Former Employment, Workforce Development and Official Languages Minister Randy Boissonnault takes part in a press conference in Ottawa on Tuesday, Oct. 22, 2024.Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press
Liberal MP and former cabinet minister Randy Boissonnault told MPs Thursday that he is considering legal action against his former business partner, whom he accuses of describing their company as Indigenous-owned without his permission to seek federal contracting work.
Mr. Boissonnault also repeated his apology for being unclear about his family’s Indigenous heritage and said he has never claimed Indigenous status in order to obtain any benefits.
The Edmonton Centre MP appeared as a witness before the Commons committee on Indigenous and northern affairs, speaking publicly for the first time since he stepped down as employment minister last month.
Employment Minister Randy Boissonnault resigns from cabinet
The meeting was the result of a motion approved by the House on Nov. 19, one day before Mr. Boissonnault resigned, calling for him to appear for two hours before the committee as part of a study on the “barriers posed by fraudulent bids and applications for procurement opportunities set aside for Indigenous businesses.”
Mr. Boissonnault served two terms as an MP, first elected in 2015, defeated in 2019 and later elected again in 2021 and elevated to cabinet that year.
In between his two terms as an MP, he was a co-owner of a company called Global Health Imports, which described itself as an Indigenous company in a 2020 bid for a contract to supply face masks to the government, according to a National Post report.
The company is the subject of several lawsuits and the Edmonton Police Service recently said it is investigating a fraud complaint related to the firm.
Mr. Boissonnault has repeatedly blamed all issues related to GHI on his former business partner, Stephen Anderson, which he did so again Thursday to the committee.
“I deeply regret having gone into business with Mr. Anderson, and I will protect myself and my reputation from his alleged actions. I have sought legal counsel to explore any and all options that may be available to me with respect to Mr. Anderson’s alleged actions in an effort to clear my name,” he said.
Mr. Anderson has not responded to Mr. Boissonnault’s recent criticisms. No one answered Thursday when The Globe called a phone number for Mr. Anderson listed in a GHI corporate report.
During a July committee appearance, Mr. Anderson dismissed what he described as “false and disheartening” conjecture about his company. “I take my compliance seriously, as does the minister, and I am proud of the work I have done,” he told MPs then.
Conservative MPs accused Mr. Boissonnault on Thursday of frequently shifting his version of events related to his family’s Indigenous history and said his claims to have severed management ties with GHI after his re-election in 2021 are not credible.
“As much as you want to distance yourself from it, this is very much yours to own,” said Conservative MP Michael Barrett.
Throughout his political career, Mr. Boissonnault frequently described himself as “a non-status adopted Cree person and member of the Indigenous caucus.”
He told the committee that he was adopted into a family in 1970 and was told growing up that his great-grandmother was Cree. He said the term he used to describe himself did not claim personal Indigenous status, but honoured his family’s Indigenous heritage.
He said his adoptive mother and brother became Métis citizens earlier this year.
“I recognize the ways in which I described my heritage have not always been as accurate as they could have been. As I have said before for this, I sincerely apologize. To be clear, I have never claimed Indigenous status for myself,” he said.
NDP MP Lori Idlout, who represents the riding of Nunavut and who spoke Thursday in both Inuktitut and English, described Mr. Boissonnault’s story as a “race shift” from Cree to Métis family connections.
“You need to ask your family how you will make amends to the people you have hurt,” she said.
Two Liberal MPs who are Indigenous – Michael McLeod, MP for Northwest Territories and Jaime Battiste, MP for Sydney-Victoria, N.S. – both defended Mr. Boissonnault during Thursday’s hearing.
Mr. Battiste chairs the Liberal Indigenous caucus and Mr. McLeod is a long-time member. They said Mr. Boissonnault was encouraged to join and was always clear he was participating as an ally.
“I think one of the first sentences out of his mouth was to state that he was not Indigenous, but he was very keen on joining us as part of the caucus, because he wanted to work with us to help resolve some of the issues,” Mr. McLeod said. “It’s kind of insulting when people say in public that MP Boissonnault lied and got a seat on Indigenous caucus like we didn’t do the proper vetting, or we didn’t do any kind of research.”