REGINA — Premier Scott Moe’s latest cabinet shuffle sees some prominent names staying put, others shuffled out of cabinet entirely, and several brand new ministers sworn in for the first time.
Five new names took the oath at Government House on Thursday morning as new cabinet ministers: Mike Weger as minister of Community Safety (previously called Corrections, Policing and Public Safety) and minister responsible for Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency; Chris Beaudry as minister of Energy and Resources; Darlene Rowden as minister of Environment; Kim Gartner as minister of Highways; and Sean Wilson as minister of SaskBuilds & Procurement. All five newcomers are first-term members of the assembly.
There have been changes to the roles of other ministers, the most significant being David Marit moving out of Highways to return to his former role as minister of Agriculture and minister responsible for Saskatchewan Crop Insurance Corporation.
As well, Deputy Premier and Finance Minister Jim Reiter gives up Immigration and Career Training, which is now picked up by Eric Schmalz. Schmalz stays on as minister of Government Relations and minister responsible for First Nations, Métis and Northern Affairs. And Tim McLeod stays as minister of Justice and Attorney General and as government House leader, but gives up the Corrections, Policing and Public Safety portfolio.
Travis Keisig, Daryl Harrison and Colleen Young exit cabinet, with all three expected to serve as chairs of legislative committees. Eight legislative secretaries were also appointed.
Moe said the reason he chose to make the cabinet changes was to “attempt to build some capacity across government, not just in cabinet, with a number of new members that are coming in to serve in the Saskatchewan cabinet today."
“I look forward to working with them and working with some of the existing members that have been there for some period of time as well.”
Part of the rationale, Moe said, is to “spread out some of that workload, bring the cabinet complement back to a number that is more common, at least under our term in government of 18 cabinet ministers. So bringing two new seats to the table that weren't there the last year but have previously been there 17 years prior to that.
“I think allowing for all of our cabinet ministers now to have one, I would say, a little bit more balanced workload, which will give them the opportunity to have an eye to working on the broader strategy, on how we're positioning ourselves in each of the files as we move forward and look into the future.”
He attributed that balancing of the workload as the reason in particular why McLeod gave up the Corrections, Policing and Public Safety role.
“It's an extremely large workload when you look at all of the files that he has had over the period of the last year, in addition to being house leader as well. And he served, I think, extremely competently in all of those files in a very challenging year in some of those files,” Moe said.
Moe acknowledged the work McLeod performed as minister of the SPSA “over just quite a tragic year and challenging year, no doubt, with respect to forest fires.”
As for the removal of Keisig, Young and Harrison, Moe said it was “about building capacity across the government caucus, not just in the cabinet office, not about, in any way, competence."
“There's many more that could serve in the cabinet room. I always say that this is one of the most difficult decisions that a leader has to make as to who is going to serve in the cabinet. We've been fortunate and blessed that we have many that are capable. And what we made a decision on with this particular shuffle is we want to continue to bring people into cabinet, but then also have that broader experience across the governing caucus, which I think is good for the decisions that the governing caucus ultimately has to make.”
Reaction from opposition New Democrats to the cabinet changes was predictable, however.
In a news release, NDP Leader Carla Beck said Moe was “shuffling the deck chairs on the Titanic.” The NDP release claimed the Sask. Party is “focused on infighting and failing to deliver on the issues that matter most to the people of Saskatchewan.”
