McKenna to take over infrastructure file after four contentious years on environment

After four years on a portfolio rife with conflict, Ottawa Centre MP Catherine McKenna will be taking over the infrastructure file from Francois-Philippe Champagne.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau laid out his new cabinet Nov. 20 at Rideau Hall in a swearing-in ceremony alongside Gov. Gen. Julie Payette.

McKenna served as environment minister for Trudeau’s entire first term and was tasked with overseeing the federal carbon tax plan, in some cases forcing it on any province that didn’t initiate an equivalent system of their own. The plan remains divisive and numerous legal challenges from provinces are ongoing.

As the new minister of Infrastructure and Communities, McKenna will shepherd the government’s approximately $190 billion infrastructure plan through the mid section of its 12-year duration.

Francois-Philippe Champagne, meanwhile, will become Canada’s minister of foreign affairs. He spent about 18 months on infrastructure after being dropped into the post during a July 2018 cabinet shuffle.

A complete list of the new cabinet:

Chrystia Freeland becomes deputy prime minister and minister of intergovernmental affairs

Anita Anand becomes minister of public services and procurement

Navdeep Bains becomes minister of innovation, science and industry

Carolyn Bennett remains minister of Crown-Indigenous relations

Marie-Claude Bibeau remains minister of agriculture and agri-food

Bill Blair becomes minister of public safety and emergency preparedness

Bardish Chagger becomes minister of diversity and inclusion and youth

Francois-Philippe Champagne becomes minister of foreign affairs

Jean-Yves Duclos becomes president of the Treasury Board

Mona Fortier becomes minister of middle-class prosperity and associate minister of finance

Marc Garneau remains minister of transport

Karina Gould becomes minister of international development

Steven Guilbeault becomes minister of Canadian heritage

Patty Hajdu becomes minister of health

Ahmed Hussen becomes minister of families, children and social development

Melanie Joly becomes minister of economic development and official languages

Bernadette Jordan becomes minister of fisheries, oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard

David Lametti remains minister of justice and attorney general

Dominic LeBlanc becomes president of the Queen’s Privy Council for Canada

Diane Lebouthillier remains minister of national revenue

Lawrence MacAulay remains minister of veterans affairs and associate minister of national defence

Catherine McKenna becomes minister of infrastructure and communities

Marco Mendicino becomes minister of immigration, refugees and citizenship

Marc Miller becomes minister of Indigenous services

Maryam Monsef becomes minister for women and gender equality and rural economic development

Bill Morneau remains minister of finance

Joyce Murray becomes minister of digital government

Mary Ng becomes minister of small business, export promotion and international trade

Seamus O’Regan becomes minister of natural resources

Carla Qualtrough becomes minister of employment, workforce development and disability inclusion

Pablo Rodriguez becomes leader of the government in the House of Commons

Harjit Sajjan remains minister of national defence

Deb Schulte becomes minister of seniors

Filomena Tassi becomes minister of labour

Dan Vandal becomes minister of northern affairs

Jonathan Wilkinson becomes minister of environment and climate change

—With files from the Canadian Press