Interpretation Amendment Act, 2026

Introduced 92 to 0

Bill M 241 repeals section 8.1 of the Interpretation Act, the rule that every enactment be read as upholding section 35 rights and as consistent with the Declaration.

The Interpretation Act sets the default rules for reading every British Columbia statute and regulation. Section 8.1 has two parts: every enactment is to be read as upholding, and not taking away from, the Aboriginal and treaty rights that section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982 recognizes; and every Act and regulation is to be read as consistent with the Declaration, the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples as adopted by the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act. Bill M 241 removes the section, so neither reading rule applies.