Chagger named first female government House leader
Dominc LeBlanc to retain fisheries portfolio
OTTAWA — Bardish Chagger isn’t promising that she won’t stifle debate on key government legislation if it means getting it through Parliament in a timely manner.
But the self-described, life-long political activist did pledge Friday that she will strive to build a new relationship with the opposition parties in her new role as government leader in the House of Commons.
Chagger, 36, took on the powerful position — on top of her job as small business and tourism minister—in what Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government described as an adjustment to the federal cabinet.
“I really do believe that we can all work together,” Chagger, the rookie MP for Waterloo, Ont., told a news conference less than two hours after being sworn in at Rideau Hall.
Chagger takes over the legislation-guiding position from Dominic LeBlanc, whose tenure as House leader was marked by some sharp clashes with the opposition. Some insiders say an attempt last spring to ram legislation through the House poisoned relations with opposition parties and created a toxic atmosphere in the Commons.
LeBlanc has been handling double duty as House leader and fisheries minister since Hunter Tootoo stepped down from the latter job. LeBlanc made no secret of the fact that he preferred to sit as fisheries minister, a role he has retained.
Tootoo resigned from cabinet and the Liberal caucus in May to go into treatment for alcoholism and has since acknowledged he had been involved in an inappropriate relationship in the workplace.
LeBlanc’s departure from the House leader’s office might lift a tension point between the Liberal government and the opposition parties as they move toward the fall session of Parliament.
The minor “adjustment” of duties also allows Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to resist any kind of temptation to have a wider shuffle. That is widely expected to come midway through next year, at the halfway point of Trudeau’s mandate.
Chagger’s new job will see her shepherding the government’s agenda through the often-arcane rules and procedures in Commons. It’s a daunting challenge for a rookie MP who only entered the Commons last fall.
Meanwhile, after shelling out almost half a million dollars for Trudeau to meet with his 30 ministers at two luxury resorts, taxpayers will get a break this weekend when the prime minister hosts his third cabinet retreat since taking office last fall.
The two-day retreat, which starts Sunday, is being held at Sudbury’s Laurentian University, where the ministers will be sharing student dorms.
“We are matching people up and making sure everybody’s roommates are all good,” said Kate Purchase, Trudeau’s communications director.
The retreats are also intended to be a bonding exercise for what is still a relatively new group.