Without denial, delay, or disruption: Ensuring First Nations children’s access to equitable services through Jordan’s Principle

The Assembly of First Nations, the Canadian Paediatric Society, and UNICEF Canada call on federal, provincial, and territorial governments to work with First Nations, without delay, in order to:

• Develop and implement a governmental response that is consistent with the vision of Jordan’s Principle advanced by First Nations and endorsed by the House of Commons.
• Systematically identify and address the jurisdictional ambiguities and underfunding that give rise to each Jordan’s Principle case. By clarifying jurisdictional responsibilities and eliminating the underfunding identified in individual cases, governments can prevent denials, delays, and disruptions in services for other children in similar circumstances. Accordingly, they can better assume the responsibilities to ensure equitable treatment of First Nations children outlined in the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the Canadian Human Rights Act and other federal, provincial/territorial, and First Nations legislation and agreements.

Conclusions

Based on review of the evidence presented in the studies summarized above, the Jordan’s Principle Working Group concludes that nine conditions must be satisfied in order for a governmental response to reflect the vision of Jordan’s Principle advanced by First Nations and endorsed by the House of Commons, and to achieve the goals of Jordan’s Principle:

1. Jordan’s Principle must apply to all Status and Status-eligible First Nations children.
2. Jordan’s Principle must apply to all inter- and intra-governmental disputes.
3. Jordan’s Principle must apply to all service domains.
4. The criteria for identifying Jordan’s Principle cases should centre on the existence of jurisdictional ambiguity or underfunding that prevents a First Nations child from receiving services in accordance with provincial/territorial practice norms and legislated standards.
5. Jordan’s Principle must operate as a true child-first principle.
6. There must be clear and consistent standards and procedures for compensating all service providers, including First Nations providers, for the costs incurred during all Jordan’s Principle related processes.
7. First Nations must be included as true partners in all stages of development and implementation of a response to Jordan’s Principle in every province/territory
8. Measures of accountability and transparency must be incorporated at the case level.
9. Measures of accountability and transparency must be incorporated at the broader level of implementation, in order to ensure compliance with responsibilities to First Nations children under international, national, provincial/territorial, and First Nations law and agreements.