Liberals
Mark Carney wants to expand Canada’s oil and gas production, including fast-tracking pipelines. While he did commit to consulting and partnering with Indigenous peoples affected by energy resource projects, Carney did not say whether Indigenous consent would be required for these projects.
Under Trudeau, the Liberal government passed the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) Act, meaning that Canadian legal decisions should respect UNDRIP, including requiring Indigenous people’s free, prior and informed consent for projects happening on their territories. That did not stop the Trudeau government from sending RCMP officers to arrest and forcibly remove Wet’suwet’en people opposing the Coastal GasLink pipeline construction on their territory.
The Liberal’s 2025 platform mentions the need for Indigenous participation and partnership in major infrastructure and resource projects. Carney would allocate an additional $250M a year to the Indigenous Loan Guarantee Program, the federal government’s fund where Indigenous communities and corporations can borrow money at lower interest rates to invest in projects on their territories.
They’d also create a new fund to support career development training and education ($100M over four years), in the hopes to get more First Nations, Inuit and Métis doctors, teachers and builders, among other things, and increase post-secondary education funding for Indigenous students ($79M in 2025-2026, $29M in 2026-2027).
When it comes to conservation and environmental stewardship, the Liberals are giving more money to Indigenous Land Guardians. They’re planning to expand the Indigenous Guardians Program with an additional $10M a year, adding 50 new Arctic Indigenous Guardians, and establish an Indigenous Climate Readiness and Adaptation fund ($250M).
Trudeau’s administration pledged to end all long-term boil water advisories on reserves by 2021. There are currently 33 communities that still don’t have access to clean water. While there is no new funding specifically allocated to ending boil water advisories, Carney’s government wants to pass legislation “affirming that First Nations have a human right to clean drinking water.” The Liberal platform also states they’re committing to work with First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities to build critical infrastructure with $2.5B.
In what could be a step towards land back, the Liberals also want to “increase lands added to reserves within the next four years.” There are no specifics about a timeline or which First Nations would be consulted on this process.
While the Liberals never answered my question about whether they’d increase funding to Indigenous media, they have committed to “strengthen CBC/Radio-Canada’s mandate” to commit to include Indigenous perspectives. CBC is home to CBC Indigenous, and Radio-Canada has Espaces Autochtones, both home to Indigenous news stories. The public broadcaster also produces Indigenous entertainment programming. The Liberals have committed to boosting CBC/Radio-Canada’s funding by $150M annually for four years and making the broadcaster’s funds “statutory” - meaning that the whole parliament would have to agree to cut CBC/Radio-Canada’s funding.
Carney says that he’d work with northern Indigenous leadership as partners in tightening up Canada’s Arctic security with an increased Canadian Armed Forces presence. He’s also pledged to invest in Northern infrastructure, including housing, hydroelectricity, railways and highways. The Liberals have allocated $500M annually over the next four years to “Build the Arctic.”
Under Trudeau, several commissions on Indigenous issues led to the formation of the following “action plans”: the Truth and Reconciliation Calls to Action, the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and 2SLGBTQQIA+ People National Action Plan, and the UNDRIP Action Plan. While some progress has been made on the TRC calls to action, the other two remain unaddressed. The Liberals say they’ll actually implement all three of these plans under Carney.
The Liberals say they will also increase investments for Indigenous mental health, healing and wellness centres, and friendship centres. While they didn’t specify the amount of funding allocated, this may be included in their healthcare and infrastructure spending.
For more on the Liberal’s promises on reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples, visit their 2025 platform.
Conservative
Pierre Poilievre is also keen to “unleash” Canada’s oil and gas. His party would create a one-stop-shop for granting permits for resource extraction and infrastructure projects. Poilievre repeated that Bill C-69 was standing in the way of dozens of resource projects, and, if elected, will axe that legislation. However, this bill imposes considerations like environmental impact and Indigenous consultation before federal regulators issue permits for resource extraction projects.
While the Conservative platform commits to “establishing a Nation-to-Nation consultation process for major legislation and projects directly impacting First Nations, Inuit and Metis [sic],” Poilievre has reduced the timeline for approving permits to one year, including any assessment and consultation processes.
Poilievre has pledged to fast-track development of the Ring of Fire, a mineral-rich region in Northern Ontario, saying he’d approve all pending federal permits for projects in the region. First Nations leaders have said this promise ignores Indigenous rights.
While addressing the Assembly of First Nations, Poilievre said "The Conservative Party supports the goals and aspirations of UNDRIP,” but said that the Liberal’s proposition to make sure Canadian legislation respects UNDRIP raises concerns surrounding what “free, prior and informed consent” means legally. Conservatives have opposed UNDRIP in the past concerned that Indigenous people would get a “veto” on projects happening on their lands. Their 2025 platform does not mention UNDRIP.
He would implement the First Nations Resource Charge, which would allow companies to pay some of their taxes directly to First Nations, instead of that revenue being sent up to Ottawa and requiring First Nations to negotiate to get some of the revenue from projects happening on their lands. This initiative is supported by the First Nations Tax Commission.
Poilievre would also support the creation of a Canadian Indigenous Opportunities Corporation ($11M annually over four years) to provide equity in resource and industrial projects, similar to the Alberta Indigenous Opportunities Corporation.
