Eby maintains 'no briefing' on Musqueam deal he witnessed from front row

BC Premier David Eby, attending as the neighbouring MLA at the invitation of Musqueam Chief Wayne Sparrow, has repeatedly denied receiving any briefing on the contents of a federal-Musqueam agreement including at least three times during a Monday news conference and again in the legislature on Tuesday and Wednesday..Eby, attending as the local MLA at the invitation of Musqueam Chief Wayne Sparrow, insisted he had received no briefings on the agreement's details, no heads-up from Ottawa, and was still waiting to learn more about what the federal government had negotiated with the Musqueam Indian Band.In the house on Wednesday, Eby claimed he recently received a call from Musqueam Chief Wayne Sparrow, who the premier says apologized to him for inviting him to the community celebration, explaining it was intended as a traditional witness role.Pressed again, he acknowledged the sensitive climate around Indigenous reconciliation but maintained his distance.A third query drew the same line: “To the best of my understanding, the provincial government was not briefed at the political level on this.”Yet the optics told a different story. Circulating images placed Eby in the front row, feet from the signing table, alongside federal ministers and Musqueam representatives as the three agreements were formalized..The premier's office later issued a clarifying statement, noting Eby’s presence was as a “local representative” at a community event, and emphasized the deal was nation-to-nation between Ottawa and Musqueam, not the province. Opposition voices, including BC Conservatives, hammered the government for apparent lapses in communication, questioning what recognition of Aboriginal title means for private property and the public in a region home to over a million people.Trevor Halford, the Conservative Party of BC interim leader, was incredulous in the house on Wednesday. “The premier wants us to believe that all those channels of communication that he just cited all magically broke down and created this perfect storm, where he randomly accepted invitation, walked into the musculium, sat there in front row of assigning ceremony, zoned out the entire time, and was caught off guard?”“I'm not buying it. Nobody else is.”Federal officials later pushed back as well, asserting the premier’s office had been briefed weeks earlier, further undermining Eby’s claims of being in the dark.Federal Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Rebecca Alty told media the province was briefed "a number of weeks ago," though Eby maintained no such communication reached him or key officials, suggesting a breakdown in channels.The episode has fuelled accusations of mishandling, secrecy, and strained credibility, leaving the premier scrambling to explain how he could witness a landmark rights recognition ceremony without inquiring about, or recalling, its substance.

Eby maintains 'no briefing' on Musqueam deal he witnessed from front row

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