Federal records show companies owned by former NDP MP turned Liberal caucus member Lori Idlout and her husband received nearly $600,000 in federal contracts over the past five years, much of it tied to Indigenous sensitivity and cultural training for government employees.

According to an Inquiry of Ministry response tabled in the House of Commons, Idlout-linked companies NVision Insight Group Inc., Nunavut Holdings Inc., and Carvings Nunavut Inc. received a combined $583,848 in federal payments since 2021.

The largest single client was the federal Public Prosecution Service, which paid NVision $390,731 for training related to “historical relationships, Indigenous realities and trauma.”

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Other departments also opened the taxpayer wallet.

Indigenous Services Canada spent $50,956. Canadian Heritage paid $15,583 for “staff professional development.” Employment and Social Development Canada spent $10,170 on “Indigenous awareness training,” while the Canada Northern Economic Development Agency paid $76,621 for workshops on Nunavut history and governance. Women and Gender Equality Canada spent another $39,787 for advice related to “equality seeking organizations” in the North.

Idlout recently crossed the floor to join Prime Minister Mark Carney’s Liberal caucus after being elected as a New Democrat.

Idlout previously disclosed to the Ethics Commissioner that she remained a “significant ownership” holder in NVision and instructed staff not to seek its training services.

The records also show NVision had already received more than half a million dollars in federal contracts prior to Idlout’s election, with departments describing the company’s services as “highly specialized.”

Questions about conflicts and spending practices intensified further in March when Idlout repaid the House of Commons $1,756 after purchasing gifts for parliamentary use from her own company, Carvings Nunavut Inc.