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Indigenous Rights Report Card |
| Indigenous Rights Report Card - PDF |
How We Graded Parties
Using a non-partisan analysis, this report card evaluates Canada’s five main federal parties based on their record on Indigenous rights, focusing on land, justice, infrastructure, policing, and self-determination. We looked at what each party has done or failed to do from 2019 to 2025, especially after 2021 when public pressure around reconciliation was at its highest.
We assessed each party across five areas:
Grades were based on legislation, votes, policy proposals, funding decisions, and public statements. We gave more weight to long-term action over symbolism. If a party was silent on an issue, we graded them based on that silence too. If a party said the right things but didn’t follow through, we didn’t give them credit for intent. Each section was graded individually, then averaged to determine the final score. Where party actions contradicted their public statements, we focused on what they actually did.
We assessed each party across five areas:
- Land rights and sovereignty
- Truth, reconciliation, and justice
- Clean water, housing, and infrastructure
- Systemic racism and policing
- Respect for Indigenous jurisdiction
Grades were based on legislation, votes, policy proposals, funding decisions, and public statements. We gave more weight to long-term action over symbolism. If a party was silent on an issue, we graded them based on that silence too. If a party said the right things but didn’t follow through, we didn’t give them credit for intent. Each section was graded individually, then averaged to determine the final score. Where party actions contradicted their public statements, we focused on what they actually did.
Context and Additional Analysis
Liberal Party: They passed the First Nations Clean Water Act in 2023, but that came after they let their original 2021 deadline slide without real explanation. The bill only moved after years of public pressure. In places like Neskantaga, people have been without safe water for over two decades. More than just a gap, this is the definition of abandonment. On land rights, they settled with Siksika and announced new funding, but they also stood behind RCMP raids on Wet’suwet’en land multiple times, not just once. They knew it was unceded territory and that hereditary chiefs were not on board. They still backed enforcement of an injunction that protected a pipeline, not Indigenous people. And when asked about it, they hid behind provincial jurisdiction. Although the Liberal Party will say reconciliation, they fall silent when extraction is at stake. They also fought in court against the full implementation of Jordan’s Principle until the Human Rights Tribunal ruled against them. Even after apologizing, they appealed the compensation ruling.
Conservative Party: The Conservatives voted against UNDRIP and called it divisive. They say they support economic growth, but they don’t acknowledge how that often depends on denying Indigenous consent. When the RCMP raided Wet’suwet’en land, instead of questioning it, they called it law and order. Conservatives also said systemic racism isn’t real, denying lived experience of Indigenous peoples. Conservatives are offering a version of Canada where Indigenous Peoples are invited to participate but not lead.
NDP Party: NDPs supported Gladue reforms and consistently voted in favour of Indigenous legislation. They backed UNDRIP and supported land defenders in Parliament, including condemning raids on Wet’suwet’en land. But they’ve also failed to challenge the Liberals harder on specific failures like the housing crisis. They’ve brought up the issues, but sometimes stop short of sustained pressure. Grassroots group keep pushing NDPs to cancel federal injunctions, but the party hasn’t taken it up formally.
Bloc Québécois: The Bloc pushed for unmarked grave investigations, but they always revert back to Quebec’s supremacy. When the federal government affirms Indigenous jurisdiction, they’re the first to raise concerns about provincial powers. They want UNDRIP, but only if it doesn’t interfere with Quebec. They supported Bill C-92 on child welfare, but later used Quebec’s court challenge to question its reach.
Green Party: Party leader Elizabeth May said the RCMP is a racist institution. They’ve backed the Land Back movement and denounced the Doctrine of Discovery, which no other party has done at that level. But they don’t have the power to implement. Their advocacy is strong, but they haven’t made use of private member’s bills to push Indigenous-led legislation. Even something like supporting Gladue court expansion could have been made into a campaign plank or motion. So their commitment is real, but it stays on the sidelines of Parliament.
All parties: One of the biggest contradictions across the board is how parties talk about the child welfare system. Everyone says they want to fix it. But until very recently, no party pushed hard to end Crown wardship models that strip children from their cultures. Greens, NDP, and Bloc all voted for Bill C-92, but none have followed up on how it's being implemented. And meanwhile, provinces like Ontario continue to remove Indigenous children into non-Indigenous care. Even on policing, every party except the Greens avoids naming the problem for what it is. The Liberals supported body cameras and reviews, but they also increased funding to the RCMP while promising reform. So while they apologized for past harms, they funded institutions that continue them.
Conservative Party: The Conservatives voted against UNDRIP and called it divisive. They say they support economic growth, but they don’t acknowledge how that often depends on denying Indigenous consent. When the RCMP raided Wet’suwet’en land, instead of questioning it, they called it law and order. Conservatives also said systemic racism isn’t real, denying lived experience of Indigenous peoples. Conservatives are offering a version of Canada where Indigenous Peoples are invited to participate but not lead.
NDP Party: NDPs supported Gladue reforms and consistently voted in favour of Indigenous legislation. They backed UNDRIP and supported land defenders in Parliament, including condemning raids on Wet’suwet’en land. But they’ve also failed to challenge the Liberals harder on specific failures like the housing crisis. They’ve brought up the issues, but sometimes stop short of sustained pressure. Grassroots group keep pushing NDPs to cancel federal injunctions, but the party hasn’t taken it up formally.
Bloc Québécois: The Bloc pushed for unmarked grave investigations, but they always revert back to Quebec’s supremacy. When the federal government affirms Indigenous jurisdiction, they’re the first to raise concerns about provincial powers. They want UNDRIP, but only if it doesn’t interfere with Quebec. They supported Bill C-92 on child welfare, but later used Quebec’s court challenge to question its reach.
Green Party: Party leader Elizabeth May said the RCMP is a racist institution. They’ve backed the Land Back movement and denounced the Doctrine of Discovery, which no other party has done at that level. But they don’t have the power to implement. Their advocacy is strong, but they haven’t made use of private member’s bills to push Indigenous-led legislation. Even something like supporting Gladue court expansion could have been made into a campaign plank or motion. So their commitment is real, but it stays on the sidelines of Parliament.
All parties: One of the biggest contradictions across the board is how parties talk about the child welfare system. Everyone says they want to fix it. But until very recently, no party pushed hard to end Crown wardship models that strip children from their cultures. Greens, NDP, and Bloc all voted for Bill C-92, but none have followed up on how it's being implemented. And meanwhile, provinces like Ontario continue to remove Indigenous children into non-Indigenous care. Even on policing, every party except the Greens avoids naming the problem for what it is. The Liberals supported body cameras and reviews, but they also increased funding to the RCMP while promising reform. So while they apologized for past harms, they funded institutions that continue them.