OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Wednesday that his employment minister is leaving his post after weeks of questions about his past claims about Indigenous identity.
Trudeau said in a statement that Randy Boissonnault would immediately relinquish his Cabinet position to “focus on clarifying the allegations against him.”
Boissonnault came under scrutiny after the National Post newspaper raised questions about whether he had any indigenous heritage. The newspaper reported that a company he co-owned applied for government contracts while claiming indigenous ownership.
Boissonnault has been described as indigenous several times in Liberal Party communications and in 2018 referred to himself as “Cree without status.”
He has retracted these claims since the reports emerged, and opposition politicians from the Conservative and New Democratic Parties called for him to resign this week.
Due to his departure, there is no longer a cabinet member from the Canadian province of Alberta.
Trudeau has said he will lead his Liberal Party into the next election. No Canadian prime minister in more than a century has won four consecutive terms. The federal election could take place anytime between this fall and October next year. The liberals must count on the support of at least one major party in parliament, as they do not have an absolute majority themselves.
