Nickel Belt MPP France Gelinas has again raised the question of safe drinking water for First Nations in Ontario. Gelinas says virtually nothing has happened to improve water on remote reserves since she was first elected as a New Democrat. Gelinas says when she was first elected nine years ago, there were 90 First Nations in Ontario under a boil water advisory.
She says today, there are still 90 First Nations under the same advisory. Gelinas says government inaction is creating dangerous health conditions. She says some babies have rashes on their skin from the water and their mothers can’t even use the water to treat those rashes. The New Democrat stresses this is not happening in a third world nation, but rather right in Ontario.
In response, Aboriginal Affairs Minister David Zimmer agrees it’s unacceptable that there are First Nations without safe drinking water. Zimmer says the province is working with the feds to fix this issue.