OTTAWA — The threat of western alienation has been top of mind ahead of the swearing-in of the new Liberal cabinet, but Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has also given Quebec MPs a more prominent role around his cabinet table.
The Liberals hoped to increase their seat count in Quebec during the last election, but instead lost five seats thanks to a surging Bloc Québécois. Even as Trudeau looks to soothe regional tensions with western Canada, the Liberals are also reaching out to Quebec, with promotions for several Quebec ministers and a new Quebec lieutenant.
Trudeau has previously resisted calls to appoint a deputy from Quebec, though the Conservatives and the NDP both have Quebec lieutenants. But on Wednesday, Montreal MP Pablo Rodriguez was appointed to the role. Rodriguez will also take over as House leader, a critical role in a minority Parliament responsible for negotiating with opposition leaders.
Speaking to reporters at Rideau Hall, Trudeau said he remains “a proud Quebecer,” but that he must focus on concerns from across the country. “I recognize that we have an opportunity and a need to ensure a clearer, stronger voice amongst our great team of MPs from Quebec … to ensure that the messages that we’re hearing from and the engagement with Quebecers is done in the strongest possible way,” he said.
Ten Quebec MPs are part of Trudeau’s 36-member cabinet, up from eight during the last Parliament. A number of Quebec ministers have taken on high-profile portfolios, most notably François-Philippe Champagne, who was promoted to foreign affairs. Champagne takes the place of Chrystia Freeland, who was named deputy prime minister and minister of intergovernmental affairs. Quebec City MP Jean-Yves Duclos was also promoted to president of the Treasury Board, while Montreal MP Mélanie Joly was named minister of economic development and keeps her status as official languages minister.
The two new Quebec faces around the cabinet table are Montreal MP Marc Miller, who will take on the Indigenous services portfolio, and well-known environmentalist Steven Guilbeault, a rookie MP who was named heritage minister.
Four Quebec ministers — Justice Minister David Lametti, Transport Minister Marc Garneau, National Revenue Minister Diane Lebouthillier and Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau — will retain their current portfolios.
“I don’t think Quebecers can complain that they have been forgotten,” said Daniel Béland, a political scientist at McGill University. “I think Quebecers will play a major role, and especially francophones.”
Béland said regional representation within Quebec would also have been part of the Liberals’ calculation, particularly as they aim to take back ground from the Bloc Québécois in the next election. The Bloc won many of the seats between Montreal and Quebec City, while the Liberals took most of the seats on the Island of Montreal. But some of the Liberals’ most prominent Quebec ministers come from outside Montreal, Béland pointed out, including Champagne and Duclos.
Rodriguez was a good pick for House leader, Béland said, as a longtime MP with experience in minority Parliaments. Rodriguez was first elected to a Liberal minority government under former prime minister Paul Martin in 2004. He lost his seat in 2011, but took it back four years later. “In fact, he’s one of the most experienced Liberal MPs from Quebec right now, and even in general,” Béland said.
Thierry Giasson, a political scientist at the Université de Laval in Quebec City, said it was important that the Liberals name a bilingual House leader, given the renewed importance of the Bloc Québécois, with 32 MPs. But he questioned Rodriguez’s appointment as Quebec lieutenant, pointing out that the Montreal MP was co-chair of the Quebec election campaign, which saw the Liberals drop from 40 to 35 seats in the province.
I don’t think Quebecers can complain that they have been forgotten
Speaking to reporters on Wednesday evening, Rodriguez defended his performance, pointing out that the Liberals won the most seats and the most votes in Quebec. “I’m proud of what we did,” he said. “Can we do better? Of course we can.”
Giasson was also puzzled by Joly’s appointment to economic development. The Montreal MP was widely criticized in Quebec for her performance as heritage minister, notably for an agreement Ottawa signed with Netflix in 2017, and was demoted last year. She fared better, however, as minister of tourism and official languages.
“It was a difficult four years for her, especially when she was in heritage, so I’m surprised,” Giasson said. “That’s the big surprise for me.” Béland referred to Joly’s appointment as a “second chance.”
Despite the larger number of Quebecers around the cabinet table, Giasson said he didn’t see many unexpected changes. But he said the Liberals are setting the stage to improve their performance in Quebec during the next election. “It’s going to be interesting to see what kind of post-mortem this Quebec team will have,” he said. “This next campaign will probably have a bit more of a Quebec colour.”
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