Survey finds many B.C. respondents want Aboriginal title talks paused

A new Research Co. survey found that 61 per cent of British Columbia respondents believe negotiations on Aboriginal title agreements elsewhere in the province should be paused until the Cowichan Tribes case is resolved. Seventeen per cent disagreed and 22 per cent were unsure.

The result was nine percentage points higher than in the firm’s November 2025 survey. The poll was conducted Aug. 2 to 4 among more than 800 B.C. adults and has a stated margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

The Cowichan case stems from a B.C. Supreme Court ruling by Justice Barbara Young last year that Aboriginal title is a prior and senior right to other property interests, including on public and private land. The federal and provincial governments, City of Richmond, Musqueam First Nation and Tsawassen First Nation are appealing the decision. The Cowichan Tribes are also appealing, seeking all 1,846 acres requested in the original case rather than the 740 acres granted.

Sixty-nine per cent of respondents said B.C. property owners should be concerned about the ruling’s consequences. Fifty-three per cent said private property should always take priority over Aboriginal title, while 46 per cent accepted the Cowichan Tribes’ assurance that they are not seeking to displace people from their properties.

The survey also found 59 per cent viewed the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples positively for Canada, down 14 points from November. At the same time, 64 per cent supported First Nations and Indigenous organizations deciding what housing projects can be built on their territories, and 59 per cent supported their authority over whether natural-resource projects proceed.