Former Employment, Workforce Development and Official Languages Minister Randy Boissonnault takes part in a press conference in Ottawa on Tuesday, Oct. 22, 2024.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.
Thursday’s meeting lasted for more than two hours, with Conservative MPs accusing Liberal MPs of not complying with the House order by disrupting the meeting with frequent procedural questions. Liberal MPs blamed Conservatives for the delays, accusing them of using unparliamentary language. 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.
“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.
“I take my compliance seriously, as does the minister, and I am proud of the work I have done,” he told MPs then. Throughout his political career, Mr. Boissonnault frequently described himself as “a non-status adopted Cree person and member of the Indigenous caucus.”