Ontario cabinet largely unchanged as premier, ministers sworn in at ceremony
Cabinet remains the same size, housing and education ministers shuffled
Ontario Premier Doug Ford has named a new cabinet with many familiar faces, though he has shuffled his housing, education and environment ministers.
Paul Calandra moves from housing to become the education minister, taking over from Jill Dunlop who moves to emergency preparedness.
Former minister of agriculture Rob Flack is being appointed minister of housing. Trevor Jones, formerly associate minister of emergency preparedness and response, takes over as agriculture minister.
Todd McCarthy is taking on the role of environment minister, a higher-profile role than his previous job as minister of public and business service delivery.
Ford also moved former environment minister Andrea Khanjin to red tape reduction. Graham McGregor is taking on the role of minister of citizenship and multiculturalism, a post previously held by Michael Ford, the premier's nephew, who did not run again the February snap election.
Michael Tibollo, who was the associate minister of mental health and addictions, has been shuffled to become the associate attorney general while Vijay Thanigasalam takes over his old post
Zee Hamid is the lone new face in cabinet, as he becomes the associate minister of auto theft and bail reform.
Lt.-Gov. Edith Dumont swore in the premier and his executive council in a ceremony Wednesday at the Royal Ontario Museum.
Ford has kept the cabinet the same size, which he had increased since he was first elected in 2018, and his last cabinet grew to 37 people in August after he brought new associate ministers on board.
Many of the prominent ministers remain in their previous roles, including Doug Downey as attorney general and Michael Kerzner as solicitor general, and Caroline Mulroney as President of the Treasury Board and francophone affairs minister.
Former housing minister Steve Clark, who resigned in the wake of the Greenbelt land-grab scandal, remains as government house leader, though it's not a cabinet position.
Sylvia Jones is returning as minister of health and deputy premier. Peter Bethlenfalvy will continue as minister of finance, as will Prabmeet Sarkaria as minister of transportation.
Vic Fedeli and Stephen Lecce will continue in their respective appointments as minister of economic development and minister of energy. Kinga Surma will also return as minister of infrastructure.
Greg Rickford remains as minister of Indigenous affairs, but also takes on the newly created role as the minister responsible for Ring of Fire economic and community partnerships.
The long-sought development of the Ring of Fire, a massive area in northwestern Ontario said to be replete with critical and rare minerals, has become a focal point of late for Ford as demand for those materials grows worldwide.
George Pirie is out as mining minister and is moving to become minister of northern economic development and growth. Lecce is adding mining to his responsibilities, while labour minister David Piccini retains the same position.
Ford quotes Ronald Reagan in his speech
Delivering remarks Wednesday's ceremony, Ford repeated statements about ongoing economic threats to Ontario from U.S. President Donald Trump — calling them "one of the most pressing and significant challenges in the history of our province."
The premier quoted former U.S. President Ronald Reagan in his speech, saying, "We should beware of the demagogues who are ready to declare a trade war against our friends, weakening our economy, our national security and the entire free world, all while cynically waving the American flag."
Ford said he will never stop working and engaging with American counterparts on the Canada-U.S. trading relationship.
The premier concluded his remarks saying, "Canada will not be the 51st state. Canada is not for sale," receiving a standing ovation.
"I'm getting chills all up and down my body right now," Ford said after the applause.
Ahead of Wednesday's ceremony, conservative strategists said they were not expecting any dramatic changes to the cabinet and expected many of the premier's key ministers to return to their portfolios.
The premier's PCs won their third successive majority government on Feb. 27 — making Ford the first Ontario premier since 1959 to win three consecutive majorities.
When he triggered the $189-million election in January, Ford asked for the "largest mandate in Ontario's history" to fight against economic threats from U.S. President Donald Trump.
But the PCs are returning to Queen's Park with roughly the same number of seats. With two ridings yet to declare results, the PCs are on track for 80 seats, which is just one more than when the legislature dissolved in January and three fewer than the party picked up in the 2022 election.
The Ontario legislature is set to resume on April 14.
'More of the same,' Official Opposition leader says
NDP Leader Marit Stiles, who was sworn in as leader of the Official Opposition earlier Wednesday, released a statement congratulating the premier and cabinet, but wrote the appointments were "more of the same."
"This cabinet includes the same Minister of Transportation who couldn't open a transit line, the same Minister of Health who downplayed the doctor shortage, and the same Minister of Infrastructure who spent weeks dodging basic questions," the statement said.
Stiles added that the Official Opposition shadow cabinet will be announced in the coming days.
In a statement Wednesday, John Fraser, Liberal MPP for Ottawa South, said Ottawa "once again [has] no one representing them at the cabinet table."
"Despite having a member of his caucus from Ottawa, Doug Ford has deliberately passed over Ottawa again," the statement read.
Speaking before the ceremony, federal Transport Minister Chrystia Freeland said she had a coffee with Ford at his house on Tuesday.
"We talked about interprovincial trade. For Prime Minister Carney, that is a huge priority," she said.
"I never thought I would say this phrase, but I think interprovincial trade has become sexy in Canada right now."
Full list of cabinet members
- Doug Ford, premier and minister of intergovernmental affairs
- Sylvia Jones, deputy premier and minister of health
- Trevor Jones, minister of agriculture, food and agribusiness
- Doug Downey, attorney general
- Michael Parsa, minister of children, community and social services
- Graham McGregor, minister of citizenship and multiculturalism
- Nolan Quinn, minister of colleges, universities, research excellence and security
- Vic Fedeli, minister of economic development, job creation and trade
- Paul Calandra, minister of education
- Jill Dunlop, minister of emergency preparedness and response
- Stephen Lecce, minister of energy and mines
- Todd McCarthy, minister of the environment, conservation and parks
- Peter Bethlenfalvy, minister of finance
- Greg Rickford, minister of Indigenous affairs and First Nations economic reconciliation and the minister responsible for Ring of Fire economic and community partnerships
- Kinga Surma, minister of infrastructure
- David Piccini, minister of labour, immigration, training and skills development
- Natalia Kusendova-Bashta, minister of long-term care
- Rob Flack, minister of municipal affairs and housing
- Mike Harris, minister of natural resources
- George Pirie, minister of northern economic development and growth
- Stephen Crawford, minister of public and business service delivery and procurement
- Andrea Khanjin, minister of red tape reduction
- Lisa Thompson, minister of rural affairs
- Raymond Cho, minister of seniors and accessibility
- Michael Kerzner, solicitor general
- Neil Lumsden, minister of sport
- Stan Cho, minister of tourism, culture and gaming
- Prabmeet Sarkaria, minister of transportation
- Caroline Mulroney, president of the Treasury Board and minister of francophone affairs
- Michael Tibollo, associate attorney general, as part of the Ministry of the Attorney General
- Zee Hamid, associate minister of auto theft and bail reform, as part of the Ministry of the Solicitor General
- Sam Oosterhoff, associate minister of energy-intensive industries, as part of the Ministry of Energy and Mines
- Kevin Holland, associate minister of forestry and forest products, as part of the Ministry of Natural Resources
- Graydon Smith, associate minister of municipal affairs and housing, as part of the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing
- Vijay Thanigasalam, associate minister of mental health and addictions, as part of the Ministry of Health
- Nina Tangri, associate minister of small business, as part of the Ministry of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade
- Charmaine Williams, associate minister of women's social and economic opportunity, as part of the Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services
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With files from The Canadian Press