October 19, 2025

Premier David Eby
Office of the Premier
PO BOX 9041 STN Prov. Govt.
Victoria, BC V8W 9E1

Via email: premier@gov.bc,ca

Dear Premier Eby,

Re: Immediate Suspension of Negotiations Pending Supreme Court Clarity on Cowichan Decision

I am writing regarding the decision of the Supreme Court of British Columbia in Cowichan Tribes v. Canada (Attorney General), 2025 BCSC 1490. The ruling has created immediate and serious uncertainty about the security of private property ownership in British Columbia.

As you are aware, the judgment indicates that Aboriginal title may coexist with, and potentially supersede, fee-simple private ownership. Yet the Court declined to make a clear declaration regarding privately held land. That uncertainty is already having profound impacts. Richmond homeowners were recently notified by their mayor that properties in the city may be subject to Aboriginal title claims. Residents are looking for clear information and reassurance. Richmond’s lone NDP MLA, Kelly Greene, is also the Minister of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness. Because she sits at the cabinet table and carries responsibility for public assurance during periods of risk, her silence has added to local concern at a time when leadership and communication are needed.

This is the concern the Conservative Party has raised for more than a year. You dismissed these warnings, including during the leaders’ debate last year when you said that “nothing could be further from the truth.” What British Columbians were told could never happen is now unfolding before their eyes.

Your decision to advance DRIPA without first securing constitutional clarity has created legal and social instability. Investor confidence has been shaken, and public trust is eroding.

This moment requires caution, not acceleration.

…Continued on page 2

In my letter of August 26, 2025, to the federal Attorney General, the Honourable Sean Fraser, I asked the Government of Canada to refer this matter to the Supreme Court of Canada under section 53(2) of the Supreme Court Act. The question is straightforward: Can Aboriginal title and private property coexist over the same land, and if so, what are the legal consequences for each?

I am asking you to join that request and to immediately pause all negotiations between the Province of British Columbia and First Nations until the Supreme Court of Canada has provided clarity. Continuing now risks compounding the harm and further deepening public division.

I also urge you to provide a public assurance and apology to the residents of Richmond and to British Columbians whose property rights are now in doubt.

This situation demands prudence and leadership. I am asking you to act accordingly, as is your duty as the Premier of the Province of British Columbia.

John Rustad
Leader of the Conservative Official Opposition
MLA, Nechako Lakes

cc: Honourable Nikki Sharma, Attorney General