Carney Keeps Core Senior Ministers in New Cabinet, Adds Many New Faces

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, arrives for the cabinet swearing-in ceremony at Rideau Hall in Ottawa on May 13, 2025. Spencer Colby/The Canadian Press

Prime Minister Mark Carney appointed his cabinet ministers on May 13, with a mix of change and continuity as some former ministers were dropped and newly elected MPs were elevated.

Some of the new cabinet members include former broadcaster Evan Solomon, former Vancouver mayor Gregor Robertson, and former Hydro One chair Tim Hodgson.

Some of the ministers being dropped include Bill Blair and Jonathan Wilkinson.

After the swearing-in ceremony at Rideau Hall, Carney said his new team is “purpose-built for this hinge moment in Canada’s history and is ”smaller and more focused than those of previous governments.”

For his first cabinet in March, Carney had kept in senior positions ministers under former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau who had key roles in dealing with the United States and its tariffs imposed on Canada. 

Prime Minister Mark Carney (front 5th L) poses with members of the newly sworn-in Liberal cabinet following a ceremony at Rideau Hall in Ottawa on May 13, 2025. The Canadian Press/Christinne Muschi

Dominic LeBlanc became international trade minister, Mélanie Joly kept foreign affairs, and François-Philippe Champagne became finance minister. Anita Anand changed her mind about leaving politics and was appointed industry minister. David McGuinty also stayed at public safety.

These ministers all kept senior roles in the new cabinet.

Champagne will remain as finance minister and will take the additional portfolio of national revenue.

LeBlanc’s international trade mandate was changed to Canada-U.S. trade in the new cabinet, while he was given the additional responsibility of overseeing the building of “One Canadian Economy.”

Joly was moved out of the foreign affairs position she had held since 2021, and is now industry minister. She has the additional responsibility of overseeing economic development in Quebec.

Anand will be replacing Joly as foreign affairs minister and McGuinty will replace Blair at defence.

Chrystia Freeland, who served in key roles as finance minister and deputy prime minister for Trudeau, is returning to Carney’s cabinet as minister of transport and internal trade. Freeland sparked political upheaval in December 2024 when she resigned from cabinet the same day she was set to deliver the Fall Economic Statement, accelerating calls for Trudeau to step down.

Stephen Guilbeault is remaining as minister of Canadian culture and identity and will take on the additional portfolio of official languages. He had previously served as environment minister under Trudeau.

Sean Fraser, who previously served as immigration minister and then as housing minister, will return to cabinet as Carney’s justice minister. Fraser had initially said he was leaving politics to spend more time with his family before changing his mind and seeking re-election in Nova Scotia.

Rechie Valdez was given the position of minister of women and gender equality, as well as a secretary of state position for small business and tourism. She was government whip in the previous cabinet.

Ruby Sahota, previously minister of democratic institutions from 2024 to 2025, will become secretary of state for combating crime. Olympic gold medalist Adam van Koeverden, who was previously parliamentary secretary to the minister of sport and physical activity, will become secretary of state for sport.

The new cabinet will count a total of 28 ministers and 10 secretaries of state, a junior minister position that had not existed since the Stephen Harper years.

Carney didn’t keep the same lean formula he chose when he appointed his first cabinet in March, which counted 24 ministers including himself. This had marked a departure from his predecessor’s larger cabinet of 37 ministers.

Carney’s new cabinet is larger, but the tiering system will mean junior ministers will not be participating in all cabinet meetings and decisions. An official from the Prime Minister’s Office told reporters the secretaries of state will only participate when their files are being discussed.

While this practice marks a change, Carney has maintained the format established by Trudeau in keeping the cabinet gender-balanced, with an equal number of male and female ministers. For secretaries of states, there are six men and four women.

Removed

Jonathan Wilkinson, who had been a minister since 2018 and last held the natural resources portfolio, has been dropped from cabinet. “I know, with certainty, that my work has left a lasting mark on this country and contributed to shaping a better world,” he said in a statement. He cited his work around the decarbonization of the oil and gas sector and the launch of the critical minerals strategy.

