Evidence of meeting #111 for Government Operations and Estimates in the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was company.
A recording is available from Parliament.
12:20 p.m.
President and Chief Executive Officer, Des Nedhe Development
It took about a week for it all.
12:20 p.m.
Conservative
Kelly McCauley Conservative Edmonton West, AB
That's great.
Where do you see the opportunity—and this is for several of you—for more DND military procurement? Some things obviously you're not going to have the capacity for, but there are other areas that maybe aboriginal business does have capacity for.
12:20 p.m.
President and Chief Executive Officer, Des Nedhe Development
I think you heard from Mr. Christmas that if you provide the opportunity, we'll fill it. We have a company that's $40 million large that is certified by the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission to do all of the uranium mining for Cameco.
12:20 p.m.
Conservative
12:20 p.m.
President and Chief Executive Officer, Des Nedhe Development
You build this capacity, so we have the capacity that we would fill.... We are one of the largest steel manufacturing companies in the province, and we could easily provide steel and welding to shipbuilding or to land-based vehicles within the military.
12:25 p.m.
Conservative
Kelly McCauley Conservative Edmonton West, AB
My colleague from the NDP is going to ask you about your steel.
Mr. Christmas—
12:25 p.m.
Chief Executive Officer and General Counsel, Gitpo Storms Corporation, As an Individual
Yes, the combat systems are coming out now for the ships. Lockheed Martin said they are going to do this along with a gazillion companies that are trying to get in and trying to figure out how to do that. Even if you said to those companies that they must partner with an indigenous business, holy smoke, there would be so much—
12:25 p.m.
Conservative
Kelly McCauley Conservative Edmonton West, AB
Do we have the capacity? I know Mr. Willy says we'll fill the capacity, but for some of the high-tech stuff.... Steel you have, but some other things you don't have.
12:25 p.m.
Chief Executive Officer and General Counsel, Gitpo Storms Corporation, As an Individual
As an example, we were going to do the integrated computer systems contract for the helicopter. We never had that before, but because we were about to get it, we created a whole technological system to take advantage of it. It can be done.
12:25 p.m.
President and Member of Red Sky Metis Independent Nation, K-Sports Marine Inc.
Just to leave it at the defence department, they do defence training, cold climates, and so forth, including snowmobile rental. I do have a standing offer with them. It's outside PSAB, and I have a 60:40 split. I have had small amounts being used. They know I'm an indigenous business, and they do have contracts, or they do operations in which they can use us. They know we're there, but we still don't get used.
12:25 p.m.
Conservative
Kelly McCauley Conservative Edmonton West, AB
Mr. Willy—and the others can answer as well—you talked about corporate fronts. I asked this of our other witnesses. What provides better benefits for our communities? Is it an indigenous owner with non-indigenous staff, or is it a non-indigenous owner with fully indigenous staff? With the requirements we have under PSAB, are we serving the communities properly and delivering the best benefits?
I realize we have only about a minute, so you could answer quickly, if you're able to. What's going to work best?
12:25 p.m.
President and Chief Executive Officer, Des Nedhe Development
It's up to each individual community. Our community wants own-source revenues so we can create our own path. We'll go out and purchase. We own a technical company that has five indigenous employees out of the 20, but we're quite happy with that, because we know we can't supply the labour at this point.
12:25 p.m.
Conservative
12:25 p.m.
Executive Vice-President, Corporate, Seven Generations Energy Ltd.
With us, as for growing those companies, one thing we see is really about sustainable businesses. Some of the communities we work with are most successful because the businesses are often owned by the band itself, by the community. They employ a number of people. One employs 80 people. It's getting to the next level of job training for not just the entry jobs, but more towards the higher-tech types of positions. It's about growth.
12:25 p.m.
Conservative
12:25 p.m.
President, FoxWise Technologies Inc.
Yes. I just want to state that there are not just community-based businesses out there. I'm not a community-based business, and if I—
12:25 p.m.
Conservative
Kelly McCauley Conservative Edmonton West, AB
I just want to make sure our requirements are not hampering what's going to deliver the best value and the most wealth to the communities.
12:25 p.m.
President, FoxWise Technologies Inc.
Well, as I said, we've employed 40 first nations people from across Canada to work within our company, so I think that provides value.
12:25 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Tom Lukiwski
You may want to put on your interpretation devices si vous ne parlez pas français.
Mr. Ayoub, you have five minutes.
12:25 p.m.
Liberal
Ramez Ayoub Liberal Thérèse-De Blainville, QC
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Since I have only five minutes, it's easier for me to ask you questions in French.
My thanks to the witnesses for shedding light on some of the challenges you mentioned. Your testimony made me wonder about something. Could you confirm or deny my understanding and impression?
In some cases, would it not be easier to omit mentioning that your businesses are indigenous businesses, rather than promoting the benefits of doing business with indigenous companies and using that selection criterion? Would it sometimes be easier to present yourself as if your business were comparable to the rest of the market? Supply and demand would then place you in a competitive position without there being any other selection criteria.
Have you thought about it before or is it just not part of your market acquisition plan?
12:30 p.m.
Liberal
Ramez Ayoub Liberal Thérèse-De Blainville, QC
Mr. Damm or Mr. Christmas, I had the impression that you both mentioned it.
I feel that, in some cases, you met the criteria, but you were not receiving calls. I'm a little confused by that.
Could you tell me the percentage of your revenue from the business you do with the federal government using the specificity criteria that are supposed to benefit you or convince companies to do business with you, as opposed to other criteria of the free market in Canada and the United States, a market that does not deal with the federal government?
12:30 p.m.
President, FoxWise Technologies Inc.
We still need to work hard to stimulate growth amongst first nations communities and through first nations business. I think it's paramount. It's very, very important.
My point is that today it seems to be broken. The PSAB program and the set-asides aren't working properly. As a business owner, as an entrepreneur, I have to fight for my business and I have to do whatever it takes to build my business. Whether it's set-aside, non-set-aside, or whatever, we do whatever it takes. As I said, there—
12:30 p.m.
Liberal
Ramez Ayoub Liberal Thérèse-De Blainville, QC
If I may, what is the percentage of business that you're doing with the federal government and not with the government?