The Federal Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs was in Fishing Lake recently to discuss Metis rights in Canada. Minister Carolyn Bennett arrived in Fishing Lake on a mission to speak and listen to local members of the bands across northern Alberta. Among the topics on the table included Memorandum of Understanding signed by the band council in 2017.
The opportunity to talk with a government official gave the Fishing Lake settlement the chance to bring forth questions and concerns. The settlement has said its record of addiction and mental health trouble are an issue they’d like to partner with the government of Canada to fix.
A draft of an agreement between the feds and Metis settlements like Fishing Lake in Northern Alberta is currently in the works.