Prime Minister Mark Carney says his new cabinet reflects a “hinge moment” in Canadian history, saying it will focus both on its relationship with the U.S. but also on building a stronger economy for Canada.
Speaking to journalists outside Rideau Hall after revealing the new cabinet, Carney said speed will be crucial given the challenges facing Canada.
“The swearing-in of this cabinet is among the fastest following an election, and the beginning of the new Parliament will be one of the most rapid following an election in Canadian history,” Carney said.
“We are starting as we aim to go on, our government will deliver its mandate for change with urgency and determination. We’re going to deliver that mandate with a new team purpose built for this hinge moment in Canada’s history.”
Anita Anand is taking on the foreign affairs role, replacing Melanie Joly, in Carney’s first cabinet shuffle following the federal election last month.
Joly was among those who joined Carney on his recent trip to Washington, D.C. to meet with President Donald Trump. She’s been shifted to the role of minister of industry and minister responsible for Canada Economic Development for the Quebec regions, as well as registrar general.
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Carney cabinet shuffle: Anand replaces Joly as foreign affairs minister
Asked why Joly had been shifted out of foreign affairs, Carney in his first press conference after the swearing in said the shift was due to the need to focus on the economy.
“We are at the start of an industrial transformation, a transformation of this economy and Madame Joly as minister of industry is going to help lead that in concert with other members of the cabinet,” he said.
Carney added though Joly had built relationships with the U.S., he said that the person who has the relationship with the White House is the prime minister with President Donald Trump.
Finance Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne was also on that trip but remains in his role, while adding the role of minister of national revenue to his responsibilities.
The other member of that trip, Dominic LeBlanc, keeps his roles as intergovernmental affairs but is also listed as the minister responsible for “One Canadian economy” and will be responsible for Canada-U.S. trade, likely taking a key role in negotiations with the Trump administration. He will also serve as president of the King’s Privy Council for Canada.
Sean Fraser, the former housing minister under former prime minister Justin Trudeau who quit and said he would not run again before changing his mind, has been brought back to cabinet as minister of justice and attorney general of Canada. He’s also the minister responsible for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency.
Among the other ministers previously in Carney’s cabinet who are returning once more are:
- Gary Anandasangaree becomes minister of public safety
- Chrystia Freeland stays as minister of transportation and internal trade
- Steven Guilbeault stays on as minister of Canadian identity and culture and minister responsible for Official Languages
- Patty Hajdu becomes minister of jobs and families and minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario
- Steven MacKinnon becomes government house leader
- David McGuinty takes on the role of defence minister
- Joanne Thompson remains as fisheries minister
- Rechie Valdez becomes minister of women and gender equality
Alongside the 12 ministers who stayed in Carney’s cabinet, another 16 new members were sworn into their roles, including Fraser.
Those include:
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- Shafqat Ali is the president of the Treasury Board
- Rebecca Alty is minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations
- Rebecca Chartrand becomes minister of Northern and Arctic Affairs and minister responsible for the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency
- Julie Dabrusin is minister of environment and climate change
- Mandy Gull-Masty is minister of Indigenous services
- Tim Hodgson is minister of energy and natural resources
- Joel Lightbound is minister of government transformation, public works and procurement
- Heath MacDonald becomes minister of agriculture and agri-food
- Jill McKnight is minister of veterans affairs and associate minister of national defence
- Lena Metlege Diab is minister of immigration, refugees and citizenship
- Marjorie Michel is minister of health
- Eleanor Olszewski becomes minister of emergency management and community resilience and minister responsible for Prairies Economic Development Canada
- Gregor Robertson becomes housing minister, also responsible for infrastructure, and becomes minister responsible for Pacific Economic Development Canada
- Maninder Sidhu is minister of international trade
- Evan Solomon is minister of artificial intelligence and digital innovation, and responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency of Southern Ontario
The prime minister also spoke to the decisions that went into his cabinet in the context of Canada’s relationship with the U.S., saying he wanted to look for a combination in the files while also bringing new voices into the fold.
“Canadians elected us with a mandate for change,” he said.
