PM Harper set to shuffle cabinet ministers Tuesday

Richard J. Brennan OTTAWA BUREAU the Star.com:

Stevie to overlook Local M.P. Again ??

 OTTAWA— Prime Minister Stephen Harper is set to make some minor changes in his cabinet later Tuesday which may include some newcomers to the front Conservative benches. Harper spokesperson Dimitri Soudas used his Twitter feed to confirm plans for a “small cabinet shuffle” scheduled for 2 p.m. at Rideau Hall, suggesting that Harper is otherwise happy with his 36-member team for the most part. “By and large, I am happy with my team,” Harper said in a pre-Christmas interview. The so-called minor shuffle could involve as few as six ministers, changes set in motion because of Jim Prentice’s abrupt resignation in November from the environment post.  The last federal cabinet shuffle was a year ago when there were 38 cabinet ministers, but that total now stands at 36 with the loss of Prentice and Helena Guergis.  The shuffle will afford Harper the opportunity to inject some fresh blood into his cabinet as he prepares his party for a possible spring election.  One of those who might be in the lineup is political newcomer Julian Fantino, the former OPP Commissioner who was elected in a Vaughan byelection last month.  Another Toronto area MP, Peter Kent, now a junior minister of state for the Americas, could be in line for a full cabinet position.  However, the major focus of the shuffle is the appointment of a new environment minister, which has been a controversial post given the Conservatives’ failure to develop a credible strategy to deal with global warming.  House leader John Baird has been doing double duty — filling in as interim environment minister, a post Baird held between 2007 and 2008.

Quebec ministers are not expected to be involved in the shuffle. Some, however, are keeping an eye on newly appointed senator Larry Smith, who will be seeking a seat in the next election in a Montreal riding.  Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq is among those rumoured to demoted to a junior position. Finance Minister Jim Flaherty, Industry Minister Tony Clement, Justice Minister Rob Nicholson, and Defence Minister Peter MacKay are all expected to remain in their current posts.  Others may not be so lucky. Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon and International Cooperation Minister Bev Oda are said to be on the bubble.