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The Official Opposition Shadow Cabinet (French : Cabinet d'Ombre de l'Opposition Officielle) in Canada is composed of members of the main opposition party, His Majesty's Loyal Opposition, and is responsible for holding the Government to account and for developing and disseminating the party's policy positions. Members of the official opposition are generally referred to as opposition critics, but the term Shadow Minister (which is generally used in other Westminster systems) is also used.
The membership of the Shadow Cabinet in various parliaments may be found in the following articles:
The current shadow cabinet is composed of members of the Conservative Party, led by Pierre Poilievre.
Portfolio | Critic | Deputy |
---|---|---|
House Leadership Team | ||
Leader of the Opposition Leader of the Conservative Party of Canada | Pierre Poilievre | Tim Uppal & Melissa Lantsman |
Quebec Political Lieutenant | Pierre Paul-Hus | |
Opposition Senate Leader | Don Plett | |
Opposition Senate Whip | ||
Opposition House Leader | Hon. Andrew Scheer | Luc Berthold |
Opposition Whip | Kerry-Lynne Findlay | Chris Warkentin |
Caucus Chair | Jake Stewart | |
Caucus-Party Liaison | Eric Duncan | |
Question Period Coordinator | Chris Warkentin | |
Shadow Cabinet | ||
Digital Government | Ben Lobb | |
Agriculture, Agri-Food, & Food Security | John Barlow | Richard Lehoux & Warren Steinley |
Canadian Heritage | Rachael Thomas | Kevin Waugh |
Crown–Indigenous Relations | Jamie Schmale | |
Finance & Middle Class Prosperity | Jasraj Singh Hallan | Phil Lawrence (for Tax Reform) & Marty Morantz (for Affordable Government) |
Employment, Future Workforce Development & Disability Inclusion | Tracy Gray | |
Environment & Climate Change | Gérard Deltell | Robert Kitchen |
Families, Children & Social Development | Michelle Ferreri | |
Federal Economic Development Agency for Eastern, Central and Southern Ontario | Lianne Rood | |
Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard | Clifford Small | Mel Arnold (for Recreational & West Coast) |
Foreign Affairs | Hon. Michael Chong | |
Health | Dr. Stephen Ellis | |
Housing and Diversity and Inclusion | Scott Aitchison | |
Immigration, Refugees & Citizenship | Tom Kmiec | Brad Redekopp |
Federal Economic Development Agency for Eastern, Central and Southern Ontario | Eric Melillo | |
Innovation, Science & Industry | Rick Perkins | |
International Development | Garnett Genuis | |
International Trade | Kyle Seeback | Randy Hoback |
Small Business Recovery & Growth | Brad Vis | |
Supply Chain Issues | Matt Jeneroux | |
Red Tape Reduction | Scot Davidson | |
Justice and the Attorney General of Canada | Hon. Rob Moore | Frank Caputo |
Civil Liberties | Marilyn Gladu | |
Mental Health & Suicide Prevention | Todd Doherty | |
Addictions | Laila Goodridge | |
Northern Affairs & Arctic Sovereignty; Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency | Bob Zimmer | |
Prairie Economic Development | Pat Kelly | |
Pacific Economic Development | Tako van Popta | |
Sport; Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec | Richard Marterl | |
National Defence | James Bezan | Shelby Kramp-Neuman (for Recruitment and Retention) |
National Revenue | Adam Chambers | |
Natural Resources | Shannon Stubs | Corey Tochor (for Nuclear) |
Official Languages | Joël Godin | Bernard Généreux |
Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agencies | Jake Stewart | |
Public Safety | Raquel Dancho | Doug Shipley |
Public Services & Procurement | Kelly Block | |
Emergency Preparedness | Dane Lloyd | |
Rural Economic Development & Connectivity | Dan Mazier | |
Seniors | Anna Roberts | |
Tourism | Tony Baldinelli | |
Transport | Mark Strahl | Dan Muys |
Treasury Board | Stephanie Kusie | |
Veterans Affairs | Blake Richards | Fraser Tolmie |
Women and Gender Equality and Youth | Karen Vecchio | Dominique Vien |
Ethics and Accountable Government | Michael Barrett | Jacques Gourde |
Infrastructure and Communities | Dr. Leslyn Lewis | |
Labour | Chris Lewis | Rosemarie Falk |
Indigenous Services | Gary Vidal | Larry Brock |
Pan-Canadian Trade and Competition | Ryan Williams | |
Hunting, Fishing and Conservation | Blaine Calkins | |
Democratic Reform | Michael Cooper | |
Special Advisor to the Leader on Canada/US Relations | Randy Hoback | |
Special Advisor to the Leader on Economy | Pat Kelly | |
The shadow cabinet or shadow ministry is a feature of the Westminster system of government. It consists of a senior group of opposition spokespeople who, under the leadership of the Leader of the Opposition, form an alternative cabinet to that of the government, and whose members shadow or mirror the positions of each individual member of the Cabinet. Their areas of responsibility, in parallel with the ruling party's ministries, may be referred to as a shadow portfolio. Members of a shadow cabinet have no executive power. It is the shadow cabinet's responsibility to scrutinise the policies and actions of the government, as well as to offer alternative policies. The shadow cabinet makes up the majority of the Official Opposition frontbench, as part of frontbenchers to the parliament.
