Justin Trudeau was sworn in Wednesday as Canada’s prime minister, following in the footsteps of his storied father and restoring his nation’s liberal identity after nearly 10 years of Conservative rule under Stephen Harper.
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NICHOLAS KAMM/Getty Images The Canadian authorities is more likely to unveil a more detailed plan soon, now in that Trudeau & his ministers have been sworn in.
Cheering crowds lined the approach to the governor-general’s residence where the swearing-in ceremony took place as Mr Trudeau threw the venue open to the public.
“We have an terrible lot of work to do in coming weeks, months and years”, Trudeau said.
Immigration Minister John McCallum, one of Mr. Trudeau’s experienced hands, must try to resettle 25,000 Syrian refugees in Canada by year’s end, while another political veteran, Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale, has to figure out what to do about the controversial Anti-Terrorism Act.
Trudeau named 15 women to a Cabinet of 30, including Jody Wilson-Raybould, an aboriginal lawyer from British Columbia as minister of justice and attorney general; Chrystia Freeland, a former journalist as trade minister; Jane Philpott, a first-time member of parliament and family doctor, at health.
Canada’s new foreign affairs minister was also the first MP sworn into the 42nd Parliament.
Ottawa lawyer and NGO director Catherine McKenna takes on the environment and climate change portfolio, just as world leaders prepare to meet in Paris for worldwide climate change talks.
Trudeau’s new Cabinet is now the most diverse Canada has ever seen.
Guests arrive in the Ballroom at Rideau Hall for the swearing in ceremony. They waved to a large crowd as they walked up the grounds to the hall.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s move to raise the profile of climate change within his new Cabinet signals a clear change in direction on carbon emissions from the policies of his predecessor.
“When they saw me, a Sikh, there from Punjab and from Canada, they said, “We must have a terrorist here”, he told EJ.
We are committed to investing in our economy, strengthening the middle class, and helping those working hard to join it. We will invest in job creation and broad-based prosperity to ensure every Canadian has a real and fair chance to succeed.
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There will be seven cabinet ministers from the Toronto area, six from Quebec, three from B.C., two from Alberta, one each in Saskatchewan and Manitobia, and one from each of the Atlantic provinces.
