OTTAWA, (Reuters) – Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau shuffled much of his cabinet yesterday, adding focus on economic issues like a housing shortage and the rising cost of living that have hurt his standing with voters.
Trudeau, whose left-leaning Liberals have been in power since November 2015, kept heavy hitters such as Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland, Innovation Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne and Foreign Minister Melanie Joly in their portfolios.
The prime minister changed or tweaked the job descriptions of about three-quarters of the positions compared with his previous cabinet, with former immigration minister Sean Fraser taking over a newly formed Housing, Infrastructure and Communities ministry.
Dominic LeBlanc becomes public safety minister, taking over for Marco Mendicino, and Arif Virani moves from the back benches to become justice minister. Bill Blair takes over the Defense Ministry from Anita Anand.
“This is not tinkering, it is a major reset,” said Frank Graves, president of polling company Ekos. “The shuffle does send a clear message that the government is aware that their current standing with the electorate is not healthy.”