Ministers Filomena Tassi and Helena Jaczek changed portfolios
By Diego Flammini
Staff Writer
Farms.com
Ministers Helena Jaczek, left, and Filomena Tassi switched portfolios. House of Commons photos.
Prime Minister Trudeau shuffled two cabinet ministers in Ottawa on Wednesday.
Filomena Tassi, the Member of Parliament for Hamilton West-Ancaster-Dundas, is moving from public services and procurement to the minister responsible for the economic development agency of southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario).
Helena Jaczek, the MP for Markham-Stouffville, moved from FedDev Ontario to public services and procurement.
Tassi approached the prime minister requesting a positional change to accommodate family matters.
“Early last year, my husband suffered two strokes. As anyone whose family has had a similar experience will know, post-stroke care can be complex and filled with uncertainty,” Tassi said in a statement. “Because of this, I met with the Prime Minister last month to discuss balancing the needs of my family with the travel demands on me as Minister of Public Services and Procurement; a department with operations in every corner of the country.”
Multiple federal cabinet ministers, including minister of agriculture Marie-Claude Bibeau, posted messages of support and congratulations for the new ministers.
“Good luck to my colleagues @HelenaJaczek and @FilomenaTassi, as they both take on new responsibilities today,” she said on Twitter. “I know these past few months have been challenging for Filomena and her family, I wish them all the best.”
Tassi’s new ministry recently announced investments to help food processors and agribusinesses adopt clean technology.
In June, FedDev Ontario announced an investment of nearly $2 million for Bioenterprise Canada to help it deliver the FoodShift program; a green initiative designed to help agribusinesses adopt net-zero technologies.