High expectations for Cape Breton’s two cabinet ministers.
Not all MLAs are created equal.
There are third-party MLAs and opposition MLAs. They work hard for their constituents and criticize government policy at every opportunity but, truth be told, they don’t hold much power.
There are also government backbenchers. These MLAs work hard for their constituents, almost always tow the party line and they strive to make a good impression on the powers that be. If they do, then maybe they’ll get tapped on the shoulder should a coveted inner circle opening ever arise.
And then there are the cabinet ministers, those MLAs who bring various degrees of experience, have earned the party leader’s trust, fill strategic geographical needs and who serve as the driving force to influence and carry out government policies.
Cape Breton will once again have two representatives in Stephen McNeil’s 17-member cabinet, which should come as no surprise. Anything less would have only compounded the disdain Islanders showed the Liberals in the recent provincial election.
Glace Bay’s Geoff MacLellan was always a lock given his previous cabinet experience. And long-time MLA (and former cabinet minister) Michel Samson would certainly have joined him if he had somehow managed to secure 22 more votes in Cape Breton-Richmond.
Samson’s upset loss opened the door for relative newcomer Derek Mombourquette of Sydney-Whitney Pier to receive a promotion after serving as a backbencher following a byelection victory in 2015.
That’s not to say McNeil wouldn’t have chosen three Cape Breton cabinet ministers if Samson won, but that might have been too much to hope for. Even for a party with some serious fence mending to do this side of the causeway.
So MacLellan, 38, and Mombourquette, 36, Cape Breton’s two youngest MLAs, join the inner circle and they have been given portfolios that have the potential to produce positive local dividends.
As minister of business, minister of energy, minister of Service Nova Scotia and minister of trade, MacLellan’s plate will be especially busy, but he will be looked upon to champion projects and policies that will help boost Cape Breton’s stagnant economy.
Mombourquette, meanwhile, has been tasked as minister of municipal affairs and this is especially intriguing given the Cape Breton Regional Municipality’s strong desire to secure a municipal charter from the provincial government.
As a former CBRM councillor, Mombourquette should be very sympathetic to this request and we look to him to help make it become a reality.
In addition, even though they don’t wear the health minister’s hat, MacLellan and Mombourquette will have to answer to every Cape Bretoner when it comes to local progress (or lack thereof) on the health front. Same goes for education.
They will, it’s safe to say, be very busy beavers for the next four years or so. Let’s hope they will be productive ones, too.