Indigenous portfolios shuffled as Vandal retains northern affairs

Marc Miller is Canada’s new minister of Crown-Indigenous relations as Dan Vandal retains his position as northern affairs minister in Justin Trudeau’s new cabinet.

Carolyn Bennett, whom Miller replaces, moves to a new post as minister for mental health and addictions. Former health minister Patty Hajdu fills the vacancy Miller leaves as minister of Indigenous services.

Winnipeg-based Vandal, who is Métis, has been Trudeau’s northern affairs minister since 2019. He is also responsible for the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency.

Michael McLeod, the NWT’s Liberal MP, was not selected.

The latest cabinet continues a Canadian tradition of selecting northern affairs ministers from nowhere near the North, one that now encompasses the past 29 people to hold such a portfolio. (While the NWT’s Ethel Blondin-Andrew was a minister of state for northern development from 2004 to 2006, the federal minister of Indian affairs and northern development throughout that time was Andy Scott.)

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Elsewhere, Anita Anand is the second woman in Canadian history to become defence minister, following Kim Campbell in 1993. Harjit Sajjan moves to international development. Mélanie Joly takes foreign affairs.

Former heritage minister Steven Guilbeault, a one-time director of Greenpeace Quebec, is the new environment and climate change minister.

Here’s the new cabinet in full:

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Chrystia Freeland
Minister of Transport Omar Alghabra
Minister of National Defence Anita Anand
Minister of Mental Health and Addictions and Associate Minister of Health Carolyn Bennett
Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Marie-Claude Bibeau
President of Queen’s Privy Council for Canada and Minister of Emergency Preparedness Bill Blair
Minister of Tourism and Associate Minister of Finance Randy Boissonnault
Minister of Innovation, Science and Commerce Francois-Phillipe Champagne
Minister of Health Jean-Yves Duclos
President, Treasury Board Mona Fortier
Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Sean Fraser
Minister of Families, Children and Social Development Karina Gould
Minister of Environment and Climate Change Steven Guilbeault
Minister of Indigenous Services and Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario Patty Hajdu
Leader of the Government in the House of Commons Mark Holland
Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion Ahmed Hussen
Minister of Rural Economic Development Gudie Hutchings
Minister of Women, Gender Equality and Youth Marci Ien
Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario Helena Jaczek
Minister of Foreign Affairs Mélanie Joly
Minister of Seniors Kamal Khera
Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada David Lametti
Minister of intergovernmental Affairs, Infrastructure and Communities Dominic LeBlanc
Minister of National Revenue Diane Lebouthillier
Minister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence Lawrence MacAulay
Minister of Public Safety Marco Mendicino
Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations Marc Miller
Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard Joyce Murray
Minister of International Trade, Export Promotion, Small Business and Economic Development Mary Ng
Minister of Labour Seamus O’Regan
Minister of Official Languages and Minister responsible for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency Ginette Petitpas Taylor
Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion Carla Qualtrough
Minister of Canadian Heritage and Quebec Lieutenant Pablo Rodriguez
Minister of International Development and Minister responsible for the Pacific Economic Development Agency of Canada Harjit Sajjan
Minister of Sport and Minister responsible for the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec Pascale St-Onge
Minister of Public Services and Procurement Filomena Tassi
Minister of Northern Affairs, Minister responsible for the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency Dan Vandal
Minister of Natural Resources Jonathan Wilkinson