Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appears as a witness at the federal inquiry into foreign interference in Ottawa on Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. Trudeau is expected to shuffle his cabinet yet again.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick
OTTAWA – Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is expected to shuffle his cabinet again after four more cabinet ministers informed the Prime Minister’s Office they aren’t running in the next election.
Filomena Tassi, the minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario, announced Thursday she won’t be running again for personal reasons.
A senior government source confirmed a report from Radio-Canada that National Revenue Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau, Sports Minister Carla Qualtrough and Northern Affairs Minister Dan Vandal also won’t be on the ballot and are expected to step down from cabinet.
It’s not clear yet when the shuffle will happen but the source, who spoke on background, says it could be by the end of next week.
It won’t happen before all Liberal caucus members are expected to meet on Parliament Hill on Oct. 23, a meeting that could be quite tense amid another movement among Liberal MPs to push Trudeau to resign.
Trudeau’s leadership has been under fire for months as the government’s polling numbers tanked alongside his approval ratings.
Trudeau has so far been steadfast in his plans to stay on as Liberal leader for the race, which must happen before next October but could happen far sooner due to the minority government.
In a statement on social media, Tassi expressed her support for the prime minister.
“I wish him the very best now and in the future. I believed in him in 2015 and I believe in him now,” she said.
Tassi, who was procurement minister in 2022, asked the prime minister to shuffle her into a smaller portfolio at the time for family reasons.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 17, 2024.
