Kamloops MP Cathy McLeod has been unanimously elected the Vice-Chair of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Indigenous and Northern Affairs.

Calling it an honour, the four-term Kamloops-Thompson-Cariboo MP says this new role will be in addition to her role as the Conservative Shadow Minister for Crown-Indigenous Relations.

“The chairmanship always goes to the government of this committee, but to unanimously have the support of the other committee members as vice-chair is certainly an honour for me,” she told NL News. “I look forward to helping to move forward in terms of the many important issues and the important legislation that we are going to receive.”

“These committees do very important work. They receive the legislation from the government and scrutinize it in great detail. We do look at in-depth some of the critical issues that are facing in our case, Indigenous communities in Canada.”

McLeod says she’s pleased that Parliamentary committees are back up and running, as she says these committees do important work in scrutinizing legislation, adding there are some critical issues facing Indigenous and Northern communities in Canada.

“We know that right now COVID is escalating in some of our First Nations communities and they have unique challenges. We know food security in the North is an issue, we know economic opportunities are an issue, so there’s a whole host of very critical subjects,” McLeod said.

It is not her first time as Vice-Chair – as she held similar roles in the Indigenous Affairs committee and on the Status of Women committee in previous years.

“It is important to find ways to remove systemic barriers First Nations, Metis and Inuit people face as they work towards full participation in Canada’s economy, including the resource sector. Indigenous leaders know that this is the key to lifting many out of heart-wrenching poverty,” she added.