Prime Minister Stephen Harper combined a bland cabinet shuffle last week with a cynical spurt of old-fashioned patronage. As a fresh start, it was less than convincing.
Canadians know there are big challenges ahead. Harper says growing the economy is “our top priority.” Then there’s reining in the deficit, repairing Canada’s frayed international stature, and negotiating border security with our neighbours, to cite a few others.
But Harper’s first instinct was to reward his own. After naming the cabinet, he quietly vaulted three defeated Conservative candidates into the Senate two weeks after the voters rejected them. Larry Smith and Fabian Manning, who quit the Red Chamber to run, are back in. So is Josee Verner, a minister who went down to defeat.
New Democrat Leader Jack Layton rightly called it “a slap in the face” to voters.
Within cabinet itself, one of the largest in Canadian history, most of the old warhorses remain. The two key changes — John Baird to foreign affairs and Tony Clement to Treasury Board — simply shift old players into new posts, albeit with a heavy dose of irony.
Baird is a cheerful, partisan brawler whose broad back as government leader in the House of Commons took much of the flak for Harper’s contempt for Parliament. How far that rough-knuckle talent will carry him in his new role representing Canada in the finicky world of diplomacy is anybody’s guess.
Having degraded the country’s image to the point where we could not win a United Nations Security Council seat, the Harper government needs friends, not enemies. Shouting and finger-wagging won’t do it. Then again, a certain toughness may come in handy dealing with the United States on pressing continental security and trade issues, not to mention the Afghan and Haiti files.
In the same ironic vein Clement, who earned a reputation as a porkbarreller by loading up his Parry Sound-Muskoka riding with dubious Group of Eight summit projects last summer, has been rebranded, improbably, as a budget hawk. His mandate is to make good on the Tory campaign promise to squeeze billions in savings from federal operations. A former Mike Harris acolyte, he can cut costs. Still, credibility matters.
Beyond that there is little in this shuffle to excite diehard Conservatives, much less anyone else.
The PM’s mantra was “stability and continuity.” Most key players haven’t moved. They include Jim Flaherty (finance), Peter MacKay (defence), Jason Kenney (citizenship and immigration, and operations), Vic Toews (public safety) and Rob Nicholson (justice).
Apart from Flaherty there’s a large Toronto contingent, including rookie Joe Oliver (natural resources), Peter Van Loan (government house leader), Julian Fantino (associate defence minister), Peter Kent (environment), Lisa Raitt (labour) and Bal Gosal (sport).
Harper deserves credit for naming 10 women, though he passed up the chance to replace underperformers Bev Oda (international co-operation) and Diane Finley (human resources) with fresh talent. It’s good, too, to see the respected Labrador Innu leader Peter Penashue join Nunavut’s Leona Aglukkaq in cabinet. For the first time in Ottawa, there are two aboriginal ministers.
And importantly, Harper has not given up on Quebec, despite his poor showing there, and limited options. Four of the five Conservative MPs elected in the province are in the new cabinet. Christian Paradis (industry), Steven Blaney (veterans affairs) and Denis Lebel (transport) all got promotions. Maxime Bernier (small business) was brought back after three years of exile for leaving sensitive files at a girlfriend’s house.
Still, apart from some fresh faces in the junior seats, it’s pretty much same-old, same-old — with a twist of cynicism.
— An editorial from the Toronto Star