Canada Must Defend Property Rights
Ottawa, ON – Today, the Hon. Pierre Poilievre, Leader of the Conservative Party of Canada and the Official Opposition, and Chak Au, Member of Parliament for Richmond Centre—Marpole, sent a letter to Sean Fraser, Minister of Justice and Attorney General, on the Cowichan Tribes decision:
“Dear Minister Fraser,
“On August 7th, the BC Supreme Court handed down its decision in Cowichan Tribes v Canada, which expressly invalidated fee simple interests and created incredible uncertainty for title holders.
“Even the BC NDP understands how alarming this is. The Province, along with the City of Richmond, Vancouver Port Authority, Tsawwassen First Nation and the Musqueam Indian Band have appealed the decision to the Court of Appeal.
“Your cabinet colleague Gregor Robertson downplayed the decision, saying that “private property rights are not affected by this decision.” This is directly at odds with Premier Eby, who noted that “owning private property with clear title is key to borrowing for a mortgage, economic certainty, and the real estate market.”
“The lead lawyer for the Cowichan Tribes has already stated that private land sales would need the consent of the Cowichan before they could go ahead. This decision creates the risk of profound harm not just to the BC economy, but to the entire Canadian economy.
“The federal government must argue in court against the Cowichan ruling, which threatens the property rights of Canadians and is already scaring away jobs and investment.
“It is already causing investment to flee, with businesses and homeowners facing difficulties as funders have major concerns about the uncertainty this situation has created.
“You must argue to overturn the ruling and uphold the rights of all Canadians.”