A motion was passed in the House of Commons yesterday calling on the government to take action to fix the poor quality of drinking water on reserves.
The motion was introduced by Liberal Leader Bob Rae, and agreed to by the Tories and the NDP.
It requires the government to take action between now and the spring.
The environmental group Ecojustice recently released a report which gave the federal government an “F” for its record on ensuring Canadians everywhere have access to safe drinking water.
The group’s lawyer, Randy Christenson, likes some of the frank language spelled out in the motion, including reference to how the conditons in some communities is an affront to Canadians’ sense of decency and fairness.
Christenson says that is hopefully an indication that this issue will now be a priority.
He says the current government has given mainly talk and little action when it comes to improving drinking water on First Nations.