Doug Ford offers amendment to First Nations on mining bill but vows to speed development through ‘economic zones’

Ontario Premier Doug Ford says his government will consult with First Nations this summer about allowing them to set up their own “economic zones” to speed development but will still pass sweeping proposed legislation that has angered Indigenous leaders and been criticized as antidemocratic.Ontario’s Bill 5, which would allow it to designate “special economic zones” where it could suspend any provincial law – including environmental or labour rules – has been condemned by First Nations leaders, who say they were not consulted.