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Prime Minister Justin Trudeau sat down with Winnipeg Free Press Editor Paul Samyn for a wide-ranging interview on Thursday.

The event, held at the Winnipeg Free Press News Café, was a fulfillment of promise Trudeau had made to the newspaper.

"I was here a few years ago and one of the promises I made — and it’s great when a politician can keep promises — was to come back,” said a casually dressed Trudeau.

"I’m glad to be here because these kinds of forums of exchanges, of conversations are essential for democracy to stay helpful and healthy — to make sure that we get to exchange and hear from people who have concrete concerns.”

In attendance were students from Winnipeg’s Children of the Earth High School, which is marking its 25th anniversary Friday. Trudeau has made it clear in the past and on Thursday that issues involving indigenous youth remain close to his heart.

Trudeau’s Liberals swept into power last October and are still enjoying a honeymoon with Canadian voters. But there are challenges on the horizon — indigenous rights, legalization of marijuana, medically assisted suicide, and the suicide epidemic on First Nations.

Trudeau talked about those issues and more in the exclusive interview.

On assisted dying

Paul Samyn: Across the street, as you know, is a boxing club. Now I’m not going to use that to talk about the fisticuffs that nearly sparked in the House of Commons a couple weeks back, but rather to talk about the government’s majority muscle and how it’s been used. How it’s been used on time allocation. How it’s been used in some of the things that have been happening in committees. As it relates to electoral reform. As it relates to C-14, the assisted death legislation, and as well as the Air Canada Act (C-10). Those are things that you and the Liberals railed about when the Conservatives did it. Why are you doing much of the same?

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau: Actually, we’re not. We got elected on a platform to get things done for Canadians. And, among other things, the Supreme Court tasked the Parliament of Canada to bring forward a framework for assisted dying.

The previous government did absolutely nothing on that for 10 months and then, when we came into power, we had two months to get it done. We turned to the Supreme Court and said: ‘Could we get a little more time to be able to listen to Canadians, to work on this important issue.’ (The Supreme Court agreed to an extension – it runs out on June 6.)

‘There are folks, to our left who don’t think the bill goes far enough’

Canadians expect we have a process that actually allows Canadians who are seeking death with dignity to get the kind of medical help they need. At the same time, Canadians expect government to protect our most vulnerable — and getting that balance right is extremely important. Now, we are very much hopeful that we are going to hit that June 6 deadline, because, lacking a framework, Canadians are at risk. So, we put forward a clear series of proposals, or processes; we worked to listen to Canadians.

There are folks, to our (political) left, who don’t think the bill goes far enough — that we should be more permissive in terms of medical assistance in dying. There are folks, to our right, who think the bill goes too far and we should be less permissive on medical assistance in dying and both of those parties are trying to slow down the process. A great example is the Conservatives had the same people get up over and over again to try and drag out the clock, while we’re very aware that we have a deadline that we have to try and hit.

We’ve just sent the bill to the Senate. We’re hopeful that the Senate is going to do it responsibly, but do it quickly, so that we can make sure Canadians are being protected. But, Canadians have very little patience for the kinds of partisan games that unfortunately opposition parties have used from time to time. Now, this is not to say we have been without our challenges and that’s why one of the things we did just today (Thursday) was announce that on electoral reform, which we’ve always said is important to listen to Canadians and to involve all parliamentarians, we’ve agreed with opposition parties that, fine, maybe Liberals shouldn’t have a majority on the electoral reform committee. We said: ‘You know what? Let’s give the majority to opposition members so we can have a quality discussion about how we can improve our electoral system.’ Those are the kinds of things that Canadians expect us to do. And that’s exactly what we’re doing.

Gallery: High school students meet the PM

On C-10

Samyn: There seems to be no reason to rush C-10. For maintenance workers here in Manitoba who are hopeful they could get those high-paying jobs back, they’re watching this thing steamroll ahead. The Manitoba government doesn’t want it moving ahead, the Quebec government doesn’t want it moving ahead, and they’re worried that what’s happening here is something that, again, is going to favour Quebec and Quebec interests over those in Manitoba. So, why is it moving as quickly as it’s moving?

A primer on the Air Canada bill

• In the 1980s when Air Canada was privatized, one of the limits placed by the government was that it had to maintain heavy maintenance operations centres in Montreal, Winnipeg and Mississauga, Ont.

• Bill C-10 will amend the Act to no longer require heavy maintenance work. Instead the new law will require Air Canada to have maintenance jobs of any kind in Manitoba, Quebec and Ontario. The law does not specify how many jobs.

• Critics argue the airline could fulfill this requirement with a single worker. It has dashed all hopes the courts will force the airline to restore hundreds of heavy maintenance jobs in Winnipeg that were lost.

• The bill has passed the House of Commons and is awaiting debate in the Senate.

