Penashue tows the well worn Party Line - Follows Hearn and Manning

Well at least we did not have to wait long to see if Penashue would follow Manning and Hearn - yes he did.

Penashue's comment that massive budget cuts were "painful" but "responsible" - is the Conservative line.

With cuts in the Department of Fisheries - recovery of stocks and necessary science for sustainability will be impacted. That cannot really sit well with an aboriginal leader - can it?

As a Labradorian - is Peter concerned that cuts to Defence may spell trouble for Happy Valley-Goose Bay?

The 4 billion dollars budgeted to be eliminated - will mean ramifications to essential services - and Peter supporting that - does not seem to jive.

There is a possibility though - that Peter has made a deal for his people - the Innu - and perhaps the Nation will gain direct benefits from a deal.

The Innu Nation claims to protect its people from outside threats - that does include the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador and the Government of Canada. The Innu Nation has fought industrialization which impacted their traditional life and lands (Lower Churchill). This was fixed by letting the Nation in on the project.

I prefer to let the Nation speak for itself on these issues: Below are statements taken from the Innu Nation site:


...It also made it mandatory for Innu children to attend school and threatened to stop welfare and family allowance payments to families whose children did not attend class.


As a result, many Innu families had to live in the communities for most of the year, despite their concerns that doing so would threaten their migratory way of life and connection to the land.

Innu parents also felt the school curriculum taught their children more about white North American society than their own and worried younger generations were being alienated from their cultural traditions.

Compounding these concerns were a string of post-Confederation forestry, mining, and other industrial developments that occurred on Innu land, but without Innu permission.

Most dramatic among these was the Upper Churchill Falls hydroelectric project, which flooded thousands of kilometers of land in Labrador, including valuable caribou habitat and Innu burial grounds. Although the Innu people used and depended on much of this area for centuries, the provincial government did not consult them before damming the Churchill River.

I do not believe the cuts will impact the Innu Nation or Peter's people - it will however continue to hurt Newfoundland and Labrador. This will be very interesting - and educational.