Ottawa – The Honourable Leona Aglukkaq, Member of Parliament for Nunavut, Minister of Health, and Minister Responsible for the territories today welcomed the passing of the Private Member’s Motion to Rename the Northwest Passage.

The Private Member’s Motion sets out that it is the opinion of the House that the various waterways known as the “Northwest Passage” be renamed as the “Canadian Northwest Passage.”  It was further passed that the House recognizes the importance of the Northwest Passage to the Inuit, therefore the House further supports the identification of an appropriate Inuktitut name for the whole Northwest Passage in cooperation with Inuit land claims organizations and territorial governments.

Lastly, the motion stated that the Inuktitut name be used in conjunction with Canadian Northwest Passage when referring to these internal Canadian waterways.

“The renaming of the Northwest Passage as the Canadian Northwest Passage is very symbolic for Canada and Canadians at a time when our government is making our North a priority,” Aglukkaq said.  “This is a good measure for Canada, and for Inuit who have made a strong case for their involvement in the process,” Aglukkaq continued.  “I am pleased that the motion takes into account Inuit concerns and feel the parallel use of an Inuktitut name will add to the symbolic nature of this motion,” Aglukkaq concluded.

The motion is a good step forward for Canada and Inuit.


If you have any questions or concerns about this issue or any other matter please feel free to contact Leona’s office at:

Phone: 613.992.2848/866.267.7701
Fax:  613.996.9764/867.979.4193
Email: Aglukkaq.L@parl.gc.ca