{"id":62721,"date":"2017-01-10T21:26:01","date_gmt":"2017-01-10T21:26:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/trudeau-addresses-cabinet-changes-on-parliament-hill.html"},"modified":"2017-01-10T21:26:01","modified_gmt":"2017-01-10T21:26:01","slug":"trudeau-addresses-cabinet-changes-on-parliament-hill","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/political\/trudeau-addresses-cabinet-changes-on-parliament-hill.html","title":{"rendered":"Trudeau addresses cabinet changes on Parliament Hill"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Chrystia Freeland has been appointed Canada&#8217;s new minister of foreign affairs in Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau&#8217;s first major\u00a0shakeup of his cabinet.<\/p>\n<p>But the future of the man she is succeeding is unclear.<\/p>\n<p>Freeland, who leaves the international trade portfolio, replaces veteran MP St\u00e9phane\u00a0Dion. Sources had told CBC News Dion was offered the position as Canada&#8217;s ambassador to the European Union and Germany, but a statement from Trudeau released Tuesday did not mention a future role for the long-serving member of Parliament.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I, and all Canadians, owe him a deep debt of gratitude for his service,&#8221; it read. &#8220;I know I will be able to continue to count on his wisdom and his tireless service, and look forward to the next chapter of Mr. Dion&#8217;s contributions to our country.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>By contrast, the statement said outgoing immigration minister John McCallum\u00a0will be named Canada&#8217;s ambassador to China after a &#8220;distinguished career in public service.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Trudeau is set to discuss his cabinet shuffle with reporters on Parliament Hill at 3:30 p.m. ET. CBCnews.ca is carrying his remarks live.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.cbc.ca\/news\/politics\/trudeau-new-cabinet-1.3929399\">Things to know about new cabinet<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.cbc.ca\/news\/politics\/three-new-faces-trudeau-cabinet-1.3928984\">3 new faces in Trudeau&#8217;s cabinet<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The swearing-in ceremony for the new ministers took place at Rideau Hall, the official residence and workplace of the governor general.<\/p>\n<p>Other changes announced today:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Fran\u00e7ois-Philippe Champagne becomes minister of international trade.<\/li>\n<li>Patty\u00a0Hajdu moves from status of women to labour.<\/li>\n<li>Maryam Monsef transfers from democratic institutions to status of women.<\/li>\n<li>Karina Gould named minister of democratic institutions.<\/li>\n<li>Ahmed Hussen becomes minister of immigration, refugees and citizenship.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>While the ceremony was still underway, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.documentcloud.org\/documents\/3259747-Stephane-Dion-Letter.html\">Dion&#8217;s office issued a statement<\/a> wishing Freeland &#8220;the best of luck,&#8221; but left his future unclear.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Over the last 21 years, I have devoted myself to my riding, to my fellow citizens, to Quebec, to all of Canada, to the role that we must play in the world, and to the Liberal Party of Canada,&#8221; he wrote.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Now, I shall deploy my efforts outside active politics. I have enjoyed political life, especially when I was able to make a difference to benefit my fellow citizens. I emerge full of energy &#8230; renewable! But politics is not the only way to serve one&#8217;s country. Fortunately!&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Hussen, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.cbc.ca\/news\/canada\/toronto\/toronto-s-ahmed-hussen-1st-somali-canadian-elected-to-parliament-1.3281260\">Canada&#8217;s first MP of Somali descent<\/a>, is a lawyer and community activist in the Toronto riding of York South-Weston.<\/p>\n<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/wp-content\/plugins\/RSSPoster_PRO\/cache\/c31b8_cabinet-shuffle-20170110.jpg\" alt=\"Cabinet Shuffle 20170110\" width=\"100%\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"figure-caption\">Chrystia Freeland Minister of Foreign Affairs, left to right, Patty Hajdu Minister of Labour, Maryam Monsef Minister of Status of Women, Francois-Philippe Champagne Minister of International Trade, Karina Gould, Minister of Democratic Institutions and Ahmed Hussen, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship are applauded after being sworn in during a cabinet shuffle at Rideau Hall in Ottawa on Tuesday, Jan 10, 2017. (Sean Kilpatrick\/Canadian Press)<\/p>\n<p>Gould, 29, a former trade and development worker who represents the riding of Burlington, Ont., was promoted from her previous role as parliamentary secretary to the minister of international development.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Champagne, a first-term MP for\u00a0the Quebec riding of Saint-Maurice\u2013Champlain, is a former businessman and\u00a0lawyer. He was considered a strong performer as parliamentary secretary to Finance Minister Bill Morneau.