Treasury Board: Economic Challenges

Rsquo Dept: Overall, the cabinet moves shift three big guns to key roles. Two of these are veterans of Mike Harris’s Ontario government. Ottawa’s John Baird moves to Foreign Affairs and Muskoka’s Tony Clement heads to Treasury Board to curb spending – while Quebec lieutenant Christian Paradis gets a bigger profile at Industry, according to Globe And Mail. Mr. Harper’s economic challenges are numerous. He must rebuild his reputation as a fiscal and economic conservative following years of deep deficits, a record round of stimulus spending and two high-profile rejections of foreign takeovers that left Canada looking protectionist and still, Wednesday’s shuffle changes the ministers responsible for a range of key economic portfolios, including Industry, International Trade, Natural Resources, Transport, Treasury Board and Small Business. The political considerations behind reshuffling the economic team reflect how important these files are for Mr. Harper. He’s stocked the positions with people he trusts to follow his marching orders, in some cases shifting incumbents such as Mr. Clement to make way for others such as Mr. Paradis, whose appointment is part of a woo-Quebec strategy. As reported in the news.
@t globe and mail, john baird