Procurement Ombud Alexander Jeglic speaks during a news conference in Ottawa on July 8, 2025. The Canadian Press/Adrian Wyld
Indigenous Services Canada and other departments are failing to uphold their own Indigenous procurement strategy and may be allowing contractors to use shell companies to access contracts reserved for Indigenous businesses, says the federal procurement ombudsman.
In a scathing new report released Thursday, Alexander Jeglic says Indigenous Services Canada failed to provide timely answers to procurement officers’ questions in some cases and allowed some contracts to go out to companies not listed in the Indigenous Business Directory.
