The Clock is ticking on the Métis National Council

(November 14, 2024) The Métis National Council (MNC) is leaderless and searching for a purpose. Since it was formed in 1983, and up until 2021 the national Métis body carried out an effective role representing the interests of Métis people at the national and international levels.

One of its greatest accomplishments occurred in April 2017 when the MNC and its five governing members signed the historic Canada-Métis Nation Accord which established the Permanent Bilateral Mechanism (PBM) and resulted in tens of millions of dollars flowing each year from the federal government to each of the five provincial Métis organizations. The PBM provided for regular meetings on important matters between Métis representatives and federal government officials, including annual meetings with the Prime Minister and some key members of his Cabinet.

But things have gone off the rails in the last few years for MNC. The Manitoba Métis Federation (MMF) pulled out of the national body in 2021 after the Métis Nation of Ontario (MNO) was allowed to rejoin the MNC (with the full support of Métis Nation British Columbia), and then this summer Métis Nation Saskatchewan ended its involvement with MNC citing differences including the involvement of MNO. Early this fall, the President of MNC announced that she was not seeking another term and ended her role at the end of September. Since then the MNC and its remaining governing members have been struggling. In late October, the three remaining members – Otipemisiwak Métis Government (Alberta), MNBC and MNO held MNC’s Annual General Assembly in Edmonton to elect a new President but that didn’t happen after MNBC walked out of the meeting when they tried to flex their muscles but failed to make some changes to the governance structure.

MNC as an organization pulled in $12.6 million in funding from the federal government for the year ending March 2023, and spent $10.8 million, including nearly $5 million on salaries and benefits, and more than $3 million on travel, accommodations and meeting space. They have not posted any audited financial statement for the year ending March 2024.

BC Métis Leader Clara Morin Dal Col says, “The clock is ticking on MNC. They are leaderless, they no longer have the governing members in place to properly operate and no Permanent Bilateral Meeting with the Prime Minister has been held since June of 2023.” She asks, “What are they accomplishing on behalf of Métis people”?

“In more than 4 years they have not signed a single new funding Sub-Accord with the federal government since the 6 Sub-Accords we signed between 2017 and 2019, when I was still President of MNBC,” says the former MNBC President. “MNC and the provincial organizations are all living off the money of the original Sub-Accords but those Sub-Accords will come to an end and then what are they going to do for money”?

Ms. Morin Dal Col says, “Given that MNC seems to be largely ineffective, it needs to move out of the way, so that true Métis can once again have effective representation at the national level.”

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For further information:

Contact Clara Morin Dal Col

BC Métis Leader

Email: cmdalcol@gmail.com