Big roles need filling in cabinet shuffle

Prime Minister Stephen Harper is expected to fill some major cabinet roles this week, including the minister of foreign affairs and the minister in charge of Canada's public service.

Withsix portfolios needinga new minister, including three front bench roles, this will be one of the biggest cabinet shuffles in years.

Harper has been cautious in hisrecent cabinetshuffles, preferring incremental changes that fill gaps without touching the bulk of cabinet. But between retirements and election losses, he will be forced to move or appoint at leastsix new ministers this time around.

The big jobs are foreign affairs minister, after incumbent Lawrence Cannon was defeated, treasury board president, formerly filled by Stockwell Day, who retired, and transport, which was held by Chuck Strahl until his retirement this spring.

Treasury Board is the department in charge of the public service, one of the areas where the Conservatives are hoping to trim costs through attrition. That makes the role important in the cost-cutting expected over the next four years as the government tries to balance the budget.

Harper will also have to fill intergovernmental affairs, veterans affairs and minister of state for amateur sport after Jose Verner, Jean-Pierre Blackburn and Gary Lunn were defeated in the May 2 election.

Geography matters

The loss of Cannon, Verner and Blackburn mean three fewer Quebec cabinet ministers. Prime ministers traditionally try to represent every province in cabinet and slot in more ministers from the provinces with the most voters. That's led to speculation former foreign affairs minister Maxime Bernier, MP for Beauce, Que., may find his way back to cabinet.

The Tories alsolost a potential Quebec minister over the weekendwhen a recount in Montmagny-L'Islet-Kamouraska-Rivire-du-Loup handed the seat from Bernard Gnreux to NDP MP-elect Franois Lapointe.

Day, Lunn and Strahl were all long-time B.C. MPs, meaning the prime minister is likely to look to James Moore, MP for Port Moody-Westwood-Port Coquitlam and currently minister of Canadian Heritage, to be the senior minister from the province. Harper may move Moore, a strong performer, into a higher profile ministry.

Strong crop of new MPs

Harper also has a number of strong new MPs he could put in junior roles.

The name of Chris Alexander the former ambassador to Afghanistan who defeated high-profile Liberal Mark Holland in the Ontario riding of Ajax-Pickering is surfacing in much of the speculation about new cabinet picks.

Both Joe Oliver, who won Liberal Joe Volpe's Eglinton-Lawrence seat in Toronto, and John Williamson, who took New Brunswick-Southwest, have financial credentials that could help in a government focused on the economy, as Harper promises his will be.

Oliver has run both the Ontario Securities Commission and the Investment Dealers Association of Canada, while Williamson has a master's in economic history from the London School of Economics, and is a former head of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation.

Mark Adler, who took out Ken Dryden in Toronto's York Centre riding, is the founder of the Economic Club of Canada and also has strong economic and public policy credentials.

Kellie Leitch, a pediatric surgeon who beat former Conservative-turned-IndependentMP Helena Guergis in Simcoe-Grey, Ont., could bump up the number of women in a male-dominated cabinet.

Peter Penashue, an Innu leader, was the only Conservative elected in Newfoundland and Labrador, and has been credited with helping resolve a land claim dispute between the Innu, the province and the federal government.

As well, returning Manitoba MPs Candace Hoeppner, whose private member's bill nearly succeededin killing the long-gun registry,and Shelly Glover, who has held several parliamentary secretary roles, couldbe in line forpromotions.

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