Trudeau shuffles senior ministers, puts Champagne in Innovation and Garneau at Global Affairs – The Globe and Mail
Clockwise from top left: Omar Alghabra, Francois-Philippe Champagne, Jim Carr and Marc Garneau. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced a cabinet shuffle Tuesday that changed the leadership of senior portfolios.
The Canadian Press and Getty Images
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has changed the leadership of senior portfolios including Global Affairs and Transport in a shuffle triggered by Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains’s decision to leave cabinet and not seek re-election.
The Tuesday moves add fuel to speculation that the government is preparing for the next election campaign, even though the Liberals were re-elected with a minority mandate just over a year ago.
Mr. Trudeau told reporters he is not seeking an election and would prefer to continue governing.
Story continues below advertisement
The Prime Minister said Mr. Bains’s decision to step down was his own – he did not ask his ministers to step down if they were not planning to run in the next campaign.
Asked if he would wait to trigger an election until everyone who wants to get a COVID-19 vaccine shot has done so, Mr. Trudeau avoided answering the question directly, saying: “My commitment is to doing whatever is necessary to support Canadians through this pandemic.”
“From the very beginning of any minority Parliament, every political party understands that elections can happen. But as I’ve been consistently saying, we don’t want an election, we need to continue to work hard and focus on Canadians,” he said in response to another question about a possible return to the polls.
The cabinet shuffle sees Foreign Affairs Minister François-Philippe Champagne replace Mr. Bains, with Marc Garneau moving from Transport to Global Affairs.
Mississauga Centre MP Omar Alghabra has been promoted into cabinet to replace Mr. Garneau, and Jim Carr returns to cabinet as a minister without portfolio while continuing in his role as special representative for the Prairies. Mr. Carr left cabinet after the 2019 election due to a cancer diagnosis.
Mr. Bains recently asked the Prime Minister to go for a “walk in the snow” to discuss his plans. Mr. Trudeau said he initially tried to convince Mr. Bains to stay during their physically distanced walk on the grounds of Ottawa’s Rideau Hall, but the minister explained why it was the best decision for him and his family.
A senior government official said the Prime Minister was taken aback by the decision and that Mr. Bains told Mr. Trudeau his wife wanted to return to work and he wanted to spend more time with his daughters.
Story continues below advertisement
The Globe and Mail is not identifying the senior official because they were not authorized to publicly discuss behind-the-scene deliberations of the cabinet shuffle.
The official said Mr. Champagne was a natural choice for the Innovation portfolio because of his “energy and intelligence,” and the Prime Minister believes he can play a key role in rebuilding the economy when the pandemic subsides.
Mr. Bains, who has a daughter in Grade 8 and another in Grade 5, has spent 17 years in politics and won a seat in five of the last six federal elections. He said he decided not to run again after his older daughter pointed out that, if he puts his name on the ballot in the next election, she might be in university before he is back living at home full-time. He said it struck a chord with him and led to tough conversations.
“I came to the realization with my wife that I’ve got this small window of opportunity to spend time with my girls,” Mr. Bains said.
Compared with the typical pomp and circumstance of a swearing-in event, Tuesday’s was a sparse affair that was managed remotely over a video call.
“Bravo on this first-ever virtual swearing-in ceremony in the history of Canada,” Governor-General Julie Payette said at the end.
Story continues below advertisement
Soon after last fall’s election, Mr. Carr announced he had been diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a type of blood cancer. He served as a cabinet minister from 2015 to 2019 but was not in cabinet during his cancer treatment and instead served as the Prime Minister’s special representative for the Prairies.
Mr. Carr’s move back to cabinet is another sign the Liberals are turning their attention to the next federal election. The small foothold they won in the Prairies in 2015 was almost wiped out in 2019, and elevating Mr. Carr back to cabinet shows the region will get a renewed focus.
“It goes without saying that the Prime Minister is looking ahead and certainly would want ministers to be present to make sure we’re facing one of the most challenging times in our nation’s history,” Mr. Champagne said when asked if all ministers had been asked if they would run in the next election. “The Prime Minister wanted to have a continuity and kind of a transition to make sure that the people who served on cabinet would be there for the long term.”
Mr. Champagne, who held leadership positions in global energy and technology firms prior to his first election as an MP in 2015, suggested he will be an advocate for workers and businesses at the cabinet table.
Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole said in an e-mailed statement to The Globe that the government should put health and economic concerns ahead of electoral politics.
“At a time when Canadians are concerned about the health and well-being of their families and their personal financial security, it’s clear the Liberals are getting ready to force an election,” he said. “Conservatives will continue to focus on helping Canadians weather the pandemic and the devastating economic crisis, even if the Liberals won’t.”
Story continues below advertisement
Mr. Alghabra, who was born in Saudi Arabia to a Syrian family, immigrated to Toronto at the age of 19 to study mechanical engineering at Ryerson University. He recalled that his only contact in Canada at the time was a cousin who met him at the airport and that he worked nights at doughnut shops and convenience stores to support himself through school.
He was first elected as a Liberal MP in 2006 but lost his seat in the 2008 election. He returned to Ottawa after the 2015 campaign. He said his personal story will help him represent immigrants and people of colour at the cabinet table.
“I’m a proud Syrian Arab Muslim,” he said. “All of those experiences together, I think, give me the insight into what many Canadians feel. My story represents the story of many, many Canadians.”
Mr. Garneau, a former astronaut, pointed out that he lived in the United States for almost a decade before entering politics and is familiar with the Canada-U.S. file through his work chairing the committee on that relationship during recent trade negotiations. He said that, as the new Foreign Affairs Minister, he will work with the incoming Biden administration on areas of shared interest, in particular the cases of Canadians Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, who have been arbitrarily detained in China.
“Certainly, the relationship between Canada and China is very important, but there are also points of intersection in the relationships with the United States and China,” he said.
With a report from Robert Fife.
Story continues below advertisement
Know what is happening in the halls of power with the day’s top political headlines and commentary as selected by Globe editors (subscribers only). Sign up today.