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SUMMARY: Federal cabinet shuffle sees Petitpas Taylor in Health, Philpott moves to Indigenous Services

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau shuffled his cabinet and made significant changes that impact the Health portfolio as announced at 12:30 p.m. at Rideau Hall in Ottawa this afternoon. MP Ginette Petitpas Taylor, currently Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance, becomes the new federal health minister while the Hon. Jane Philpott becomes Minister of Indigenous Services.

Liberal MP Ginette Petitpas Taylor was elected in October 2015 as a MP in the riding of Moncton–Riverview–Dieppe. She served as the Deputy Government Whip from December 2015 to January 2017. In January 2017, she was named Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance.

Minister Petitpas Taylor holds a bachelor’s degree in social work from the Université de Moncton. She served 23 years as Victims Services Coordinator with Codiac RCMP, where her responsibilities included crisis counselling, domestic violence intervention, and domestic violence risk assessment to victims of crime.

A dedicated volunteer, she supports several community organizations at both provincial and local levels, including the Coalition Against Abuse in Relationships and the Canadian Mental Health Association’s Suicide Prevention Committee in Moncton.

To address the growing concern about Indigenous health outcomes, Indigenous and Northern Affairs will be split into two departments. Former health minister Jane Philpott takes on a new role with responsibilities for Indigenous Services, while the Hon. Carolyn Bennett will remain as part of the reconfigured department handling treaty issues as Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs.

Other moves in the cabinet shuffle include:

  • Kent Hehr, Minister of Sport and People with Disabilities (previously Minister of Veteran Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence)
  • Seamus O’Regan, Minister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence
  • Carla Qualtrough, Minister of Public Services and Procurement (previously Minister of Sport and Persons with Disabilities)