Three impressive B.C. ministers part of new federal cabinet

Carla Qualtrough, MP for Delta, is the new minister for sport and persons with disabilities in the federal cabinet




The new federal cabinet is smaller than the old one, and is chock full of people with impressive backgrounds. While Justin Trudeau promised a cabinet of 25 that was equally balanced between men and women, he only delivered on one of those promises. There are 31 in cabinet, including Trudeau. However, 15 (excluding the PM) are men and 15 are women.

Three are from B.C. and all have impressive backgrounds. All are new MPs. The most senior minister is Jody Raybould-Wilson, 44, the new minister of justice. Elected in Vancouver-Granville, she has a background with the B.C. Treaty Commission, the Assembly of First Nations and as a Crown prosecutor.
As an aboriginal woman, she sets a great example for other aboriginal people. However, her portfolio is a very complex one, with many issues (such as assisted suicide and legalizing marijuana) demanding immediate attention. She will be stretched.
She is the daughter of Bill Wilson, a well-known B.C. aboriginal leader who was always known as a straight shooter and a firm advocate for his people. If she has inherited some of his communication skills, she will be very quotable.
She is a past chief and current councillor of the We Wai Kai Nation, based on Quadra Island.

Harjit Sajjan, 45, the MP for Vancouver South, is the new minister of defence. I had a chance to meet him earlier this year at an event organized by my friend Ken Herar and his Cycling 4 Diversity group. Sajjan is both a military and police veteran, and served in both Afghanistan and Bosnia. He is a former lieutenant-colonel in the army and also served with the Vancouver Police department, where he specialized in gang violence. He was the first Sikh to command a Canadian military regiment.
He brings a good skill set to this portfolio, but the Liberals' past record on properly funding the defence department is quite spotty. It will be interesting to see if things change under this particular Liberal government.
Carla Qualtrough, 44, the newly-elected MP for Delta, has been visually impaired since birth. She has competed in two Paralympic games, in 1988 and 1992. She won three medals in swimming. She is a lawyer and worked for several years at top levels in Ottawa under the Jean Chretien and Paul Martin governments. She has also was a lawyer with the B.C. Human Rights Tribunal and has recently been a vice chair and adjudicator for the BC Workers Compensation Appeals Tribunal. She chairs the Minister’s Council on Employment and Accessibility for the province of B.C., is vice-president of the Americas Paralympic Committee, which represents 26 countries, and is a board member of the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sport.
She was a French immersion student in Langley, and is a graduate of Brookswood Secondary.
Her portfolio is minister of sport and persons with disabilities. She has an excellent skill set for those responsibilities, but her challenge may be in getting a lot of attention from the Liberal cabinet she is now a part of. All political parties in Ottawa have traditionally paid minimal attention to both those areas.
I am impressed that Trudeau is emphasizing both youth and intergovernmental relations. Clearly he wants youth to feel more connected to the federal government, and youth issues to get more attention. This is good, He also is making good relations with the provinces (and also municipalities and First Nations) a higher priority. Former prime minister Stephen Harper basically ignored the provinces for almost his entire nine years in office - a serious mistake in a vast country with a federal system of government, particularly one where provinces have significant powers.
I wish the new ministers and prime minister all the best. They have a lot of work to do.