Retired Supreme Court justice Frank Iacobucci will lead the new consultation process with Indigenous people on the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project.
Natural Resources Minister Amarjeet Sohi announced that Iacobucci will act as the federal representative to design and oversee the consultation with affected Indigenous communities.
Sohi said those consultations will move ahead with an “open mind” to fulfill the duty to meaningfully consult, and would not put a “stop clock” on that process.
“We’re going to take our time to get this right,” he said.
Sohi said the government will double the resources to consult with Indigenous groups, and will listen, consult and make reasonable accommodations.
CBC News is carrying the minister’s news conference live at the National Press Theatre in Ottawa starting at 9 a.m. ET.
It’s the second announcement from Sohi laying out the Liberal government’s strategy for proceeding after the Federal Court of Appeal quashed approval for the project, which would nearly triple the flow of oil from Alberta’s oilsands to the West Coast.
Sohi confirmed that the government will not appeal that court ruling.
Last month, the government announced it was giving the federal pipeline regulator, the National Energy Board, 22 weeks to review the project and consider its impact on the marine environment.
At the time, Sohi said word on new consultations with Indigenous people would come at a later date.