Greg Rickford says no matter what his role has been with the federal Conservative government, he always has and always will put his Kenora riding first.
On Monday Rickford’s job got a little busier when he was named to a junior post in Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s cabinet shuffle, taking on the minister of state for science and technology portfolio as well as being named the minister responsible for FedNor.
The latter, he said, makes him responsible federally for the Ring of Fire, a task he’s looking forward to handling.
“I think we’ve got a great opportunity to draw on this portfolio so we can advance some of the economic interests of Northern Ontario, particularly Northwestern Ontario,” said Rickford, the former parliamentary secretary to FedNor under Tony Clement, formerly in charge of the regional development agency.
“I’ve got big shoes to fill.”
Rickford said there are plenty of exciting economic opportunities in the region and he plans to continue down the path Clement first forged.
“I’ll be building on the experience I gained as a parliamentary secretary in full cooperation with Minister Clement, who remains the senior minister responsible for Northern Ontario,” Rickford said, adding Northern Ontario has built a strong Conservative caucus, drawing attention to the region at the national level.
For now Rickford said his immediate concern is building a staff, but also said he’s got a number of riding commitments he plans to honour.
“The Kenora riding remains my top priority,” said Rickford, one of eight new faces introduced into Harper’s 38-member cabinet, released via Twitter, a Canadian first.
The news drew mixed reaction from other politicians in the area.
"Good news for the North with my friend and federal colleague Greg Rickford being named to cabinet. Congratulations Minister!" Gravelle tweeted.
MP John Rafferty (NDP, Thunder Bay-Rainy River) said its good news that Fednor is out of the hands of Tony Clement and into Rickford’s, someone who is from Northern Ontario.
“I think it’s a good thing I think Mr. Rickford will certainly have a better sense of Northern Ontario and what needs to be done,” Rafferty said.
As the Fednor critic, Rafferty said he’s looking forward to an open dialogue with Rickford, who he considers fair in his decisions.
Of course Rafferty would have liked to see Fednor as a standalone agency with at least a junior minister, like Rickford, in charge as a signal that the Conservatives do take Northern Ontario issues seriously.
And Rafferty was disappointed with the shuffle itself.
“I think it would have been wise to get rid of some of the other ministers who have been there as they lurch from crisis to crisis and various scandals and so on that didn’t happen,” he said.
Independent MP Bruce Hyer was quick to denounce the moves.
"I don't think it means a lot. There are no real surprises here," Hyer said. "We don't need a cabinet shuffle. We need new government in Ottawa, as I think most Canadians are figuring out.”
"It's really a shame that we still have (John) Baird, we still have (Jim) Flaherty, we still have (Tony) Clement. We still have the Mike Harris wrecking crew moved to Ottawa. We really have mostly puppets who have been moved around and we all know who the puppeteer is."
Flaherty remained finance minister, while Tony Clement stayed on as president of the treasury board, though he did give up his role with FedNor. Baird stays as minister of foreign affairs.
Hyer said the Rickford move was a political one.
"I wish Mr. Rickford well, but what I've seen in the past is that Mr. Rickford has taken his marching orders from Mr. Harper, not from his constituents. He's thrown his constituents and the Experimental Lakes Area under the bus," Hyer said. "I think Mr. Rickford is in trouble in his riding. I think the Conservatives realize that and if the Liberals or the NDP get a strong candidate the next time, he'll be moved on.
"I think the hope is by making him a minister that he will be able to hang onto his seat."
Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau was, not surprisingly, not excited about the moves, echoing some of Hyer's sentiments.
"The only Minister with any power in this Cabinet is the Prime Minister. Today's shuffle does nothing to change that," he said via Twitter.
Hyer did praise Harper's shift of Lisa Raitt to the transport portfolio, saying she's always been willing to work across party lines.
Other cabinet moves:
- Kevin Sorenson (Minister of State, Finance)
- Shelly Glover (Minister of Canadian Heritage and Official Languages)
- Kerry Findl (Minister of National Revenue)
- Kellie Leitch (Minister of Labour and Minister of Status of Women)
- Bernard Valcourt (Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development)
- Michelle Rempel (Minister of State (Western Economic Diversification)
- Candice Bergen (Minister of State, Social Development)
- Alice Wong (Minister of State, Seniors)
- Leona Aglukkaq (Minister of Environment, Minister of CanNor, Minister for the Arctic Council)
- James Moore (Minister of Industry)
- Rona Ambrose (Minister of Health)
- Rob Moore (Minister of State, ACOA and Regional Minister of NB and NFLD)
- Gary Goodyear (Minister of State, Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario)
- Bal Gosal (Minister of State, Sport)
- John Duncan (Minister of State, Chief Government Whip)
- John Baird (Minister of Foreign Affairs)
- Pierre Poilevre (Minister of State, Democratic Reform)
- Lynne Yelich (Minister of State, Foreign Affairs and Consular Services
- Julian Fantino (Minister of Veteran Affairs)
- Tim Uppal (Minister of State, Multiculturism)
- Ed Fast (Minister of International Trade)
- Chris Alexander (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration)
- Joe Oliver (Minister of Natural Resources)
- Peter Van Loan (Leader of the Government in the House of Commons)
- Gail Shea (Minister of Fisheries and Oceans)
- Tony Clement (President of the Treasury Board)
- Denis Lebel (Minister of Infrastructure, Communities and Intergovernmental Affairs, Minister of DEC)
- Gerry Ritz (Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food)
- Steven Blaney (Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness)
- Diane Finley (Minister of Public Works and Government Services)
- Jason Kenney (Minister of Employment and Social Development (formerly HRSDC))
- Christian Paradis (Minister of International Development and Minister for La Francophonie)
- Lisa Raitt (Minister of Transport)
- Maxime Bernier (Minister of State, Small Business and Tourism)
- Rob Nicholson (Minister of National Defence)
- Peter MacKay (Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada)
- Jim Flaherty (Minister of Finance)
