OTTAWA -- Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has shuffled his roster of parliamentary secretaries, promoting Bill Blair to do double-duty on the justice and health files, and naming backbench Liberal MP Chris Bittle as the new deputy House leader.
Parliamentary secretaries are MPs, from the governing caucus, who act as liaisons between cabinet ministers and the House of Commons.
PM Trudeau promoted Blair on Tuesday, making him the parliamentary secretary to Minister of Health Ginette Petitpas Taylor. Blair also retains his position as the government’s point man on pot as parliamentary secretary to Minister of Justice Jody Wilson-Raybould.
Joël Lightbound, previously parliamentary secretary to health minister, becomes parliamentary secretary to Minister of Finance Bill Morneau, a role that was held by Petitpas Taylor before she was promoted last month.
Alaina Lockhart becomes parliamentary secretary to Bardish Chagger, in her role as the minister of small business and tourism.
Don Rusnak becomes parliamentary secretary to Minister of Indigenous Services Jane Philpott.
And Yvonne Jones, currently parliamentary secretary to the minister of Indigenous and northern affairs, stays in the file, under the Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Minister Carolyn Bennett.
These changes come largely as a result of the Aug. 28 cabinet shuffle that saw the Indigenous file split between Philpott and Bennett, and rookie MPs Petitpas Taylor and Seamus O’Regan elevated to the front bench. O’Regan was named veterans affairs minister and associate minister of defence.
The cabinet shuffle also saw Carla Qualtrough promoted to public services and procurement minister. She was previously the minister of sport and persons with disabilities. That position is now being taken by Kent Hehr, who was shuffled out of the veterans affairs portfolio.
The parliamentary secretaries for the public services and veterans affairs portfolios did not change in this shuffle. Liberal MPs Steven MacKinnon and Sherry Romanado still hold those positions, respectively.
In a separate release Tuesday, Trudeau appointed Liberal MP Chris Bittle to be the new deputy House leader, a position previously by Arnold Chan, who died last week, after battling cancer.
Bittle will work alongside Chagger in her role as government House leader.
“Bittle will encourage close collaboration and meaningful engagement with House of Commons colleagues, Parliamentary Committees, the Public Service, stakeholders, and Canadians,” said Trudeau in the release.
As one of the House rule changes passed by the Liberals in June, parliamentary secretaries are not allowed to be voting members on House committees, but often sit in on meetings to report back to the minister what’s being said, especially when studying legislation.
According to the Library of Parliament, parliamentary secretaries and deputy House leaders receive an additional $17,000 salary.
