Moe says policy matters, not new faces in cabinet
Alberta-born Freeland handed key slot of federal-provincial relations
REGINA Premier Scott Moe greeted the choice of Chrystia Freeland as the federal government’s cabinet-level emissary to the provinces, saying he has a “fairly strong working relationship” with the former foreign affairs minister.
But his general assessment of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s postelection cabinet shuffle was more tepid.
He said the people matter less than the policies, and there’s little sign so far that the policies will change.
“It’s not about the people that are around the table, it’s about the decisions,” Moe told reporters on Wednesday, just hours after the swearing in of the new cabinet at Ottawa’s Rideau Hall.
Trudeau named Freeland, who was born in Alberta but now represents a Toronto riding, to the post of intergovernmental affairs minister, the primary go-between for relations with the provinces. He also elevated her to deputy prime minister.
Moe expressed hope that the choice is a sign of renewed co-operation.
“I hope it’s a signal of importance to the position and the importance of the relationship with premiers across this nation,” said Moe.
Moe has challenged the federal government to change its direction ever since the federal Liberals were returned to power in a minority Parliament, but without their lone Saskatchewan MP and cabinet minister, Ralph Goodale.
He called on Trudeau to pause the federal carbon backstop, restructure equalization and expand market access for Saskatchewan commodities, notably by getting more pipelines built.
Trudeau’s answers didn’t satisfy Moe at their most recent meeting, but the prime minister outlined a new way to stay in touch with the Prairies during his cabinet shuffle speech in Ottawa Monday.
With Goodale’s departure, there is no cabinet minister between Winnipeg and British Columbia. But Jim Carr, who leaves the international trade portfolio following his recent cancer diagnosis, will take on the role of special representative for the Prairies.
Trudeau said Carr will be report directly to him and keep in touch with voices in Saskatchewan and Alberta.
Saskatoon-raised Jonathan Wilkinson will play a key role on the carbon tax file in his new role of environment minister. Wilkinson represents a Vancouver-area riding, but was a former adviser to former Saskatchewan premier Roy Romanow. He’s been framed as the closest thing to a Saskatchewan voice available to Trudeau as he formed his cabinet.
Moe said it remains to be seen whether Wilkinson’s roots change the direction of his ministry. The same might be said for Freeland’s Alberta connection, according to Moe.
“I guess we will see in the decisions that they make if their western roots truly mean anything,” the premier said.
According to Moe, one of the first orders of business for the new cabinet will be to convene a first ministers meeting, which he suggested should happen sometime after a meeting of premiers in December.
Saskatchewan NDP leader Ryan Meili agreed with Moe that the actions of the new cabinet will be more important than the faces at the table. He said he hopes the provincial government will seize the opportunity to engage in a positive way and find common ground.
He’s unsure whether fraught relationships will get a restart.
“I think that depends very much on the two players,” he said. “Is Scott Moe going to go into this blustering and angry again? Is Prime Minister Trudeau going to be receptive to the needs of Saskatchewan? Really, we need to see those two folks step up.”
Organizations across Saskatchewan issued their own reactions to the new cabinet. The Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan welcomed the decision to keep Agriculture Minister Marie Claude-bibeau in the same post. “We have found Ms. Bibeau to be very open to discussion, and we call on her to work with the new Federal Environment Minister to bring in exemptions from the carbon tax for natural gas and propane used in grain drying,” said a release from the group.