Employment minister told reporters he is ‘learning about his family in real time’
Employment minister apologizes for shifting claims on family’s Cree heritageL 4 days ago, Duration 1:52
Federal Employment Minister Randy Boissonnault has apologized for misleading statements about his family’s Indigenous heritage after a newspaper report found Boissonnault’s former company, that claimed to be Indigenous-owned when it was applying for a federal contract, was not.
Click on the following link to view the video:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/boissonnault-apology-indigenous-1.7384549
CBC Indigenous: Employment Minister Randy Boissonnault apologized Friday for “not being as clear” as he could have been about his family’s Indigenous heritage and said he asked the Liberal Party to correct the record when it called him Indigenous.
“I apologize unequivocally and I’ll end it there,” he said, speaking to reporters in Edmonton on Friday.
Boissonnault is facing questions over claims he’s made related to his family’s background.
Boissonnault has never said he is Indigenous. But he has referred to his great-grandmother repeatedly in public statements as a Cree woman, said he was given a Cree name in 2021, spoke Cree at least twice in Parliamentary proceedings and self-identified as an “non-status adopted Cree.”
Last week, he issued a statement in response to a National Post report that said his former company, Global Health Imports, identified itself as “Indigenous-owned” while bidding for a federal contract.
In that statement, he said his brother and mother were Métis. In previous statements, he has described his family’s background as Cree.
“I’m learning about my family in real time. I’m learning about my family lore, and I take my responsibility as an MP and as a minister very seriously, and that means representing people,” he said.
“The reason I sought out a way to refer to myself when I was running was so that I could do so in a sensitive and respectful manner.”
Boissonnault’s spokesperson has said that he started referring to himself as an “non-status adopted Cree” following a conversation with an Indigenous researcher. On Friday, the National Post published an interview with the Indigenous researcher in question, who denied suggesting he use those words to describe the minister’s identity.
“I apologize that particular way to refer to myself was inaccurate,” said Boissonnault.
He also denied telling the Liberal Party that he was Indigenous; the party referred to him several years ago as being one of their caucus’s elected Indigenous members. Boissonnault said he “never clicked any box on any form” with the party.
Boissonnault said he stopped sitting with the Liberal Indigenous caucus when he joined cabinet in 2021. He said that when he sat with that caucus previously, it was in the role of an ally.
Opposition weighs in
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre accused Boissonnault of giving a “fake apology” and called on the minister to step down.
“He lies. He is a fake and a fraud just like his boss. Resign NOW,” Poilievre wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said there have been “a lot of concerns” about Boissonnault. He cited an ongoing ethics committee probe into whether the minister continued to work with his former business after joining cabinet, which would be a breach of conflict of interest laws.
WATCH | Boissonnault apologizes for confusion over past statements on family’s Indigenous links: 4 days ago, Duration 2:44
Boissonnault ‘unequivocally’ sorry for confusion over Indigenous family links
Click on the following link to view the video:
https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/boissonnault-apology-indigenous-1.7384549
Employment Minister Randy Boissonnault apologized Friday for ‘not being as clear’ as he says he could have been about his family history. Boissonnault said he was adopted into an Indigenous family, but he himself never claimed Indigenous status.
That probe was launched after a series of texts from his former business partner, Stephen Anderson, were released as part of legal proceedings.
The texts show him referring to a person named “Randy” in business conversations with associates, prompting questions about whether Anderson was still consulting Boissonnault on business matters.
- Ethics commissioner closes most recent probe into Randy Boissonnault’s business dealings
- Newly released texts raise fresh questions about Randy Boissonnault’s business dealings
Boissonnault has denied that he continued to correspond frequently with Anderson and has accused Anderson of using his name without his consent to gain influence.
“As a minister, he shouldn’t be involved in his business. There’s questions of him being involved, now questions about whether it’s his changing story around his Indigenous heritage,” said Singh.
“A lot of questionable behaviour from the minister and I think Canadians deserve better.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Kate McKenna is a senior reporter with CBC News. She is based in the parliamentary bureau. kate.mckenna@cbc.ca.
With files from Wallis Snowden