ST. STEPHEN – The MLA for the St. Croix riding has a post in the provincial cabinet.
Premier Blaine Higgs made changes to his cabinet on Tuesday with some veterans leaving and new faces being installed. St. Croix MLA Kathy Bockus is one of the newly installed ministers and takes on the newly created role of minister responsible for Seniors.
After being sworn in, Bockus had not yet received her mandate letter for the new department. Bockus previously chaired the accessibility committee and said accessibility includes work with seniors.
“I’m really looking forward to (being) in that role,” said Bockus, shortly after the announcement. “I think we really need to protect our seniors.”
There are many other departments that are involved in caring for seniors, says Bockus, including health care and housing.
“I think what we have to do is sit down and figure out exactly how we’re going to overlap and do it successfully. We can’t keep things in silos where people don’t know what the other person’s doing.”
Bockus says she hopes this group of cabinet ministers can work together “and move this province forward like we’ve been doing.”
She’s taking an optimistic approach and is happy with the new role.
“I’m going to do the best I can, as I’ve always done, for the people of the province and especially the people of my riding.”
The premier announced the shuffle in the wake of some high-profile resignations, strongly worded letters about Higgs’ leadership style and calls for his resignation.
Six cabinet ministers – Dorothy Shephard, Trevor Holder, Daniel Allain, Arlene Dunn, Jeff Carr and Jill Green – were absent from the legislature when Education Minister Bill Hogan presented proposed changes to Policy 713. Shephard, from Social Development, and Holder, Post-Secondary Education Training and Labour (PETL), subsequently resigned. Higgs removed Allain and Carr from cabinet in the shuffle. Dunn and Green remain within the inner circle.
In all, nine cabinet members are new or have had changes to their portfolios.
Dunn retains her Aboriginal Affairs portfolio and picks up PETL and Immigration. Green adds the Economic and Social Inclusion Corporation while keeping Social Development and housing in a renamed portfolio as the New Brunswick Housing Corporation.
Glen Savoie picks up Local Government from Allain to add to his existing Francophonie portfolio.
Richard Ames is one of the new faces in cabinet and picks up Transportation and Infrastructure from Carr. Greg Turner is another new addition and takes on Opportunities NB and Economic Development and Small Business. Dunn previously held those files.
Mary Wilson has been returned as minister of Service New Brunswick, which she held prior to Green, and minister responsible for Military Affairs.
Tammy Scott-Wallace retains Tourism, Heritage and Culture and loses Women’s Equality, which has been designated to Sherry Wilson. Wilson also takes on Addictions and Mental Health Services, which is a new portfolio.
robertfisher@stcroixcourier.ca