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Trudeau: This idea that there is an unlimited amount of time to pass legislation in the House is simply not true. The opposition parties certainly have no interest in us even passing legislation that they wholly agree with because governments getting things done that people approve of is difficult for an opposition to run against in the next election. But, the fact of the matter is, we have studied — the aerospace industry’s extremely important for us — and we were able to secure a return of 150 high paying jobs to here, Manitoba, in the aerospace sector. Now, a number of years ago you lost 400 jobs in that sector and that’s something we’re definitely working forward to getting back. One hundred and fifty new jobs is a step in the right direction, but, you’re right, it’s not enough.

And that’s why we continue to work with the aerospace industry, with companies like Air Canada on one side, Bombardier on others, to try and encourage investments here and the kinds of high-quality jobs that Manitobans and Winnipeggers have demonstrated time and time again they are more than capable and competitive in terms of filling. And we’re going to continue working on that, but there aren’t any overnight, quick successes or quick fixes. It’s strong, meaningful work. And on that, we’ve been very closely engaged with the Manitoba government, with our Manitoba MPs and we’re moving in the right direction.

On marijuana

Samyn: It’s fair to say the planned legalization of marijuana has created a cloud of controversy. A number of pot dispensaries have popped up, and the application of the law is extremely uneven depending on the city and the province. What responsibility does your government take for that confusion and how can you clear that air?

Trudeau: I’ve been very, very clear from the very beginning on this. The first time I’ve ever talked about our platform to legalize and not decriminalize marijuana — and there’s a big difference between the two — is I’m in favour of legalization and not in favour of decriminalization alone, which is a position the NDP and now, apparently, the Conservatives are taking. I’ll make it very clear because there are two things that convinced me that legalization of marijuana, of changing our marijuana regime are necessary.

‘I lived in Whistler for a few years…’

One of them is, because right now, underage Canadians have incredibly easy access to marijuana. In a UN study of 29 different advanced developing countries, the No. 1 country for underage access to marijuana in the world was Canada. It’s easier for our kids to get their hands on pot than anything else. You can talk about how marijuana may be less harmful than alcohol or cigarettes in some ways, and there’s studies to prove that, but there is no question that the developing brains (of the underaged) are more vulnerable to the harmful effects of marijuana. So my approach is to say if we legalize marijuana, if we start controlling points of sale, the demand to show proper I.D., the same way we do for alcohol or cigarettes, will make it more difficult for young people to get access.

And the second thing is that our current system provides billions upon billions of dollars of revenue to criminal organizations, street gangs and gunrunners — it’s a massive source of revenue for violence in our streets. So legalizing, getting the point of sale out of the hands of criminals, controlling who we sell it to, will make our system safer for Canadians.

Decriminalization does nothing to control the age of who’s buying it or who actually gets to make money from selling it. And that’s what I have talked about from the beginning. So until we bring in a legalized regime, the current laws on marijuana apply and should be applied. The fact that we are going to make changes to remove the money from criminal organizations and protect our kids needs to be done properly and can’t be done randomly or organically the way people are trying to get it done now.

If marijuana is legalized, who should be allowed sell it?

A recent Forum poll shows 22 per cent of respondents believe marijuana should be sold through a government agency — like the Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries — while 17 per cent suggested it should be the responsibility of the private sector. 

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Samyn: On the points of sale — where do you want to go buy your legal marijuana? Shoppers Drug Mart or a Crown-owned agency?

Trudeau: The fact is, in Canada, the federal government doesn’t necessarily decide that on its own. Liquor control is done by the provinces — we have provinces like Quebec that do it very differently than other places. So, it’ll be up to the federal government to create a framework to work with the provinces to figure out what exactly is going to work for different jurisdictions across the country. That’s the only responsible way to go about doing this, and, like we said from the very beginning, we’re going to do this responsibly.

Samyn: One last cannabis query. You admitted smoking pot when it was illegal as an MP. When it’s legalized, will you smoke it as a prime minister?

Trudeau: I don’t think so. As I’ve said many times, I am not someone who has a history of using drugs. I lived in Whistler for a few years and was certainly surrounded with a lot of friends who did. But it was just never my thing. I don’t drink very much, I don’t smoke, never have. I don’t even drink coffee because I don’t like the jolt that caffeine gives me. And when I told people I don’t drink coffee, it made far more of an uproar than it did when I told people I once smoked a cigarette, once smoked a joint. So, the fact is it’s my choice that I not do that and we should respect adult’s choices, to make their own decisions.

On indigenous rights

Samyn: I want to talk about the aboriginal issues. You’ve talked about a new relationship with Canada’s First Nations, but in talking about that…

Trudeau: They’re not Canada’s First Nations. They’re First Nations. They’re indigenous peoples.

Samyn: Fair enough. You’ve also, though, raised expectations. The question for you is have you raised expectations beyond what Canada has the fiscal capacity to deal with and to deal with in a time frame that is going to ensure that those who are listening, hoping and praying those promises come true, what happens when they don’t?

Trudeau: A lot of people have talked about the Kelowna Accord that was signed by the previous Liberal government in 2005 —and that represented a $5-billion investment that got cancelled as soon as the government changed in 2006. It represents 10 lost years of investments that were not made in infrastructure, in schools, in social services, in housing, in water treatment, in all sorts of things and those are 10 years we can’t get back.

