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OTTAWA — A member of the major projects office’s Indigenous advisory council says he and his colleagues were not told in advance of the agreement the federal government signed with Alberta opening a path to a pipeline to B.C.’s coast.

Trevor Mercredi, grand chief of Treaty 8 First Nations in Alberta, told a news conference Thursday the memorandum of understanding signed last month was “news” to him and his colleagues and Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government didn’t tap the council for advice on how to move forward.

“We were not aware of the discussion, we were not aware of how they would like to move it forward,” Mercredi said.

“All I can say is that we’re very concerned that they made the announcements without the nations of Treaty 8 involved.”

The major projects office was the product of a bill passed in the summer that looks to speed up approvals for major projects in an effort to bolster the Canadian economy.

The Indigenous advisory council was added to the major projects office to bring Indigenous leaders into the process and address some of their concerns.

Mercredi, who had spoken out about the legislation during a July meeting between First Nations chiefs and the federal government, was tapped to join the council along with 10 other members.

At that July meeting, Mercredi told The Canadian Press Carney had a “big job to do” to regain the trust of First Nations leaders.

The federal government said the council will work with Indigenous Peoples to integrate the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples into government decision-making on major projects.

Mercredi told journalists Thursday the advisory council heard of the pipeline agreement at the same time members of the public did — and was never made aware of the discussions taking place between the federal government and Alberta.

Mercredi said he and his colleagues have asked the federal government to communicate directly with affected First Nations before announcements on major projects are made.

Chief Sheldon Sunshine of Sturgeon Lake Cree Nation said without genuine consultation, the only thing the major projects office will fast-track is the “demise” of his people.

“We want to be consulted, first and foremost, before anything happens,” he said.

“We’re not against development. What we want is participation, inclusion, at the forefront so that we could have our concerns mitigated, and then maybe support some of these projects if our concerns are mitigated.”

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