Seamus O’Regan stepping down from cabinet effective Friday: sources

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OTTAWA — Minister of Labour and Seniors Seamus O’Regan says he is stepping down from cabinet on Friday, prompting an imminent one-person cabinet shuffle in the Trudeau government.

In a statement shared on X, O’Regan said Thursday he will not be seeking re-election, but he intends to serve as MP for St. John’s South-Mount Pearl until the next general election. He did not specify why he was leaving his cabinet position other than for personal reasons.

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“These were difficult decisions,” he wrote. “Being chosen as MP in three elections over nine years by the people of this riding has been a great honour.

“But, ultimately, my family comes first. I need to be a better husband, son, uncle, and friend, and this job means, and deserves, a lot of time in order to do it well,” he added.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau confirmed the news in a separate statement and extended his “sincere thanks” to O’Regan for his “exceptional leadership and dedication to making life better for Canadians, including for unions, workers and organized labour.”

He also revealed that the new minister of labour and seniors will be sworn in at Rideau Hall on Friday. His French statement hinted that the new minister would be male.

One scenario would be to shuffle Steven MacKinnon, who was acting as Government House Leader during Karina Gould’s maternity leave for the past six months, to a new portfolio now that Gould is resuming her duties.

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In any case, the announcement that one of Trudeau’s top ministers and best friends is not seeking re-election comes as the Liberals are still reeling from a byelection defeat in a formerly safe Toronto seat and remain low in the polls, 20 points behind the Conservatives.

O’Regan, a close friend of Trudeau, was first elected in the Newfoundand and Labrador riding of St. John’s South-Mount Pearl in 2015 and was re-elected in 2019 and 2021.

He was appointed to cabinet in 2017 as minister of veterans affairs and went on to serve in a number of portfolios, notably Indigenous affairs, natural resources, labour and seniors.

In his current role, he oversaw a number of labour disputes and unanimously passed a bill to ban replacement workers in the House of Commons. However, he was criticized for causing a WestJet strike which disrupted Canadians’ travel plans earlier this summer.

O’Regan said in his statement that he was proud of the Liberal government’s accomplishments for the country and his home province.

He also expressed his faith in Trudeau, which he says will be “regarded as one of the most consequential and important leaders in our country’s history.” “His strength, endurance and vision are unmatched, and they will see us through the next election,” he wrote.

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But O’Regan’s departure might spark more questions about the state of the Liberal party.

In recent weeks, Trudeau’s entourage has been under intense pressure to either leave his position or implement changes in his entourage or in his cabinet, and there was increasing speculation that it could translate into a bigger cabinet shuffle later in the summer.

There was a media report last week about Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland being blamed by Trudeau’s senior staff for not communicating the government’s economic message effectively, but she has since said she has the “confidence” to do her job.

Meanwhile, Trudeau said he has been trying to convince former Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney to join his team for years. But it is unclear if he would be willing to drop his lucrative endeavours to join a party that could be defeated in a year to 18 months.

National Post
calevesque@postmedia.com

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