Yukon's Larry Bagnell not seeking federal cabinet post
'There's lots to do being MP for the Yukon,' Bagnell says
Yukon's newly-elected MP has a wealth of experience in Ottawa, but Liberal Larry Bagnell says he's not looking to parlay that into a cabinet post.
"I don't have any expectations," Bagnell said. "There's lots to do being MP for the Yukon."
Bagnell trounced his competition in Monday's vote, taking 53 per cent of all ballots cast in Yukon. It was a stunning comeback after losing his seat in 2011 to Conservative Ryan Leef.
Some MPs who win their ridings so decisively anticipate rewards in government, such as cabinet portfolios. Bagnell seems to eschew that.
"We have a really huge, very talented caucus," he said. "And one of the great things about it is that Justin guaranteed that half of the cabinet would be women, which I think is great."
Michael McLeod, the newly-elected Liberal MP for the N.W.T., has said that he assumes at least one MP from the northern territories will wind up in cabinet, and he hopes it's him. Nunavut's new MP Hunter Tootoo, also a Liberal (and a former territorial cabinet minister), has said he'll "wait and see". Justin Trudeau has said he'll name his new cabinet on Nov. 4.
Bagnell was Yukon's MP from 2000 to 2011, but he never held a cabinet post. As part of the governing Liberal caucus from 2000 to 2006, he served for periods as parliamentary secretary to the Natural Resources minister and the minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development.
As an opposition MP after the 2006 and 2008 elections, he served as his party's critic for Northern Development, Northern Affairs and Arctic Sovereignty.