Christy Clark took the oath of office to become B.C.’s 35th premier this afternoon and unveiled a new cabinet that ejected some longtime ministers – including former finance minister Colin Hansen – and promoted backbenchers to new portfolios.
Lt.-Gov. Steven Point swore Clark and her cabinet into office during a ceremony at Government House in Victoria. The 45-year-old former radio talk show host and once-retired politician became only the second woman in B.C.’s history to hold the government’s top job.
Clark’s promise of widespread change for government, along with a pledge to help B.C. families, propelled her to victory over four party heavyweights in the Liberal leadership race last month.
Her new cabinet effectively dismantles the work done by former premier Gordon Campbell, removing several of his handpicked choices and replacing them with fresh faces from the party’s backbench.
New faces included Blair Lekstrom, who quit cabinet last June over the HST and had sat as an independent, and Harry Bloy, the only MLA to endorse Clark’s leadership campaign.
Clark’s leadership rivals George Abbott, Kevin Falcon and Mike de Jong remain in cabinet, but Moira Stilwell was dropped.
Clark shrunk the overall number of ministers from 23 to 17.
Eight ministers were dropped from Campbell’s cabinet: Hansen, who was in charge of the finance portfolio when the Harmonized Sales Tax was enacted; former labour minister Iain Black; Saanich North and the Islands MLA and environment minister Murray Coell; former minister of state for mines Randy Hawes; former social development minister Kevin Krueger; former education minister Margaret MacDiarmind; former agriculture minister Ben Stewart; former minister of state for climate action John Yap; and Stilwell, who was advanced education minister before she sought the Liberal leadership.
The new cabinet includes the following:
“¢ Falcon, who came in second to Clark in the leadership race, was named deputy premier and minister of finance. He was health minister before he resigned to seek the party leadership.
“¢ Abbott, who came in third to Clark, resumes in the education portfolio he held before he resigned to seek the party leadership.
“¢ De Jong, who came in fourth to Clark, moves to the health portfolio. He was attorney general before he resigned to seek the party leadership.
“¢ Lekstrom is promoted to cabinet as minister for transportation and infrastructure. He returned to caucus earlier this month after sitting as an independent since June; he previously had served as minister of energy and mines prior to resigning from caucus last year.
“¢ Bloy is promoted to cabinet as minister of social development.
“¢ Mary Polak takes over aboriginal relations. She was previously in children and family development.
“¢ Naomi Yamamoto is minister of advanced education. She was previously minister of state for building code renewal.
“¢ Don McRae, the MLA from Comox, is promoted to the agriculture portfolio from the backbench.
“¢ Barry Penner remains attorney general, a post he picked up during the leadership race. He also had served as aboriginal affairs minister.
“¢ Mary McNeil takes on children and family development. She was previously citizen’s services.
“¢ Ida Chong, Oak Bay-Gordon Head MLA, becomes community, sport and cultural development minister. She previously held the regional economic and skills development portfolio.
“¢ Rich Coleman takes on energy and mines, as well as housing. He previously held the housing portfolio, but was also solicitor general and minister for public safety.
“¢ Terry Lake is promoted to the environment portfolio from the backbench.
“¢ Steve Thomson is named to the forestry, lands and natural resources minister; he was previously in the energy portfolio.
“¢ Pat Bell moves from forestry, mines and lands to minister responsible for jobs, tourism and innovation.
“¢ Stephanie Cadieux is named to labour, citizens’ services and open government. She previously was minister for community, sports and cultural development.
“¢ Shirley Bond becomes public safety minister and the solicitor general; she previously held the transportation and infrastructure portfolio.
In her speech following the swearing-in, Clark said she was “humbled” to be the province’s new premier. She said a smaller cabinet is an attempt to be frugal with B.C. tax dollars, and she said a strong economy, and good jobs, is key to helping B.C. families.
“Now it’s time for our government to reach out to those families for whom the great promise of British Columbia may have remained elusive. and that works starts now.”
She promised “real and tangible” steps in coming weeks to help families, and said government will be more open and explain its decisions to British Columbians.
Clark reiterated her commitment to a strong education system, and said B.C.’s teachers, who are embarking on contract negotiations, are “the engine” fueling the system.
She also said she’ll harness the creativity of the 30,000-person civil service.
In addition to her 17-person cabinet, Clark has appointed 10 parliamentary secretaries. Among the highlights:
John Les is parliamentary secretary to the premier and Stilwell, who was dropped from cabinet, is parliamentary secretary for industry, research and innovation to the minister of jobs and tourism.
The cabinet shuffle once again reorganizes B.C.’s natural resource ministries, undoing much of what Campbell did in his last shuffle.
Clark brought energy, mines together into one portfolio. And she linked forestry, lands and natural resource operations under its own ministry.
The shuffle also creates a brand new ministry in jobs, tourism and innovation. Another new ministry is that of labour, citizens’ services and open government, which merges two existing ministries together with a Clark campaign promise for a more transparent government.
Clark’s cabinet is smaller than outgoing premier Gordon Campbell’s – his most recent cabinet had 23 ministries, although numerous ministers were forced to pull double duty after the four leadership contenders resigned.
Campbell announced his resignation Nov. 3 in the wake of his botched introduction of the deeply unpopular HST.
Clark has worked to distance herself from his administration, last week replacing the head of the public service and the dismissing the head of the public affairs bureau as part of widespread personnel changes within the government bureaucracy.
Today, she appointed Neil Sweeney, from the Vancouver Island Health Authority, as the deputy minister in charge of B.C.’s public affairs bureau.
Clark is only the second person in B.C.’s history to become premier without holding a seat in the legislative assembly. The last time was Bill Vander Zalm in 1986. Campbell has said he’ll resign from his riding of Vancouver-Point Grey if Clark wants to run in a by-election in his riding.
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