The interim leader of British Columbia’s Conservative Party says the province’s Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (DRIPA) could be repealed within two to three days if Premier David Eby immediately recalls the legislature.

Trevor Halford made the comments during a Monday morning news conference. He said B.C. cannot wait until February’s regular session to respond to a recent court ruling that found the province’s mineral claims regime “inconsistent” with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP). “The ruling is causing uncertainty and chaos,” Halford said. “Waiting until the next session would be an abdication of leadership.” He added that his party is willing to forego routine legislative activities like question period and committee work to expedite a repeal.

Milobar: DRIPA “flawed,” repeal needed

Kamloops-Centre MLA Peter Milobar emphasized the urgency of reforming DRIPA. “Even the Premier has said at a minimum, DRIPA needs some serious amendments made to it. And so time is of the essence. There’s a lot of uncertainty out there,” Milobar said.

During an interview with Radio NL, Milobar stressed that minor amendments are not enough. “You need to just repeal and then tackle reconciliation in a different way. It’s not about being anti-reconciliation. It’s about acknowledging that DRIPA is flawed in terms of how it will function in the daily operation of government, in daily operation of business and private property rights, as well as even reconciliation with Indigenous nations between themselves. It’s really important that we get reconciliation right. DRIPA most certainly does not appear to be the vehicle the NDP maybe thought it was going to be when they first brought it in.”

He also pointed to Bill 29 (2021) — the Interpretation Amendment Act — which amended B.C.’s Interpretation Act to ensure all legislation is consistent with DRIPA and upholds Indigenous rights under section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982. “DRIPA was brought in 2019. In 2021, then-Attorney General Eby brought in an amendment in the Interpretation Act, which by his own answers actually spelled out very close to what the recent court ruling said. So I think it highlights that it is flawed. The government ought to have known that it was flawed even back in 2021. In fact, that legislation was limited to only 17 minutes worth of committee stage before the government invoked closure on it. It had no further voting or debate on it, and it became law,” Milobar said.

Conservative house leader supports repeal

A’aylah Warbus, the Conservative house leader, also voiced support for repealing DRIPA, saying it puts “the cart before the horse” and duplicates other laws. “It should be used as a guiding document, not law,” Warbus said, echoing calls for a full legislative rethink rather than incremental amendments.

Government response

Premier Eby has said his government is open to amending DRIPA but has not indicated support for a full repeal. Eby has also emphasized that he does not intend to rush the legislature back, saying the province needs time to ensure any legislative changes respond properly to the ruling.

“I’ll be frank. We got the decision on Friday. This is a significant decision. The amendments need to not create additional uncertainty,” Eby said, adding that he wants to amend DRIPA, not scrap it.

“We’ll take some time to put that together, work with different stakeholders, First Nations partners, business community and others to make sure the amendments actually achieve the goal.”

Halford, Milobar, and Warbus’ comments highlight a growing push among Conservatives for an urgent legislative response, framing DRIPA as both legally flawed and politically contentious.

This Bill was only given 17 minutes of Committee Q&A and then Eby forced closure in 2021. Here is one of his answers, the court just ruled how he intended.

Eby “Our intention is that it will operate in such a way that a reasonable interpretation that’s consistent with the UN… https://t.co/esFaf71evv

— Peter Milobar (@PeterMilobar) December 8, 2025