On housing and infrastructure, the Conservatives also plan to establish a “permanent stream of infrastructure funding to First Nations” and provide funds to Indigenous-led housing solutions. The Conservatives also promise to make sure funds go directly to communities, not third-party consultants. They also want to allocate $50M a year over two years to an “Indigenous Outcomes Fund” which would support measurable, community-led solutions to improve Indigenous lives.
The Conservatives have also committed $25M to funding Indigenous media. They’re the only party to commit to this. However, they also intend on defunding the CBC (but maintaining funding to Radio-Canada), which has an Indigenous news branch and produces Indigenous programming.
The Conservatives want to build a permanent Arctic military base in Iqaluit and a naval base in Churchill, MB. They also want to build an Arctic Security Corridor from Yellowknife, NWT to Grays Bay Nunavut. This would include a 600 km all-season road from Yellowknife to Gray’s bay.
For more information, here’s a link to the 2025 Conservative Party Platform for Change.
NDP
The NDP says they will fully ratify UNDRIP, and plans to “replace mere consultation with a standard of free, prior and informed consent, including for all decisions affecting constitutionally protected land rights, like energy project reviews.” They plan to negotiate on a nation-to-nation basis with First Nations, Métis and Inuit.
Addressing the AFN on April 23, Singh promised to fulfill the TRC’s 94 Calls to Action and the MMIWG calls for justice. The NDP would also provide long-term funding to search for grave sites at former residential schools, and introduce legislation to combat residential school denialism.
The NDP says they will end the boil water advisories on-reserve and invest in Indigenous-led water management training programs. They’d also invest in bringing more healthcare and mental health and addictions resources in communities.
Like the Liberals, the NDP would commit to increasing funding to CBC/Radio-Canada by $150M annually, but did not commit to funding Indigenous-owned media.
They also say they will co-develop the Arctic and Northern Policy Framework with Inuit to address the lack of infrastructure in Northern communities.
The NDP plan on investing $2B annually over four years in Indigenous housing and infrastructure, including responding to Nunavut’s request to build 3,000 homes by 2030.
People living in remote areas, especially First Nations and Inuit in the North, have been dealing with sky-high food costs for years. The NDP promises to introduce emergency price caps on basic food items like pasta, frozen vegetables and infant formula. They also want to put in place a Grocery Code of Conduct and use the Competition Bureau to act as a grocery price watchdog to impose penalties on grocers who charge more for their products. The NDP also wants to “fix” Nutrition North, a program that gives subsidies to food retailers and community food programs in Northern Canada, to ensure more food subsidies go into the pockets of people instead of corporations. They’d also permanently remove GST on essential items like pre-prepared meals, diapers, and internet bills.
The NDP would launch a National Inquiry into Systemic Violence and Racism Against Indigenous people within Canadian institutions.
Unlike most police forces, First Nations police are not considered an “essential service,” so their funding is more precarious. First Nations across Canada have been clamouring for funding on-par with non-Indigenous police services. Singh said he would declare First Nations policing an essential service and provide those forces long term funding.
Green Party
The Green Party wants to increase Indigenous participation in decision-making on industrial projects, respect the principles of UNDRIP, and legislate revenue-sharing frameworks with First Nations to make sure they have a piece of the profits from the exploitation of their lands. They do not want new oil and gas projects and want to transition to renewable energy.
The party only released a partially-costed plan, so not all of these initiatives have budgets listed on their platform.
The party also wants to expand lithium mining and the production of electric vehicles in Canada. Many Indigenous groups oppose lithium mining on their territories, as the process can be harmful to the environment. At a press conference, co-leader Jonathan Pedneault said that the Green Party would tighten environmental regulations surrounding mining, and if companies want access to Canada’s resources, they’ll have to obtain free, prior and informed consent from affected Indigenous nations and local communities.
The Greens also want to fund Indigenous-led protection of old-growth and boreal forests and increase Indigenous participation in environmental oversight.
They also said they’d increase funding for Indigenous-led education, including Indigenous languages and knowledge systems.
The Greens want to expand CBC Indigenous broadcasting significantly, “ensuring culturally relevant, Indigenous-led content is widely accessible and reflects diverse Indigenous experiences and perspectives across Canada,” and increase CBC/Radio-Canada’s funding. While they didn’t specify if they would directly fund Indigenous-owned media, they said they’d increase funding for local journalism outlets.
The Greens also want First Nation governments to decide who is eligible for Indigenous procurement programs to prevent Indigenous identity fraud.
To read the full Green Party platform, click here.
Bloc Québécois
The Bloc has committed to engaging in a nation-to-nation relationship with the First Nations and Inuit communities in their province, and would assure that Ottawa respects UNDRIP.
During the question period after the French debate, Yves-François Blanchet mentioned that First Nations need to have a seat at the table during negotiations with the U.S., stressing that Quebec respects their right to self-determination.
In their platform, the Bloc says that the biggest obstacle to Indigenous self-determination is the Indian Act, and would support an Indigenous-led initiative for a future without this legislation.
Blanchet wants to end Canada’s reliance on oil and gas and develop renewable energy sources in Quebec in partnership with First Nations and Inuit in the province.
The Bloc would work towards fulfilling the TRC’s calls to action. They say they’d invest in Indigenous culture and languages, but their costed platform does not specify how much would be allocated to Indigenous groups. Their plan allocates $500M annually for investments in culture more broadly.
They would also push the federal government to stop underfunding Indigenous police forces and end boil water advisories on-reserve.
They would allocate $650M to Indigenous housing every year for four years.
Click the following links to read the full Bloc Québécois platform and costed plan (in French only).