Ontario cabinet shuffle: Hoskins to become health minister
Deb Matthews to take on new portfolio, Liz Sandals stays as education minister
Premier Kathleen Wynne will be keeping her cabinet intact for the start of the new legislative session, though Ontario will have a new health minister as of this afternoon.
The members of Wynne’s cabinet will be sworn in at 2 p.m. But word has begun leaking out on the new roles that some members will be taking on.
CBC News has learned that no one is leaving Wynne's cabinet, but a series of internal changes are about to take place with 18 ministries seeing new ministers.
Wynne will continue on as minister of intergovernmental affairs, though she will no longer be the agriculture and food minister.
Among the changes on the horizon, Deb Matthews is set to take on a prominent portfolio, which means there will be a new health minister. There are reports on Monday evening that she will become the president of the treasury board.
Her successor as health minister will be Eric Hoskins, according to sources who spoke to CBC News.
CBC News has also learned that Michael Chan will become the province’s immigration minister, but he’ll also hold a second file.
Michael Coteau will become the new Pan Am Games minister, as well as the province’s tourism and culture minister. Those are files Chan had been dealing with.
Bill Mauro is said to be taking on a new file as well.
CBC News has learned that Steven Del Duca will become the new transportation minister.
The infrastructure portfolio will now be rolled into the economic development and employment portfolio. It is considered a key part of the Liberals' plan for job creation and economic growth.
Glen Murray, who had previously served as Wynne's transportation minister and infrastructure minister, will also have a new role. The Toronto Star reported Monday night that he will be the new environment minister.
CBC News has learned that the environment portfolio is going to become known as Environment and Climate Change.
Other cabinet members, including Finance Minister Charles Sousa, Attorney General Madeleine Meilleur and Education Minister Liz Sandals, are expected to stay put. The same goes for Kevin Flynn, the labour minister, and Yasir Naqvi, the minister of community safety and correctional services.
Wynne will also be creating at least one new position, when Mitzie Hunter becomes the new associate minister of finance. The Scarborough-Guildwood MPP will be responsible for the made-in-Ontario pension plan that the Liberals have proposed.
The new cabinet will be the one that serves Wynne as she begins her tenure as the leader of a majority government.
Before the June 12 election, the Liberals held a minority position in the legislature for the previous 32 months.
With files from The Canadian Press and the CBC’s Julie-Anne Lamoureux and Genevieve Tomney