Justin Trudeau will carry out a major cabinet reshuffle on Wednesday, and “big names” in the cabinet could change roles, sources in the federal government have said.
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According to our information, the reshuffle will take place on Wednesday to give the prime minister time to coordinate the operation. All elected officials who welcome a new file are called back to Ottawa on Monday and Tuesday to discuss their new role.
This reshuffle rejects the idea of an early election in the fall and even signals that the Trudeau government could indeed complete the four-year term obtained in the last election, which is extremely rare for a minority government.
The government faces new challenges in the form of a growing housing crisis and an ever-increasing cost of living. The next cabinet would first serve to meet these needs in a pre-election context.
After weeks of speculation, the rumor machine resumed with a vengeance on Sunday evening with the cancellation of events for a few ministers scheduled for Monday, including Omar Alghabra at Transport and Ginette Petitpas Taylor at Official Languages.
All eyes will be on Public Security Minister Marco Mendicino, who has been harshly criticized for his handling of a few files, including that of hunting weapons and, more recently, the transfer of Paul Bernardo to a medium-security prison.
With a positive record on the Hockey Canada file and sexual violence in sports in general, “well loved” by the public when she travels to Quebec, the Minister of Sports Pascale St-Onge could receive a promotion and inherit a more important role, according to several sources.
Carolyn Bennett, Minister for Mental Health and Addictions, announced on Monday that she will not stand again in the next ballot, likely meaning she has been kicked out of the cabinet.
The Minister of the Environment, Steven Guilbeault, assured in a press briefing that he had received the “green light” to go to the G20 in India on Monday evening. In other words, Mr. Guilbeault would almost certainly keep his ministry.
Whatever the case, the lucky ones will meet at Rideau Hall, home of the Governor General, to formalize their new duties.
A retreat for the new team is scheduled for next month in Prince Edward Island before work resumes in Parliament.
This would be the largest cabinet reshuffle since the 2021 elections, which were marked in particular by the arrival of Steven Guilbeault at the Environment and Mélanie Joly at Foreign Affairs.