Bill Blair, another mainstay under Trudeau, has been removed from cabinet. Blair had served as defence minister since 2023.

Other names dropped from cabinet include Ginette Petitpas Taylor, who was president of the Treasury Board, Terry Duguid, who served as environment minister, Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, who was in charge of housing, and Kody Blois who was minister of agriculture.

Also dropped are Arielle Kayabaga, who had been appointed House leader, Ali Ehsassi who had the procurement portfolio, and Rachel Bendayan, who was minister of immigration.

Most of the ministers who were dropped had been appointed to cabinet by Carney in mid-March. Petitpas Taylor was the only minister in this group who had served under Trudeau.

New Faces

There are a total of 24 new faces in Carney’s cabinet, with many of the MPs just recently elected on April 28.

Carney said he wanted a balance of experience and new perspectives in his cabinet.

Newly elected MP Tim Hodgson, who worked with Carney at Goldman Sachs and served as his special advisor at the Bank of Canada before his role as chair of Hydro One, has become the minister of natural resources and energy.

The position of housing minister has gone to newly elected MP Gregor Robertson, who previously served as mayor of Vancouver from 2008 to 2018.

Marjorie Michel, who had served as Trudeau’s deputy chief of staff, is the new minister of health. She ran and won in Trudeau’s former Montreal riding of Papineau.

Evan Solomon, who previously worked as a reporter for CBC News and CTV News and was recently elected in Toronto, has become the minister of artificial intelligence and digital innovation, as well as the minister for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario.

Nathalie Provost, a survivor of the École Polytechnique mass shooting and a gun control advocate, has been given the position of secretary of state for nature.

Stephen Fuhr, who served 20 years in the Royal Canadian Air Force before joining the civilian aviation industry and becoming the CEO of SkyTrac Systems, will serve in a secretary of state role for defence procurement after being elected in April.

The role of minister of immigration will go to Lena Metlege Diab, who is a returning MP but is new to cabinet. Her family moved to Halifax when she was 11 years old to escape the Lebanese Civil War, and she went on to become a Nova Scotia MLA before being elected MP in 2021.

The role of minister of environment and climate change goes to Julie Dabrusin, who first entered the House of Commons in 2015 and previously held two parliamentary secretary positions.

Maninder Sidhu, who has served as a member of several parliamentary associations and inter-parliamentary groups since he was first elected to Parliament in 2019, will serve as minister of international trade.

Heath MacDonald, who has been an MP since 2021, has become minister of agriculture and agri-food. With that appointment, Prince Edward Island will once again be represented in cabinet.

Other new ministers include Joël Lightbound as minister of government transportation, Shafqat Ali as president of the Treasury Board, Rebecca Chartrand as minister of Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency, Eleanor Olszewski as minister of Prairies Economic Development Canada, Jill McKnight as minister of veterans affairs and associate minister of national defence, Rebecca Alty as minister of Crown-indigenous relations, and Mandy Gull-Masty as minister of indigenous services.

Most of the secretaries of state are new faces to cabinet as well. These include John Zerucelli as secretary of state for labour, Buckley Belanger as secretary of state for rural development, Anna Gainey as secretary of state for children and youth, Randeep Sarai as secretary of state for international development, Wayne Long as secretary of state for the Canada Revenue Agency and financial institutions, and Stephanie McLean as secretary of state for seniors.

New Parliament

The Carney Liberals fell a few seats short of a majority in the April 28 election and some recounts are underway, although the outcomes will not impact whether Liberals move into a majority. Liberals have been sending out “feelers” to NDP MPs to gauge whether any would be interested in crossing the floor, according to interim leader Don Davies.

The new Parliament will begin on May 26 and King Charles III is expected to outline the government’s agenda in the speech from the throne on May 27. The speech will then be debated in the House of Commons and opposition parties will decide whether to support it as a matter of confidence.

Opposition parties suffered varying setbacks in the election and are not expected to challenge the minority Liberals in the near future. Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and former NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh lost their respective ridings and the Bloc Québécois lost around 10 seats.

Opposition parties are also expected to support Carney’s early agenda around the strengthening of Canada’s economy, including by removing internal trade barriers.