DAWSON CITY – Premier Sandy Silver hosted Northwest Territories Premier Bob McLeod and Nunavut Premier Joe Savikataaq here last Thursday and Friday for the Northern Premiers’ Forum.

The leaders spent the first day touring the area and the second in a full day of meetings, which were held at the local Yukon College campus.

During a Friday afternoon media teleconference, Silver summed up most of the discussions.

“We had a wide range of issues that we went through, all relevant and important to the North,” he told reporters. “We think there is strength in numbers for a united North.

“We talked about everything from climate change and Operation Nanook, which had taken place earlier in Whitehorse, and in the other two territories over the years,” Silver added.

“We talked about strengthening Canada’s position in the Arctic, about community-based infrastructure, disaster mitigation, transportation, and a national trade corridor fund, energy, and RCMP funding in the North – all issues pertaining to the North.

“We have a united vision that funding that comes from Ottawa really needs to relate to the communities which it is supposed to be supporting,” the premier added.

“As much as the territories are different in geography, they are united in an understanding that we do things differently in the North, and considerations need to be different for the North.”

Answering detailed media questions, all three premiers kept returning to the idea that planning and programs aimed at the North should not be created in Ottawa and announced from there without detailed input from the territories at every stage of their development.

“We also spoke in preliminary conversations about the murdered and missing women’s inquiry, and how we are, as each jurisdiction, reviewing the documentation and trying to find a united pathway forward for all of the recommendations,” Silver said.

No one was prepared to expand on that, with each premier indicating that the report was too new to them at this meeting. McLeod reckoned his legislature might have a formal response ready by August.

In many ways, the gathering was about establishing territorial priorities in advance of the Western Premiers’ Conference and the Council of the Federation meetings this summer.

With an eye to the approaching federal election campaign, the premiers discussed a number of areas that they wished to see the various party leaders commit to in the future.

These were listed in the communiqué that was released just minutes after the press conference. They include:

Strengthening Canada’s
position in the Arctic:

“The climactic, economic and geopolitical context of the Arctic is shifting.

“Internationally, the Arctic is seen as a place of investment and opportunity. Within Canada, Arctic investment can face barriers that prohibit the expansion and modernization of major and transformative infrastructure throughout (the) North.

“Sustained, strategic investment in northern people and communities is essential to strengthening Canada’s Arctic presence and to increasing awareness of the opportunities through development of Canada’s North and Arctic.”

Climate change:

“Canada’s Northern and Arctic climate and landscape are changing rapidly and significantly. Temperatures in the North are changing at triple the rate than elsewhere.

“The North is seeing more frequent and severe fire events. Wildlife and plant species are claiming habitat in places they haven’t been before. Water systems are taking new paths as glacial sources retreat.

“Ongoing coastal erosion along with sea ice forming later and thawing earlier in the year are affecting Indigenous traditional practices and wildlife hunting grounds.

“Highways and building foundations are shifting and cracking as permafrost thaws. The threat of climate change is pervasive – threatening to stifle and set back growth, economic development and energy, housing, health and food security in the North.

Community infrastructure and disaster mitigation:

“Recognizing that the National Disaster Mitigation program will sunset in 2020, premiers discussed the need for flexible, northern-specific federal funding to support communities as they prepare for the effects of natural disasters and address increasing costs related to infrastructure repair including:

• the increasing incidences of natural disasters and infrastructure deterioration as the result of climate change;

• that there are cultural and socio-economic components to the impact of climate change;

• accessibility for the range of disasters that are increasing because of climate change, including flooding, wildfires, erosion and permafrost thaw.”

Energy:

“Energy security and sustainability is a concern for all three territories. Premiers … discussed their commitment to reducing reliance on carbon-intensive energy while also ensuring reliable and affordable energy for northerners … called for sustained, continued federal funding to support energy security and reliability for all territorial communities.

“This increased investment must be flexible and current program parameters and eligibility expanded to support communities in their efforts of innovation and green energy while understanding the realities that these remote communities face.”

Transportation:

“The foundation to economic development in the North is investment in large-scale transportation infrastructure across the territories.

“As such, premiers welcomed dedicated northern National Trade Corridor Funds (NTCF). However, they noted that the supplemental dollars in the 2019 federal budget are now available to the northern provinces, thereby reducing certainty for meaningful investment in the territories.

“Premiers emphasized that territorial government applications to the NTCF should be prioritized to increase certainty and support the development of transportation infrastructure.”

Murdered and missing
Indigenous women and girls:

“Northern premiers remain committed to supporting families impacted by the loss of loved ones and responding to the calls to justice identified by the inquiry.

“All three premiers agreed that determining the most effective means to heal should be driven by Indigenous peoples and organizations, with support from all levels of government.”

RCMP funding:

“The Government of Canada’s proposed changes to RCMP funding in the territories has the potential to negatively impact policing resources and community support in the North, especially in countering the threat of organized crime and drug trafficking.”

Mental health and addictions:

“Premiers noted unique approaches in each of the territories that enable delivery of culturally appropriate programs and provide mental health supports and treatment in home communities. The territories will continue to invest in promotion, prevention and early intervention alongside identifying opportunities for innovation and collaboration.”

Federal relations:

“Premiers called on the federal government to rethink current funding arrangements with the objective of streamlining overly complex programs and transfers to better meet the capacity and needs of the territories.

“Furthermore, predictable and co-ordinated funding arrangements between federal, territorial and Indigenous governments will allow for more effective use of government services for northern residents.”

Each premier had a closing statement.

“The issues facing the North are complex, from climate change to sustainable development to mental health,” Silver said.

“By working together, we can raise the profile of our priorities and co-operate on identifying solutions that will increase the prosperity and quality of life for northern Canadians in all three territories.”

“Creating a strong and sustainable north remains a priority for the Government of the Northwest Territories and is central to Canada’s identity on the world stage as a northern nation,” said McLeod.

“Despite our differences and challenges, we stand united as northern Canada, and firmly advocate for the interests and needs of the Arctic,” added Savikataaq. “As always, we are stronger together.”

The forum rotates among the territories. The next meeting will be in the N.W.T.