Carney, Obed stress stronger Inuit-Ottawa partnership during Kuujjuaq visit

Prime Minister Mark Carney says Ottawa must maintain a positive relationship with Inuit, in response to Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami president Natan Obed’s June 19 comments that Inuit should seek other partners for Arctic defence if the government does not respect them.

“[Obed] and I have very good relations,” Carney said Tuesday morning in Kuujjuaq, before he co-chaired an Inuit-Crown Partnership Committee meeting alongside Obed.

The agenda for the one-day meeting included the Inuit Child First Initiative, tuberculosis elimination, access to housing and Nutrition North reform. It was not open to the public.

During remarks before the meeting, Carney said it’s important to co-ordinate with Inuit as partners on these issues.

“Those immediate priorities need specific interventions, but also system change, which is the value of the [Inuit-Crown Partnership Committee] process,” he said.

Carney called the partnership crucial to Canada’s efforts to strengthen Arctic sovereignty and security.

He said Ottawa’s more than $40 billion in planned Arctic defence spending must be developed in partnership with Inuit.

“This is your homeland,” Carney said.

Obed also praised the partnership committee for helping advance shared priorities over the past nine years but said there’s room for improvement.

“We do not take Canada’s leadership or partnership for granted in engaging with Inuit,” Obed said, adding a call for the federal government to continue to work with Inuit on Arctic policies.

“Inuit are the foremost experts on the Arctic. We know our lands, waters, environment and communities best,” he said. “We stand with Canada as Canadians.”

Carney is the first prime minister to visit Kuujjuaq since Stephen Harper in 2008.

Back in February, Indigenous Services Minister Mandy Gull-Masty announced that Ottawa will spend $27 million over five years to try to eliminate tuberculosis in Inuit communities.

Last year, Nunavik reported 117 cases, the highest number since the regional health board started keeping records.

Gull-Masty also announced a $115-million extension of its Inuit Child First Initiative, which provides support for Inuit children and youth, as well as a one-time $30 million “top up” of the Nutrition North subsidy, a federal program that lowers the price of groceries in the North.