MILLER MISSES CUT IN CABINET SHUFFLE; JILL DUNLOP IN

Mark Clairmont | MuskokaTODAY.com

QUEEN’S PARK — For a government in trouble, it’s probably no surprise today that MPP Norm Miller wasn’t named to cabinet in a Ford government shuffle.

Simcoe North MPP Jill Dunlop joins cabinet as associate minister of children’s and women’s issues

The Parliamentary Assistant to the premier (who is the minitser of intergovernmental affairs) was not among a number of high-level ministers joining or moving in an announcement Thursday, June 20.

It’s been 34 years as of this June 26 since his father, Frank Miller, was Ontario premier four months in 1985.

Miller could still be moved this week, if Ford changes PA responsibilities.

North Bay MPP Vic Fedeli loses the finance job to Rod Phillips, and moves to minister of economic development.

New to the cabinet is Simcoe North MPP Jill Dunlop, who was first elected last June 7. She becomes associate minister of children and women’s issues and is the daughter of longtime PC riding MPP Garfield Dunlop.

The new executive council increases from 21 to 28 and includes one new ministry and five new associated ministers. There are 73 Progressive Conservative members in caucus.

In a release at the start of the swearing-in ceremony, the governemt said:

The full cabinet includes:

  • Premier and Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs – Doug Ford
  • Deputy Premier and Minister of Health – Christine Elliott
  • Deputy Premier and Minister of Health – Christine Elliott
  • Associate Minister of Mental Health and Addictions – Michael Tibollo
  • Minister of Long-Term Care – Merrilee Fullerton
  • Minister of Finance – Rod Phillips
  • Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade and Chair of Cabinet – Vic Fedeli
  • Associate Minister of Small Business and Red Tape Reduction – Prabmeet Sarkaria
  • Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing – Steve Clark
  • Solicitor General – Sylvia Jones
  • Minister of Environment, Conservation and Parks – Jeff Yurek
  • Minister of Children, Community and Social Services – Todd Smith
  • Associate Minister of Children and Women’s Issues – Jill Dunlop
  • Minister of Labour – Monte McNaughton
  • Attorney General – Doug Downey
  • Minister of Transportation and Minister of Francophone Affairs – Caroline Mulroney
  • Associate Minister of Transportation (GTA) – Kinga Surma
  • Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities – Ross Romano
  • Minister of Education – Stephen Lecce
  • President of the Treasury Board – Peter Bethlenfalvy
  • Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry – John Yakabuski
  • Minister of Energy, Northern Development and Mines, and Minister of Indigenous Affairs – Greg Rickford
  • Associate Minister of Energy – Bill Walker
  • Minister for Seniors and Accessibility – Raymond Cho
  • Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs – Ernie Hardeman
  • Minister of Infrastructure – Laurie Scott
  • Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport – Lisa MacLeod
  • Minister of Government and Consumer Services – Lisa Thompson
  • Government House Leader – Paul Calandra

According to the government news release, and to refresh people’s minds, they say:

“Our plan for the people is working. Since Premier Ford was elected, our government has:

  • Created an environment that led to the creation of more than 190,000 jobs
  • Oversaw the renewal of Hydro One, including the departure of the previous CEO and Board of Directors, and installing a new Board backed up by real accountability and transparency measures
  • Repealed the Green Energy Act
  • Cancelled and wound down more than 750 unnecessary and expensive renewable energy contracts to save ratepayers $790 million
  • Scrapped the province’s cap-and-trade carbon tax, saving Ontario families about $260 per year and cutting gas prices by 4.3 cents a litre
  • Scrapped the Drive Clean program to save time and reduce vehicle service costs for consumers
  • Implemented the most generous tax credit for low income Ontarians in a generation
  • Introduced one of the most flexible child care initiatives in Ontario history, the Ontario Childcare Access and Relief from Expenses (CARE) tax credit, to put parents and children first
  • Increased health care funding by $1.3 billion this year
  • Allocated more than 7,000 new long-term care beds, nearly half of the 15,000 new beds to be built over the next five years
  • Supported those struggling with mental health and addictions by providing a historic investment of $3.8 billion over ten years
  • Provided full dental coverage for low-income seniors
  • Made historic investments in transit and infrastructure
  • Reined in public sector compensation and spending
  • Delivered a made-in-Ontario environmental plan that protects both the environment and jobs
  • Reduced the burden of government on small businesses through legislative changes and reducing red tape
  • Respected parents and gone back to basics in our schools by focusing more on math and science so that students are better prepared for the future
  • Introduced an unprecedented 10 per cent reduction in college and university tuition fees and the modernization of skilled trades and apprenticeships
  • Better supported postsecondary students in skilled trades and protected free speech on campus.