The minister is responsible for Indigenous Services Canada (ISC), the department of the Government of Canada which delivers federal government services to Indigenous peoples.

The position was created in 2017 by the Trudeau government when the Indian Affairs and Northern Development portfolio was abolished, taking over the management of health, clean water and other services.

Infrastructure has been repaired, expanded, or replaced, training has been strengthened across the country, and additional funding for operations and maintenance is being allocated to communities.

[6] On December 2, 2020 Marc Miller, the minister, announced additional investments of over $1.5 billion to "ensure clean drinking water in First Nations communities.

These advisories occur "when a water system is not functioning well—"because of equipment malfunction and/or operational issues which prevent the system from treating water to the required quality".