OTTAWA—Bill C-39, the Building Canada Strong Act, is moving fast, and for all its hundreds of pages, it can really dash like a cheetah. Will it be able to outrun all the questions? Should Indigenous Peoples set aside the threats to land, water, and their legal right to refuse for major projects to move ahead as fast as possible?

Prime Minister Mark Carney speaks during a press conference in West Block on Oct. 21, 2026, announcing strategic investments in collaboration with the government of Ontario.

Prime Minister Mark Carney and his ministers repeatedly declare that Bill C-39 is what Canadians want, and, of course, Indigenous Peoples will be consulted, but with a minor tone of paternalism, as the government knows best. 

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For transparency, a number of Indigenous communities are fully supportive, and it is their right to do so.  But a number of Indigenous communities are not supportive, which is also their human right, and nobody is listening to them.  

This is a compare-and-contrast exercise.

Bill S-2, an Act to Amend the Indian Act........

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