By Christopher Guly
OTTAWA – As his Liberal government begins its third mandate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau could either fill key cabinet roles in Heritage and Industry with fresh faces or stick with the status quo – as he has already by leaving in place Chrystia Freeland as deputy prime minister and finance minister, according to Parliament Hill watchers.
Sheila Copps, a former deputy PM who served as minister of the newly created department of Canadian Heritage from 1996 to 2003, would like new leaders recruited for her old job and to head Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED).
Her pick to replace Steven Guilbeault at Canadian Heritage is Randy Boissonnault, who will return to the House of Commons after winning Edmonton Centre, the riding he lost in 2019. After becoming one of four Liberals elected from Alberta in the 2015 federal election, Boissonnault was appointed parliamentary secretary to then-minister of Canadian Heritage Mélanie Joly.
He comes from a province “where the discussion has to go beyond” natural resources and the Heritage portfolio requires the type of “excellent communicator” that Boissonnault has demonstrated during his time in Parliament, said Copps, who added that the returning Alberta Member of Parliament is “a fairly up-to-speed new media guy” and is capable of tackling such issues as the Liberals’ 2021 campaign commitment to “reintroduce legislation to reform the Broadcasting Act to ensure foreign web giants contribute to the creation and promotion of Canadian stories and music.”
As for Guilbeault, the former Greenpeacer is constantly rumoured to be headed to Environment.
To oversee ISED, Copps believes Ginette Petitpas Taylor, who won re-election as the MP for the New Brunswick riding of Moncton-Riverview-Dieppe and who previously served as federal health minister before being dropped from cabinet in 2019, would be a good fit.
This way, explained Canada’s sixth deputy prime minister, Trudeau would have east-west representation in the industry and heritage portfolios.
Or, if the prime minister wanted to choose from within his existing cabinet, he could send Anita Anand, the Oakville, Ontario MP who has overseen vaccine distribution during the pandemic as public services and procurement minister, to ISED.
Jim Armour, managing partner of Ottawa-based communications and public affairs firm, Summa Strategies, sees François-Philippe Champagne, who was just appointed minister of Innovation, Science and Industry in January, staying put.
“He still has the warranty and the new car smell,” said Armour, who served as communications director for former Reform party leader Preston Manning, former Canadian Alliance leader Stockwell Day, and former Conservative prime minister Stephen Harper when he was official opposition leader.
With three female cabinet ministers (Bernadette Jordan, Maryam Monsef and Deb Schulte) having lost their seats in the election – and Environment and Climate Change Minister Catherine McKenna’s decision not to seek re-election in Ottawa Centre – Armour expects Trudeau to appoint a woman to replace Steven Guilbeault at Canadian Heritage.
He has his eye on two Quebec MPs.
One is Soraya Martinez Ferrada, who was first elected to the House in 2019 to represent the riding of Hochelaga. She served as chief of staff and senior advisor to Joly when the latter held the Heritage portfolio, and like Pablo Rodriguez – Joly’s successor on that file – hails from South America.
Martinez Ferrada and Rodriguez were born in Chile and Argentina respectively.
“If you’re looking to send a message on the media side with protections or supporting print, she would be a good choice.”
The other potential appointee as heritage minister is Pascale St-Onge, who narrowly won the Quebec riding of Brome-Missisquoi – the results of which are now being contested by the Bloc Québécois candidate.
A former secretary general and two-term president of the Fédération nationale des communications et de la culture, who led a plan to buy out the Capitales Médias Group chain of Quebec newspapers and transform the enterprise into a cooperative, St-Onge has hands-on experience for the Canadian Heritage file, said Armour.
“If you’re looking to send a message on the media side with protections or supporting print, she would be a good choice.”
On the ISED portfolio, should Trudeau choose to move Champagne, he has a trio of female ministers from which to make the selection, beginning with Joly. “Canadian Heritage didn’t go the way she wanted, but she’s done, by everybody’s view, a pretty good job in economic development and is probably in line for a promotion,” he explained, adding that Small Business, Export Promotion and International Trade Minister Mary Ng is another option for industry minister.
So too is Bardish Chagger, the minister of diversity, inclusion and youth, because of the Ontario riding she represents in the Commons. “Waterloo is a hub for innovation and tech,” said Armour.
Robert Ghiz, president and CEO of the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association, also thinks Champagne will remain in charge of ISED.
“He’s probably one of the cabinet ministers with the most business experience and he’s one of the top-performing ministers, so I wouldn’t be surprised if he stayed,” said Ghiz, a former Liberal premier of Prince Edward Island.
He wouldn’t mind if Guilbeault remained at Heritage too, since the status quo wouldn’t be a bad thing. “From my perspective continuity would be good,” he explained, and would avoid bringing a new minister up to speed on new files and with new departmental staff.
On Tuesday, Trudeau told reporters that he would unveil his new cabinet next month – likely after Thanksgiving Day, according to Liberal insiders.
