Evidence of meeting #136 for Indigenous and Northern Affairs in the 44th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was procurement.
A video is available from Parliament.
December 9th, 2024 / 5:35 p.m.
Conservative
Garnett Genuis Conservative Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB
My next question is for you, Ms. Sultan.
Were you responsible for terminating the government's contract with Roundpoint Consulting?
Jessica Sultan Director General, Economic Policy Development, Department of Indigenous Services
The contract with Roundpoint Consulting was terminated by the contracting authorities of Indigenous Services Canada, as the contracting authorities would in this situation—
Conservative
Director General, Economic Policy Development, Department of Indigenous Services
Any decision to terminate would be between the program authority, which is who I am, and the contracting authority.
Conservative
Director General, Economic Policy Development, Department of Indigenous Services
It's a joint decision—
Director General, Economic Policy Development, Department of Indigenous Services
—between me and the contracting authorities—
Conservative
Director General, Economic Policy Development, Department of Indigenous Services
The decision was made because the work that was being done under that contract had changed significantly from when it was put in place, and the statement of work that had been used to award that contract no longer reflected accurately what the contractor was doing. The work essentially had diminished and was not required.
Conservative
Garnett Genuis Conservative Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB
Okay.
They were in the middle of doing an audit into the Canadian Health Care Agency, and according to reports in The Globe and Mail, the government—so, you—told them to no longer look into the indigeneity claims of companies. Is that true?
Director General, Economic Policy Development, Department of Indigenous Services
No, what you just stated is not factual.
Conservative
Garnett Genuis Conservative Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB
Is the story in The Globe and Mail correct?
Director General, Economic Policy Development, Department of Indigenous Services
The audit was done in 2016. The termination of the contract occurred in 2023, and the changes to the process, including who was verifying indigeneity, occurred in 2022.
Conservative
Garnett Genuis Conservative Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB
Is there anything in the Globe and Mail story on this that you dispute?
Director General, Economic Policy Development, Department of Indigenous Services
I think that sometimes people.... The opinions reflected in that article reflect the opinions of Mr. Garry Hartle.
Conservative
Garnett Genuis Conservative Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB
Is there anything in the article that you dispute?
Liberal
Conservative
Garnett Genuis Conservative Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB
No, my questions are for Ms. Sultan—
Liberal
Patty Hajdu Liberal Thunder Bay—Superior North, ON
I am the minister, and I get to direct how the questions are answered and asked—
Conservative
Conservative
Garnett Genuis Conservative Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB
Mr. Chair, it's obvious what you're trying to do. The official responsible for this didn't want to answer the question, so the minister jumped in to prevent her from needing to answer it. It's obvious to everyone what's going on—
Liberal
Patty Hajdu Liberal Thunder Bay—Superior North, ON
That is not accurate, Mr. Chair. The member of Parliament, I would say, has asked the question and has received an answer.
What I would also say is that he asked this question of me earlier, and I gave him a clear answer—
