Guilbeault expected to shuffled out of post as Carney takes over

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OTTAWA — Steven Guilbeault is expected to be shuffled out of his post as minister of environment and climate change Friday as prime minister-designate Mark Carney attempts to make a clear break with the Trudeau era.

Citing a source, Radio Canada reported that Guilbeault will be reassigned in a much smaller cabinet.

Carney and his cabinet will be sworn in on Friday morning, marking the end of Justin Trudeau’s nine-year run as prime minister.

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In a video posted to X Thursday, Trudeau says he’s proud to have served a country full of people who stand up for what’s right, rise to every occasion and “always have each others’ backs when it matters most.”

Even before Trudeau leaves office, however, one of his signature policies has come undone.

Carney campaigned on a promise to drop Trudeau’s consumer carbon tax and appears to be following through with the shuffle of Guilbeault, a climate activist who has been the face of the Liberal government’s fight against climate change.

He has been environment minister since 2021.

On Thursday, he would not confirm to the CBC that he was being shuffled, saying that it was the prime minister’s prerogative to do so. He also said he was proud of his accomplishments in the post.

The Carney cabinet is expected to be whittled down from 36 to no more than 20. There are seven ministers who have announced they will not be running in the upcoming federal election.

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The four ministers who have been leading Canada’s fight against U.S. tariffs are expected to remain in their posts: Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc, Foreign Minister Melanie Joly, Industry Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne and Public Safety Minister David McGuinty.

A Liberal source confirmed that Procurement Minister and Quebec Lieutenant Jean-Yves Duclos would not be part of Carney’s cabinet, a surprising exclusion as the Quebec City MP was widely respected within caucus and in cabinet.

Transport and Internal Trade Minister Anita Anand is expected to stay in cabinet but change portfolios. She has been working with premiers on lifting the trade barriers between provinces.

Health Minister Mark Holland announced Thursday that he would not be running in the upcoming election, presumably signalling his exit from cabinet as well. “It’s time to go home,” the MP for Ajax, Ont., posted on X.

It remains unclear if ex-ministers and Carney leadership rivals Chrystia Freeland and Karina Gould will have a role in the new cabinet. Gould was seen with Carney during a steel mill visit on Wednesday while Freeland was in New York City to receive a medal from the Foreign Policy Association.

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But Carney and his cabinet may not stay in the job for long as he is widely expected to call a federal election before Parliament is set to return from prorogation on March 24.

The former central banker won the Liberal leadership race to replace Trudeau by a landslide, earning 86 per cent of party members’ votes last Sunday. He promised a “seamless” and “quick” transition after meeting with Trudeau on Monday morning.

Carney’s transition team did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

He becomes prime minister as the country is in the throes of an escalating trade war with its largest export market, the United States.

He has promised to uphold Canada’s reciprocal tariffs on specific American goods as long as President Donald Trump’s administration maintains 25 per cent universal tariffs on Canadian items that aren’t covered by the CUSMA trade deal.

Carney met with the Liberal caucus on Monday and announced that former minister Marco Mendicino was his chief of staff during the transition, a controversial decision for Muslim groups and party supporters due to his fiercely pro-Israel stance since the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks by Hamas.

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The incoming prime minister spent Tuesday being briefed by various government officials, including the heads of the RCMP, the Canadian Armed Forces and Canada’s national security agencies. He also met with Canada’s ambassador to the U.S., Kirsten Hillman.

Early Wednesday, Ontario Premier Doug Ford said he had a breakfast meeting with Carney to discuss the ongoing trade war with the U.S. At the same time, the federal government announced 25 per cent reciprocal tariffs on $29.8 billion of American imports on the same day U.S. levies on all foreign imports of steel and aluminum kicked in.

After meeting with Ford, Carney travelled to Hamilton to visit a steel mill and speak with workers.

“Today is a difficult day for Canada. It’s a difficult day for the industry because of these unjustified tariffs that have been put on,” he said.

Carney pledged the revenue Canada collects from its tariffs would be put toward supporting workers in affected industries.

“I’m ready to sit down with President Trump at the appropriate time — under a position where there’s respect for Canadian sovereignty — and we’re working for a common approach, a much more comprehensive approach for trade,” Carney said.

National Post, with files from Christopher Nardi and Stephanie Taylor

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