News from Ottawa!

Prime Minister Trudeau shuffles his cabinet – Lawrence MacAulay becomes Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food

On July 26, half way through his government’s second minority mandate, the Prime Minister made significant changes to his cabinet. Changes to parliamentary secretaries are likely to follow, with changes to House of Commons Committee memberships likely to take place in the fall. Highlights for FBC-ABC Members include:

  • Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau (Quebec) moves from Agriculture and Agri-Food to become Minister of National Revenue. She is replaced by Minister Lawrence MacAulay (PEI), who served as Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food previously from 2015 to 2019.
  • Minister Sean Fraser (Nova Scotia) moves from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship to become Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities. He is replaced by Minister Marc Miller (Quebec).
  • Minister Carla Qualtrough (British Columbia) moves from Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion to become Minister of Sport and Physical Activity. She is replaced by Minister Randy Boissonnault (Alberta), whose portfolio changes to Employment, Workforce Development and Official Languages.
  • Minister Pablo Rodriguez (Quebec) becomes Minister of Transport, in addition to Quebec Lieutenant. The previous Minister, Omar Alghabra, leaves cabinet.
  • Minister Anita Anand (Ontario) becomes President of the Treasury Board.
  • Minister Mark Holland (Ontario) becomes Minister of Health.
  • Minister Harjit S. Sajjan (British Columbia) becomes President of the King’s Privy Council for Canada and Minister of Emergency Preparedness.

FBC-ABC will begin outreach to each of the incoming Minister’s to congratulate them on their new roles and will monitor for the resulting staff changes in key offices.

 

Federal, Provincial and Territorial (FPT) Ministers of Agriculture meet to support a competitive and sustainable agriculture and agri-food sector

The annual conference of Federal, Provincial and Territorial (FPT) Ministers of Agriculture was held in New Brunswick last week. Ministers discussed the agriculture and agri-food sector’s key issues, including the Sustainable Canadian Agriculture Partnership, extreme weather situations, African Swine Fever, innovation, international trade, and supply chain resiliency, including the Grocery Code of Conduct. The FPT Ministers indicated they remain open to discussing how governments can support this effort going forward and called for the participation of all key players in the industry.

Reminder: Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) launches consultation on immigration levels

IRCC is seeking feedback to help inform the next 2024-2026 Immigration Levels Plan and the Department’s ongoing work. Responses are due by August 4, 2023. You can complete the survey here, and review the questions here.

Government of Canada awards contracts to help modernize immigration and citizenship services

On July 21, the government announced it has awarded 2 contracts, with a combined initial value of $85.4 million, to develop the new Client Experience Platform, which will provide clients with a more user-friendly interface to access Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada programs and services.

Summer Cabinet Retreat and Conservative Party Policy Convention

The Prime Minister and his cabinet are expected to attend a summer cabinet retreat in Charlottetown, PEI from August 21-23. The Conservative Party of Canada is holding its policy convention in Quebec City from September 7-9.