(Bloomberg) — The political debate over a court ruling recognizing Indigenous land rights in the Vancouver area escalated on Thursday after Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre urged the prime minister to intervene.
In the August judgment, the Supreme Court of British Columbia recognized the Cowichan people’s aboriginal title over a slice of Richmond, just south of the city of Vancouver, that was once the site of their traditional fishing village.
The ruling’s language, which includes phrases such as “aboriginal title is a prior and senior right to land,” has fueled debate and angst over private property rights in the area, and whether it sets a wider precedent.
The decision has been challenged by every party — including the federal government — and is now facing a years-long appeals process, leaving legal questions. A property developer in the affected area said bankers pulled out of financing a new building because of the ruling.
At a farm in Richmond, near the Cowichan claim zone, Poilievre called on Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government to argue in its federal challenge that private property takes precedence over all other titles. He urged the government to guarantee explicit protections for private homeowners in all future First Nations agreements, present a 30-day plan to safeguard residents’ property rights in light of the Cowichan decision, and a convene a parliamentary committee to examine options for strengthening those rights.
“Canadians already face enough pressure from high costs and economic uncertainty without having to wonder whether their home is truly theirs,” Poilievre said in a statement. “The Liberal government must provide certainty, defend private property in court and make clear that Canadians’ homes and land titles will be protected.”
Poilievre’s intervention cements the topic as a political issue beyond the west coast province, where it has turned into part of a complex headache for left-leaning Premier David Eby.
BC has some 200 Indigenous groups, typically called First Nations, and many are pursuing claims over their traditional territories.
Unlike most of the rest of Canada, these groups largely didn’t sign treaties with historic colonial governments. That means negotiations and disputes continue more actively, spanning from fundamental land and water rights to the development of real estate, mining, and oil and gas.
Pursuing what’s known as “reconciliation” to right historic injustices against Indigenous people, BC introduced legislation to align provincial laws with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. But it is now seeking to suspend parts of the law due to legal challenges.
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