No quick fix

But, in our budget we put in $8.6 billion over the coming years into indigenous issues, everything from education to water to housing to a broad range of infrastructure so that we could renew the relationship. And one of the things that I’ve always said, and I think one of the things people know on this, is there is no quick fix. It’s not going to be suddenly OK.

I think we understand the challenges we’re facing were created largely by Canada and the Canadian government over decades — indeed centuries — and are going to take years to turn around. But I do know, and I feel this every time I have a conversation with an indigenous person right across the country, that there is a tremendous opportunity to start meaningfully down the path of getting it right.

That means moving towards parity so indigenous students have the same kind of funding in their schools as non-indigenous Canadians. That access to health care is even right across the country, including indigenous communities. That we start dealing with the boil-water advisories that make Canada seem like a Third World developing country instead of the advanced economy that it is. There are so many things we have to get right as building blocks for fixing a relationship that, yes, we have to move forward meaningfully on, but it’s a challenge that will outlive my time as prime minister, no matter how successful I am over the coming years.

This is one (area) that Canada needs to engage in. The one thing that inspires and reassures me just about more than anything else is actually talking to young, indigenous individuals and leaders such as yourselves here today from the Children of the Earth high school. You are part of the solution and you have been waiting individually and collectively a long time for a government that was willing to say: ‘Let us be partners the way that our ancestors committed to. Let us share the responsibilities we have here. Let us walk forward together and let us build opportunities and success for everyone who shares this extraordinary land and that, unfortunately, has not been adequately said or built up over the past years.’ That’s something we’re getting started on.

On suicide prevention

Christine Daniels, a student at Children of the Earth High School: Making the youth suicide crisis in indigenous communities a top priority is a great first step, but creating a national prevention strategy takes time. We acknowledge your plan to meet with the chief of Attawapiskat in Ontario. How can you help youth currently in crisis in Pimicikamak in Manitoba?

Trudeau: Obviously suicide prevention and suicide in general is a huge issue for indigenous communities right across the country — as it is for all of us who see the news coming out of Attawapiskat and elsewhere with tremendous concern.

A couple months ago, I went to visit Shoal Lake (the Ontario First Nation which is the source of Winnipeg’s drinking water) and got to meet with a number of young people who were quite vocal about what their challenges were and where the past dissolutions were. I’m going to be meeting with the chief of Attawapiskat, but just as important for me, I’m also going to be meeting with young people from Attawapiskat because quite frankly when our indigenous affairs minister, Carolyn Bennett, went up to Attawapiskat a little while ago, she spent a lot of time talking to the young people. And the kinds of things that came forward were very different than what the chief had to say about what Attawapiskat needed.

High number reported suicidal thoughts

About 24 per cent of First Nations people living off-reserve reported having suicidal thoughts at some point. The proportion was similar for Inuit, at 23.5 per cent, and a little lower for Métis, at 19.6 per cent, according to Statistics Canada

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The young people were talking about, ‘can we get courses that will help reconnect us with the land? We don’t know how to hunt or fish anymore, can you help us with sort of survival knowledge that our elders used to know, but got wiped away with residential schools so our parents weren’t able to teach us that? Can you help us take pride once again in our language and in our culture?’

We know there’s a youth suicide crisis within indigenous communities across this country, much higher rates than non-indigenous communities. But if you look at communities that have a great system for teaching indigenous languages and culture, in those communities the suicide rate is way lower than in other communities that don’t have that because so much of the despair and hopelessness and lack of opportunity for the future comes from not feeling good about who you are and where you are.

One of the things that touches me deeply is every time I go to an indigenous school anywhere across the country, I’m welcomed with drumming, with singing, with smudging ceremonies and with a celebration of culture that I see a lot of people just taking for granted as this is just part of what we do and how we celebrate. But to think that 30 years ago, 50 years ago, the federal government worked very hard to try and eliminate drumming, languages, songs, culture from indigenous peoples. It’s so damaging, as we saw from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission report, that we allowed that to happen for far too long.

It’s about the future of Canada

As we start to think about how we build economies that go from short-term success towards understanding long-term success, drawing on the people who’ve lived on this land for millennia is a very good philosophy to listen to. But more than that, how we look at creating the opportunities, the jobs, the education, the infrastructure, the housing, the social support, the pathways to success that are so essential for indigenous Canadians to participate fully in our national success is pressing.

I mean when we look at the population of this country, the highest percentage of young people are in indigenous communities. So investing in First Nations education, investing in indigenous opportunities isn’t just about the future of indigenous communities, it’s about the future of Canada and that’s why this is such an important issue for me.

This interview has been edited and condensed. Transcribed by Bailey Hildebrand and edited by Scott Gibbons. Video by Tyler Walsh and Mike Deal, additional graphics and online presentation by Graeme Bruce.

Watch the full Free Press Café event