Former B.C. cabinet minister George Abbott to serve as chief treaty commissioner

George Abbott speaks at the B.C. Legislative Building in Victoria on Thursday, August 30, 2012. THE CANADIAN PRESS/CHAD HIPOLITO

A former provincial cabinet minister is being promoted to the role of chief commissioner of the British Columbia Treaty Commission, the independent body responsible for facilitating negotiations between First Nations, B.C. and Ottawa.

A joint statement from B.C.’s Ministry of Indigenous Relations, the First Nations Summit and Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada says long-serving MLA George Abbott is set to assume the role for a three-year term.

The move comes just over a year after Abbott was first appointed by the province to serve as one of several commissioners for two years.

The statement says the appointment of the chief commissioner is a consensus decision, starting with the passage of a resolution by the First Nations Summit, followed by orders-in-council by the provincial and federal governments.

It says the province and the First Nations Summit have approved Abbott’s appointment, while Ottawa must still complete its formal approval.

Abbott’s profile on the BC Treaty Commission website says the former MLA represented Shuswap for 17 years, first elected in 1996, and led several cabinet portfolios, including those related to Indigenous relations and health.

Abbott will take over from Celeste Haldane, who was appointed as chief commissioner in 2017. Her third term is set to expire on Saturday.

She was first appointed as a commissioner in 2011 and the government statement says her years of service helped shape the commission’s work.

“She, along with the commissioners, advocated for stronger Indigenous-rights recognition and innovative reconciliation agreements,” it says.

Her tenure also included the successful community ratifications of three treaties with the K’omoks, Kitselas and Kitsumkalum First Nations last year.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 7, 2026.