeks , Austrian, Swedes etc .etc etc…lol
I am a VERY concerned B.C resident! How on earth can 5 or maybe 10% of the population cause so much uncertainty? I understand the past/present pain of the Indigenous, but what about the Chinese , every race and even Causaion population that suffer pain? Why is it ONLY the Indigenous population that gets a payout and CONTINUOUS support? This province was once one of the best provinces to live and work in! If the Indigenous are so important, so is the rest of the population! We should ALL be treated as equals..we have given reconciliation and now it needs to END! EVERYONE needs to get along and move forward, one needs to let go of the past and reach higher to overcome and GO FORWARD, holding onto the past keeps you there.. my family from 75 years ago were alcoholics, they shaped generations, but that stopped 30 years ago because we made a change..if they want to ,they can as well! If they want more,let them self govern and no more from Provincial or Federal government as this is going to bankrupt Beautiful British Columbia! We ARE ALL EQUALS! NO RACE SHOULD GET SPECIAL TREATMENT! WE ARE ALL SUFFERING AND WOUNDED IN ONE WAY OR ANOTHER! RECONCILIATION WAS MET AND SHOULD BE DONE! GOD LOVES EVERYONE EQUALLY! WHY DON’T WE? GODBLESS!
Oh no whiteys aren’t getting their own way. Even worse a bunch of overpaid racist politicians aren’t getting their own way. Such a sad f**king story. Better start ordering extra boxes of tissues because you’re going to need them 😢😢
Bc resident #2… great to criticize but what’s the solution? Liberals don’t exist and conservatives believe the earth is flat. Does anybody realize how tough a job that is? Everybody yelling at you for their own interests? All labourers believe the superintendent does nothing but sit in his office and play solitaire . Until you actually see how tough it is…then you want your broom back.
It is so amazing how far we have fallen in this province. BC is burning to the ground and yet the NDP accepts this as normal. Cant wait for a governing party with some cajones to step in and make us whole again. Reconciliation is due; just for the taxpayer this time.
Poorly worded article to bait you…its only ONE politician… the opposition…well duh…that’s his job.
Every one flipping out?! Premier Smith tried to sell out the WHOLE country….where’s that recall and non stop complaints?
Eby and his cabinet need to resign immediately, this has gotten out of control…..what did they think was going to happen?
Aint hereditary socialism great?
Canada circling the toilet bowl and the natives lined up like vultures begging for more
Seriously?! The problem falls squarely on DRIPA and nothing else! The whole concept of DRIPA to the First Nations is a promise of a giant jackpot at the cost of all every British Columbian. Now the chiefs want to cash in on the promise!
Repeal DRIPA entirely.
You never know what Eby is going to say next. The man cannot make a decision and stick with it. If he doesn’t know what he is talking about he shouldn’t say anything. The man is looking and sounding more stupid every time he opens his mouth. The people of BC cannot believe a word he says today because tomorrow it will be something totally different
get rid of dripa.ridiculous.
Who in their right mind would invest in this Province? This isn’t just incompetence, it’s negligence and David Eby needs to be held accountable.
Eby is so bad he’s even triggered the T D S people.
Well, well, I never thought I would see the day when BC had someone as incompetent as the current US president.
David Eby, you are such a let down. In your younger years you were a decent man.
Too much power must have changed you and not for the better.
You were elected to equally represent all people in BC. How about my ancestors…they were all made to work together for the betterment of BC. Yes, we made mistakes, but to ask generation upon generation to keep paying is wrong.
Time to live as one, same rules, after all it is 2026
Attorney general is involved. Directly.
Quite honestly it would have be hard to create a bigger debacle around DRIPA than Eby has done.
Love him or hate him this is some of the most ridiculous incompetency that seen in awhile.
Well other than that Bozo Trump handling of immigration, tariffs, the economy and the war.
I guess we wait for the next election.
What can be voted in can be voted out. In the meantime watch the money grab roll on and NDAs be signed.