Newly-elected Quebec MP and environmentalist Steven Guilbeault is set to take over the Canadian Heritage portfolio in a federal cabinet shuffle, according to reports from TVA Nouvelles and CBC/Radio-Canada.
Pablo Rodriguez, who had been serving in the role since July 2018, will become Government House Leader. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will formally unveil his new cabinet at a ceremony at Rideau Hall Wednesday afternoon.
Guilbeault, 49, is a founding member of Quebec environmental organization Equiterre, and served as director of Greenpeace Quebec for a decade. Representing the central Montreal riding of Laurier–Sainte-Marie, he is no stranger to media having served as a commentator for CBC/Radio-Canada, La Presse and Corporate Knights magazine, in addition to writing a column for the Métro newspaper for nearly a decade.
Guilbeault is set to take over the portfolio at a pivotal time as the Broadcast and Telecommunications Legislative Review Panel prepares to deliver its final report to government by Jan. 31. The review will encompass suggestions for modernization of the Telecommunications and Broadcast Acts, regulatory reform, and tackle hot button issues like taxation of foreign digital platforms and Canadian Content contributions. In the Panel’s “What We Heard” Report, issued in June, it acknowledged that some of the intervenors advocating for change support giving Canadian Heritage and cabinet more direct responsibility for governing broadcasting activities.
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