The only liberal deputy for Saskatchewan plays a new role in the government of Prime Minister Mark Carney.
Buckley Belanger, who represents Desnethe – Missinippi – Churchill River, has taken an oath as Secretary of State for Rural Development.
He is one of the 10 secretaries of state appointed by Carney.
“Belanger will have to carry a number of different ceilings here,” said Daniel Westlake, assistant professor of political studies at the University of Saskatchewan.
“He is the liberal deputy for Saskatchewan, he is the rural liberal deputy in Western Canada and he is an indigenous deputy, so he has a lot of groups he will have to represent,” added Westlake.
The secretaries are members of the Privy Council and are responsible for important questions in their respective federal departments.
Although the Secretaries of State do not attend each meeting of the cabinet, they participate in discussions when subjects linked to their portfolios are discussed.
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“It will really depend on the quantity of Carney who wants to invite people in these posts as secretary of state to discussions on the cabinet,” said Westlake.
Aboriginal nations of the Aboriginal Nations Federation of Nations Bobby Cameron has described the appointment a positive step, saying that it offers Aboriginal leaders a direct contact point in Ottawa.
“We have a direct link with him now,” said Cameron. “We can simply call it and say:” Buckley, here is what we do at the FinS, here are our main concerns, but more importantly, here is our direction. “”
Cameron adds that he hopes that Belanger’s metis history will bring the indigenous priorities to the foreground in Ottawa.
“The housing conditions, the police problems we face, the health crisis, the impacts where social problems inflict devastating damage to our First Nations,” said Cameron. “So, in this sense, he can be a good voice and a defender of the House of Commons.”
Belanger previously served two mandates as a deputy for the NDP for Athabasca before moving on to federal policy as a liberal.
In a press release, the Saskatchewan NDP chief Carla Beck congratulated her former colleague and stressed Ottawa’s need to remain focused on the priorities of Saskatchewan.
“There is a consensus renewed at the moment for national construction projects – railway lines, pipelines, power lines and highways,” wrote Beck. “We cannot let this consensus get lost.”
The appointment of Belanger comes when three Aboriginal ministers join the Federal Cabinet of Carney, what Westlake says is the beginning of a broader effort to increase representation at the decision -making table.
“At the same time, it will be interesting to see what is happening when the indigenous problems will eventually create challenges or perhaps tensions with some of the other government’s priorities,” added Westlake.
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