OTTAWA—The federal government says it will “meaningfully consult” with Indigenous groups in order to move the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion forward, but does not believe Indigenous groups who oppose the project have a final veto over it. Natural Resources Minister Amarjeet Sohi says the federal government does not interpret either a Canadian court ruling or the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People to mean that Indigenous groups that object to the Trans Mountain expansion project can block it. “But that does not mean that if we fulfil our constitutional obligation that those groups may have a veto to stop this project. It plans to double the government staffing resources and expertise into redoing consultations with all 117 Indigenous groups impacted by the project, that the court found faulty. Article Continued BelowThe federal court said “meaningful consultation can take place ... in a focused manner,” Sohi said.

Source: thestar October 03, 2018 15:44 UTC