BC Conservatives call out NDP government secrecy on DRIPA amendments

The BC Conservative Caucus is calling on the NDP government to come clean with British Columbians about their proposed amendments to the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (DRIPA) and to immediately end the secretive process that is sowing doubt, creating confusion, and undermining public confidence in reconciliation.

For weeks, the NDP government has insisted it is committed to transparency and partnership. But its actions tell a different story.

According to public reporting, the government has circulated proposed DRIPA changes behind closed doors, shielded key documents from public scrutiny, and required non-disclosure agreements before some First Nations leaders could even review the details. At the same time, the broader public has been kept in the dark about what exactly the government wants to change, why it wants those changes, and what the legal and economic consequences could be.

That is not how a serious government builds trust. And it is not how a government brings people along on an issue as important as reconciliation.

“Reconciliation cannot be advanced through secrecy, confusion, and closed-door politics,” said Scott McInnis, Critic for Indigenous Relations. “If the NDP believes these amendments are necessary, they should have the courage to publish them, explain them, and defend them in public. Instead, British Columbians are seeing an NDP government hide behind cabinet confidence, rely on non-disclosure agreements, and leave both First Nations and the public guessing.”

The government’s own approach is making a bad situation worse. British Columbians are being asked to trust a process they cannot see, involving amendments they cannot read, on a file the government says is central to reconciliation. That is a recipe for mistrust.

If the NDP wants public confidence, it must stop treating reconciliation as something to be managed in secret by insiders. Reconciliation requires openness, clarity, honesty, and public legitimacy. British Columbians need to know where the government is taking the province and why.

Instead, this government is fueling uncertainty on all sides. First Nations leaders have raised alarm about compressed timelines and gag orders. British Columbians are left wondering what is changing and what it will mean for the future of law-making, court decisions, resource development, and the government’s overall reconciliation agenda.

The BC Conservative Caucus is calling on the government to:

• Immediately release the details of their DRIPA amendments for public review.
  
  
• End the use of non-disclosure agreements that prevent First Nations leaders and the public from discussing changes to their own rights.
  
  
• Provide a full briefing to the Official Opposition and all members of the Legislature before any amendments are tabled.
  
  
• Commit to a full and transparent public consultation process.

“This government is failing the basic test of leadership,” said McInnis. “You do not build confidence by hiding the ball. You do not strengthen reconciliation by shutting the public out. And you do not reduce polarization by creating an atmosphere of secrecy and confusion.”