<\/p>\n<p \/>\n<h2>McCallum\u00a0accepts China post<\/h2>\n<p>McCallum, 65, served as defence minister under former prime minister Jean Chr\u00e9tien and presided over the\u00a0veteran affairs file in former prime minister Paul Martin&#8217;s cabinet. He led Canada&#8217;s efforts to bring 39,500 Syrian refugees to Canada.<\/p>\n<p>Dion, 61, held the intergovernmental affairs and\u00a0environment portfolios under Chr\u00e9tien and\u00a0Martin. He also served as Liberal Party\u00a0leader for two years, a position he held until a failed attempt to lead a coaltion government shortly after the party lost 18 seats in a 2008 federal election defeat.<\/p>\n<p>Under Chr<span class=\"scayt-misspell-word\">\u00e9<\/span>tien, Dion was the architect of the Clarity Act, which set out the legal conditions for Quebec sovereignty.<\/p>\n<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/wp-content\/plugins\/RSSPoster_PRO\/cache\/c31b8_ahmed-hussen.png\" alt=\"Ahmed Hussen\" width=\"100%\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"figure-caption\">Ahmed Hussen, the Liberal MP for the Toronto-area riding of York South-Weston, is Canada&#8217;s new minister of immigration, refugees and citizenship. (CBC Marketplace)<\/p>\n<p>Monsef, the Ontario MP for Peterborough-Kawartha, has taken criticism\u00a0for her handling of the electoral reform file, and was <a href=\"http:\/\/www.cbc.ca\/news\/politics\/maryam-monsef-apology-electoral-reform-1.3878457\">forced to apologize<\/a>\u00a0last month for accusing MPs on the special committee studying the issue of shirking their duties.<\/p>\n<p>MaryAnn\u00a0Mihychuk\u00a0was shuffled out of her office as minister\u00a0of employment, workforce development and labour.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I&#8217;m of course disappointed,&#8221; she said. &#8220;I&#8217;ve always been a strong advocate as a feminist, as a person who fights for jobs. And I&#8217;ll continue to do that.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p \/>\n<h2>Freeland banned from Russia<\/h2>\n<p>Freeland, a former journalist, was praised for\u00a0stickhandling\u00a0the Canada-European Union free trade agreement, where she gained experience that could be valuable in dealing with the new administration of U.S. president-elect Donald Trump.<\/p>\n<p \/>\n<p>Freeland was among 13 Canadians slapped with retaliatory sanctions by Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2014. The punitive measures were imposed to counter Canadian sanctions against Russian officials over aggression in Ukraine and Crimea.<\/p>\n<p>Today, the Russian Embassy\u00a0in Ottawa confirmed to CBC News that Freeland is still subject to those sanctions, which ban her from travelling to the country.<\/p>\n<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/wp-content\/plugins\/RSSPoster_PRO\/cache\/61635_question-period-20160216.jpg\" alt=\"Question Period 20160216\" width=\"100%\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"figure-caption\">Liberal MP Karina Gould will head up the democratic institutions file. (Sean Kilpatrick\/Canadian Press)<\/p>\n<p>Trudeau&#8217;s\u00a0cabinet was sworn in just over 14 months ago with an even number of men and women, but has seen a few changes prior to today.<\/p>\n<p>Last May, former fisheries minister\u00a0Hunter Tootoo was dropped from cabinet\u00a0for personal reasons and replaced by former government House leader Dominic LeBlanc. In a midsummer move, Small Business and Tourism Minister\u00a0Bardish Chagger was handed LeBlanc&#8217;s House leader duties.<\/p>\n<p>The inauguration next week of U.S. president-elect Donald Trump has put new focus on the government&#8217;s handling of the Canada-U.S. relationship. A shuffle allows Trudeau to move perceived strong ministers into roles that are critical to that relationship while addressing some of the weaker performers.<\/p>\n<p> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/wp-content\/plugins\/RSSPoster_PRO\/cache\/61635_question-period-20161212.jpg\" alt=\"Question Period 20161212\" width=\"100%\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"figure-caption\">Fran\u00e7ois-Philippe Champagne was appointed minister of international trade. (Sean Kilpatrick\/Canadian Press)<\/p>\n<p \/>\n<h4 \/>\n<p \/>\n<p \/>\n<p \/>\n<p \/>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Chrystia Freeland has been appointed Canada&#8217;s new minister of foreign affairs in Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau&#8217;s first major\u00a0shakeup of his cabinet. But the future of the man she is succeeding is unclear. Freeland, who leaves the international trade portfolio, replaces veteran MP St\u00e9phane\u00a0Dion. Sources had told CBC News Dion was offered the position as [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":62722,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[84],"class_list":["post-62721","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-political","tag-political"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62721","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=62721"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62721\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/62722"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=62721"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=62721"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usa.timesofnews.com\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=62721"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}