Justin Trudeau promotes budget during Regina visit, speaks on natural resources and reconciliation

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made several stops in Regina on Thursday to promote the 2023 federal budget.

His first stop was at the Sherwood Co-op grocery store at 11:15 a.m. to discuss the federal government's grocey rebate first announced in the 2023 budget.

"[The rebate] will allow any eligible couples with two children to receive up to $467," he said.

While at the store, Trudeau spoke to reporters, stating the federal government will not touch or change the Natural Resources Transfer Act (NRTA) that impacts Saskatchewan, Alberta, and Manitoba, something that his justice minister recently said would be looked at.

"As prime minister, I'm happy to stand here right now and say we will not be touching the NRTA. Natural resources are constitutionally directed to be the purview of the provinces. We're not putting that into question," he said.

He was also asked about the future of Regina's Depot division. He replied that he recognizes the importance the training facility has to the city but did not committ to keeping the RCMP training academy open. The Mass Casualties Commision Report had recommended that the RCMP switch from the Depot traning model to a University based training.

"But those are conversations we will continue to have with the force, with partners across the country," he said.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks with people at a Co-op grocery store in Regina.(Gareth Dillistone / CTV News)

PM'S TOWN HALL FOCUSES ON RECONCILIATION

Indigenous issues were front and centre as the prime minister sat in the hot seat during a town hall at the First Nations University of Canada (FNUniv) Thursday afternoon.

Upwards of a hundred people attended the event with a limited number of guests allowed to pose a question to Trudeau.

The prime minister discussed language revitalization, Indigenous education and suicide rates, and missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls.

FSIN Third Vice-Chief Aly Bear addressed Trudeau. She said colonial violence against Indigenous women has transformed into lateral violence. She called it an “ongoing genocide.”

“As a mother [and] as a lawyer, I still have to walk through everyday fearing for my own life and fearing for my daughter’s, and I’m sure all the rest of the Indigenous women here feel the same way,” Bear said to Trudeau.

“How are you going to be able to do something to put the funding where we can feel safe in society again?”

Trudeau called it an “ongoing tragedy” that his government has a road map to address. However, he said there is much more work to do.

“The layers of trauma, of factors that go into this … there is a huge amount of work to do because it is not true that you should feel afraid to walk the streets of your land,” Trudeau said.

Bear took Trudeau’s answer as a promise and said she plans to hold him to it by continuing to follow up and write letters to his office.

However, she believes the prime minister sidestepped a number of questions including one about plans to encourage Indigenous language revitalization.

“We have an Indigenous Languages Act, but there’s actually no resources behind that act,” Bear said.

“There are a lot of Indigenous languages that are actually endangered right now and we need to be pooling our resources just as much as we do for French.”

While Trudeau’s visit to Regina touted the federal government’s recent budget announcements, one woman at the town hall expressed frustration with what she believed to be a lack of funding for Indigenous issues.

The woman welcomed Trudeau to the “home of reconciliation” before asking him when he will sit down with leaders from all Treaty territories to include them in budget talks.

Trudeau said consultation is a big part of the budget decisions.

“The national heads of Indigenous organizations are met with. We listen to their concerns of the things they want to see in the budget,” he said.

The Assembly of First Nations released a statement in March following the federal budget announcement. National Chief RoseAnne Archibald said the federal government continues to “chronically and “intentionally” underfund Indigenous communities.

Others like Ben Redcrow, president of FNUniv’s student association, were pleased to see the prime minister host an event at a place with First Nations significance.

Redcrow said he was thinking about his ancestors as well as future generations while listening to Trudeau speak.

“My whole thought process in leadership is you’re not only representing the people you have around you, but you’re representing the ones that are yet to come,” Redcrow said.

“Historically, Indigenous people are pushed aside by our government. So for him to show up here, it’s a very great honour, I feel that way.”

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks at a town hall meeting at the First Nations University of Canada (FNUC) on April 13, 2023. (David Prisciak/CTV News)

PREMIER MOE DECLINES MEETING

Trudeau had also hoped to speak to Premier Scott Moe to discuss issues important to the province, including the justice minister's comments on the NRTA,  potential regulations of clean electricity standards, and infrastructure funding. However, Moe delined the opportunity.

"We reached out to his office in advance. Unfortunately, he wasn't in town today so the hoped for meeting wasn't able to happen," he said.

In a written statement, the premier's office said, "Unfortunately, the PMO indicated they would only be able to accomodate a short "pull aside" at one of their events. Given the significance of thses topics, we will continue to work toward a future date for a meeting that allows sufficient time for a meaningful discussion on these important issues."

The Premier would still like a meeting with Trudeau in the future. The Prime Minister says he very much looks forward to it.