Tuesday was throne speech day. It had historical meaning as King Charles III delivered the speech in the Senate Chamber. The last time it was delivered by a reigning monarch was 1977 when his mother Queen Elizabeth addressed parliament. Having King Charles deliver the throne speech clearly reinforced our heritage to the world and to the United States that Canada is a sovereign country.
Having the King deliver the throne speech also reinforced the treaties signed prior to Confederation and those signed between First Nations and the Crown. Going all the way back to 1701 and onward, the first treaties, called the “Peace and Friendship treaties,” were signed in Southern Ontario. Subsequent treaties followed and continued to be drawn up and agreed upon through the 20th century.
Treaty Three, that covers the land we live on, was signed with the Ojibwe (Saulteaux) first nations of Northwestern Ontario and Eastern Ontario. It was signed in 1873. Prior to that the Robinson Treaties were signed by the Ojibwe First Nations around Lake Huron and Lake Superior.
The historical speech delivered by King Charles reaffirmed the relationship between the Crown and First Nations of Canada. Many of the treaties were signed before several of the provinces had been created. The Manitoba Act of 1870 brought Manitoba into confederation. The Northwest Territories and Alberta Act brought Alberta and Saskatchewan into Confederation on September 1, 1905.
Canada was born through discussions and decisions between Canadian politicians and the United Kingdom. It marks us as different from our American neighbours whose country was born from war. Those politicians clearly defined that Canadians did not wish to be part of the United States. Our relationships with first nations are much different than the States relationship that often saw major “Indian Wars” and broken treaties encouraging settlement across the west.
The aggressive throne speech delivered by King Charles outlines the primary initiatives of the Carney government. Tax cuts including eliminating the GST on new home construction, aggressive infrastructure projects that benefit all Canadians, eliminating trade barriers between provinces and nation building initiatives are all on the agenda.
The Throne speech with historic perspectives seeks to build on the understanding that Canadians have joined together under the Canadian flag to protect our sovereignty and grow our nation for future Canadians.