“We have a series of choices, both the U.S. and Canada, about how we can better manage our border, we think we’ve made tremendous progress, but where do we go over the next decade. And then what degree of interoperability do we have in our military in a world that’s more dangerous and divided and so we have big decisions to make there.”
Conservative Party Leader Pierre Poilievre reacted to the new cabinet in a press conference Tuesday afternoon, saying Conservatives would continue to hold the government accountable but could support some actions by the Liberals including on foreign affairs.
“If the government does a good job at defending our national interest in negotiations with the U.S., then we will support those efforts,” Poilievre said. “When they are right, we’ll stand with them, when they’re wrong, we will oppose them. We hope the country succeeds, we want the nation to do well.”
Prime Minister Mark Carney speaks to reporters following a swearing-in ceremony at Rideau Hall in Ottawa, on Tuesday, May 13, 2025.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Spencer Colby
More than half of those entering cabinet, however, are new MPs – some of whom were elected for the first time this year.
Among the former cabinet ministers who are not returning are Bill Blair, Jonathan Wilkinson and Ginette Petitpas Taylor. A few ministers who were also named to cabinet for the first time by Carney in March were also dropped, including Kody Blois, Arielle Kayabaga and Ali Ehsassi.
Carney stressed with Canadians wanting change, he wanted to bring in new perspectives into the cabinet, while also keeping some ministers that had past experience.
“We have a big intake of new deputies, lots of different experiences that they’re bringing,” he said. “So bringing a balance, which is what we have, of experience perhaps in some cases in new roles, but experiences as cabinet ministers and new voices, new perspectives, half and half. For me, it’s perfect.”
Poilievre, however, was critical of some of Carney’s choices, saying there was disappointment in previous ministers like Guilbeault, Fraser and Freeland returning to cabinet.
“He appointed Trudeau’s old team and Trudeau’s old advisors,” Poilievre said. “It’s more of the same when Canada needs real change.”
He added that some of the new MPs joining cabinet were “problematic.”
“If this is the new blood that Mr. Carney is bringing into that cabinet, then sadly for Canadians, nothing is going to change.”
But in addition to the typical cabinet ministers, 10 MPs were named as “secretaries of state,” with these members to support various portfolios while not attending cabinet meetings.
“Secretaries of State are sworn to the Privy Council and are members of the Ministry. As such, they are bound by collective responsibility. They are not, however, members of the Cabinet. Secretaries of State are assigned to assist Cabinet Ministers in specific areas within their portfolios,” said a record of the roles when they were last used under former prime minister Jean Chretien.
“Secretaries of State are paid 75 per cent of a Cabinet Minister’s salary. For legal purposes, the Secretaries of State are formally appointed as Ministers of State to Assist.”
The job of a secretary of state in Carney’s cabinet will be to support the cabinet, who will “provide dedicated leadership on key issues and priorities within their minister’s portfolio.”
The secretaries of state are:
- Buckley Belanger as secretary of state for rural development
- Stephen Fuhr will handle defence procurement
- Anna Gainey will take on children and youth
- Wayne Long will handle Canada Revenue Agency and financial institutions
- Stephanie McLean is tasked with seniors
- Nathalie Provost is handling nature
- Ruby Sahota will tackle combatting crime
- Randeep Sarai is international development
- Adam van Koeverden will be responsible for sport
- John Zerucelli will assist on labour
Carney had committed after the election to having a gender-balanced cabinet.
The new cabinet has 14 men and 14 women, not including Carney. His secretaries of state, which do not sit in cabinet, consist of six men and four women.
Regional representation also appears to have come into play, with at least one cabinet minister from almost every province and territory except for Yukon and Nunavut, though the lone MP from Saskatchewan, Buckley Belanger, will be a secretary of state instead of part of cabinet.
Newly-elected Edmonton Centre MP Eleanor Olszewski was also included in cabinet. Prior to her appointment, there was no Alberta representation after Randy Boissonneault, whose seat Olszewski won last month, left cabinet in November 2024.
— with files from Global News’ Sean Boynton
