Blaine Higgs lost one cabinet minister Friday and another said he won’t run in the upcoming general election, but the New Brunswick premier painted the departures as an opportunity for his Progressive Conservatives.
“I don’t think that we should read anything more or less into the fact that it’s an opportunity for others to get involved in politics,” Higgs said as he announced a minor shuffling of cabinet duties.
Arlene Dunn, who had been minister for post-secondary education, training and labour, resigned from cabinet without giving a reason.
“It is with mixed emotions that I announce that I am stepping away from my cabinet duties immediately and that I will be resigning my member of legislative assembly seat in the near term,” she said in a statement.
Mike Holland, the natural resources and energy development minister who was first elected in 2018, announced he won’t re-offer in the next election, scheduled for October. In the meantime, he has taken on the Indigenous affairs portfolio in addition to his other duties. Higgs transferred Dunn’s portfolio to Greg Turner, minister responsible for economic development and small business.
Holland praised Higgs’ leadership but said he feels he has accomplished what he set out to do and now wants to return to the private sector. Before entering politics, Holland ran a business selling outdoor gear.
“The things where I was passionate about, the things that mattered to me, got put on the table, dissected, dealt with,” he said in an interview.
Beginning with the resignation of Dominic Cardy as education minister in October 2022, Higgs has been battling dissent within his own caucus. In June, cabinet ministers Trevor Holder and Dorothy Shephard quit, saying they could not put up with his inflexible leadership style and changes made to New Brunswick’s policy on gender identity in schools.
Dunn was among the government members who joined Holder and Shephard in signing a letter in June, expressing disappointment in the changes to the policy, known as Policy 713.
On Friday, Holland said changes made to Policy 713 had “zero influence” on his decision not to seek re-election.
Tom Bateman, a political science professor at St. Thomas University, said that combined with previous resignations, the departures of Dunn and Holland are a sign of lingering “disquiet” within the Tories.
“Normally, the caucus stays very solidly behind the leader and cabinet retains a very high degree of discipline. Any conflicts and fissures, such as what we’ve seen, do raise questions about the leader of the party and how much agreement there is on policy issues,” he said.
John Williston, a regional vice-president of the PC party who unsuccessfully sought to trigger a review of Higgs’ leadership last summer, said the departures show that Higgs has a problem retaining talent.
With the election a few months away, Williston said it would be good for the party and the province if Higgs “upon self-reflection” stepped down as leader.
“I think that would be the right thing to do. And I certainly hope he considers it.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 2, 2024.