Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  As far as I know, there were very specific plans on how the roll-out would happen. There would be further discussions with senior officials of the government. Amounts were set aside for the priorities that were set out in Kelowna. There were very distinct priorities and dollar amounts were tied to those.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Mr. Chairman, may I respond to Mr. Bruinooge, or do I have to respond...?

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  I didn't have an opportunity, and I'll be very brief. I think Mr. Bruinooge raises a very important point. I think that if the government would honour the Kelowna accord, we wouldn't need Bill C-292. It wouldn't be necessary. Bill C-292 doesn't recite all the specific pieces of Kelowna, but it makes it clear that the commitments in Kelowna must be honoured.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Thank you very much for that question. Like the national chief...it's very hard to measure how much you've lost. When we were negotiating with the provinces and the federal government for the event in Kelowna, we were looking at the situation as it was in our communities. When you look at the level of graduates coming out of high school, when you look at the level of suicide rates in the north related to many different problems that youth are having at the community level, and when you look at the different conditions faced by families, with the social services, the health services, not really anything has changed.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Okay. A great deal has been said in recent times about the need to make accountability a central theme of political decision-making. I urge this committee and all parliamentarians to demonstrate their commitment to keeping faith with the aboriginal peoples of Canada. I urge this committee and all parliamentarians to demonstrate their commitment to unity and solidarity among all Canadians.

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Thank you, Mr. Chairman. [Witness speaks in her native language] Thank you for the invitation. Before I begin, I want to make an observation. I see a lot of leaders around the table. This tells me something. We're here again to tell you about a very serious situation that's facing our people who are living in the communities.