Top 6 possible GTA picks for Trudeau's cabinet

PM-designate has plenty of options for cabinet among new crop of Toronto-area MPs

CBC.ca
Oct. 20, 2015
By Stephanie Matteis

Among the challenges facing Justin Trudeau is deciding who to promote on his team and who will not get a cabinet post. There are star rookies who might make a good choice but with 99 Conservatives and 44 NDP MPs looking for every misstep, he will have to make careful cabinet picks.

With attention to balance, geography and experience, here are some picks for the list of considerations in the GTA:

Bill Blair, Scarborough Southwest

As the former police chief in the nation's biggest city, Blair is a strong contender for a justice or national defence portfolio. He certainly has the gravitas and is tough on crime, with potential to challenge the perception the Liberals may have been soft on crime in the past.

Chrystia Freeland, University-Rosedale

The former journalist was the Liberal party's trade critic and a is good bet for a portfolio, possibly this one. Insiders say she's been Trudeau's confidant on foreign affairs issues and someone he listens to and trusts.

So though she's relatively new to parliament, having replaced outgoing MP Bob Rae in 2013, she is likely to get a portfolio that's a heavy lift.

Adam Vaughan, Spadina-Fort York

Even before he was a Liberal candidate, Vaughan gave advice on infrastructure and wrote housing policies for the federal party. In the Tory government, the post was as minister of infrastructure, communities and intergovernmental affairs, Housing has been dropped from the portfolio for years.

Could it be revived with an appointment for an MP with comprehensive understanding of the issue in Canada's largest city? The competing interest, though, is whether or not Trudeau gives the portfolio to an MP in Quebec, where crumbling infrastructure is a major issue. With Trudeau's his home riding in Papineau, this may be a matter of optics.

Bill Morneau,Toronto Centre

Morneau is the former chair of the C.D. Howe Institute and seen as a successful businessman who helped Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne develop a provincial retirement savings plan to supplement the CPP. He is one of those rumoured to be Canada's next minister of finance.

Marco Mendicino, Eglinton-Lawrence

​Seen by many as a barometer of the results, Joe Oliver's loss in this riding is significant. He lost to Mendicino, who doesn't have a political background. Mendicino is a former Crown lawyer, prosecuting cases against organized crime and terrorism and has been an advocate for judicial changes.

If Blair is hypothetically given national defence or a public safety portfolio, that could leave justice to Mendicino.

Mark Holland, Ajax

Holland is a former MP who beat Chris Alexander, the former citizenship and immigration minister. Holland worked as the executive director of the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada's Ontario Mission and was national director of Children and Youth. He also has six years experience working on the hill.