A crossbencher is an independent or minor party member of some legislatures, such as the British House of Lords and the Parliament of Australia. They take their name from the crossbenches, between and perpendicular to the government and opposition benches, where crossbenchers sit in the chamber.
The speaker of the House of Commons is the presiding officer of the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. A member of Parliament (MP), they are elected at the beginning of each new parliament by fellow MPs. The speaker's role in presiding over Canada's House of Commons is similar to that of speakers elsewhere in other countries that use the Westminster system.
The leader of the Official Opposition, formally known as the leader of His Majesty's Loyal Opposition, is the politician who leads the Official Opposition in Canada, typically the leader of the party possessing the most seats in the House of Commons that is not the governing party or part of the governing coalition.
David L. Anderson is a former Conservative member of the House of Commons of Canada representing Cypress Hills—Grasslands, a position he has held from 2000 until 2019. He was a member of the Canadian Alliance from 2000 to 2003. He is a businessman, and a farmer. He has received broad based support being re-elected in 2004, 2006, 2008 and 2011 with significant margins.
His Majesty's Loyal Opposition, or simply the Official Opposition, is usually the largest parliamentary opposition party in the House of Commons, either on its own or as part of a governing coalition, although, in certain unusual circumstances, it may be a third or fourth-largest party or even the largest party.
The Legislative Assembly of Ontario is the unicameral legislative chamber of the Canadian province of Ontario. Along with the sovereign, who grants royal assent to bills passed by its members—known as Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs)—the body comprises the Legislature of Ontario or Parliament of Ontario. The assembly meets at the Ontario Legislative Building at Queen's Park in the provincial capital of Toronto.
In British parliamentary practice, the Official Opposition Shadow Cabinet consists of senior members of His Majesty's Loyal Opposition who scrutinise their corresponding government ministers, develop alternative policies, hold the government to account for its actions and responses, and act as spokespeople for the opposition party in their own specific policy areas. Since May 2010, the Labour Party has been the Official Opposition, and its leadership therefore forms the current shadow cabinet.
The Liberal Democrats are a political party in the United Kingdom. While in opposition, the Leader of the Liberal Democrats appoints a frontbench team of Members of Parliament (MPs), Peers, Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) and Members of the Senedd (MSs), to speak for the party on different issues. Their areas of responsibility broadly corresponded to those of Government ministers. The frontbench team is divided into departmental sub-units, the principal ones being the economy, foreign policy, and home affairs. Sometimes the frontbench team consists of more than just the principal positions.
Unlike in the Parliament at Westminster where there is an Official Opposition to the government of the day, all parties in the Scottish Parliament that are not in government are all technically on the same footing as 'opposition parties'. With the Scottish National Party (SNP) currently in government, the Scottish Conservatives and Scottish Labour each have a Shadow Cabinet composed of Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) and prospective parliamentary candidates.
The Official Opposition Shadow Cabinet in Canada is composed of members of the main Opposition party responsible for holding the Government to account and for developing and disseminating the party's policy positions. Members of the Official Opposition are generally referred to as Opposition Critics, but the term Shadow Minister is also used.
Mark R. Strahl is a Canadian politician. He is the current Conservative Member of Parliament for the riding of Chilliwack—Hope.
Matthew James Arthur Jeneroux is a Canadian politician who has been elected to the House of Commons of Canada since the 2015 federal election. He is the Founder of Hi Dad Foundation, a mental health foundation focused on raising awareness about the importance of men’s mental health. He represents the electoral district of Edmonton Riverbend as a member of the Conservative Party of Canada caucus and is the Shadow Minister for Supply Chains. During the 43rd Canadian Parliament Jeneroux's private member bill An Act to amend the Canada Labour Code was adopted with all party support to extend bereavement leave from 5 to 10 days and entitle employees already on compassionate care leave to also claim bereavement leave.
Pat Kelly is a Canadian politician, who was elected to represent the riding of Calgary Rocky Ridge in the House of Commons in the 2015 federal election defeating well known broadcast journalist Nirmala Naidoo. A native Calgarian and graduate of Bowness High School and the University of Calgary, Kelly worked as a mortgage broker until his election in 2015. Kelly currently serves as the Shadow Minister for National Revenue in the Conservative shadow cabinet. He is married and has three daughters.
Michael J. Cooper is a Canadian politician who was elected to represent the riding of St. Albert—Edmonton in the House of Commons of Canada in the 2015 federal election and re-elected in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections. Prior to entering politics, Cooper studied at the University of Alberta. He is a lector at St. Albert Parish and a member of the Knights of Columbus, St. Albert Rotary Club and St. Albert and District Chamber of Commerce. He worked as a civil litigator at a law firm in Edmonton.
John Nater is a Canadian politician. He is currently serving as the Member of Parliament for the riding of Perth—Wellington in the House of Commons of Canada.
The Official Opposition Shadow Cabinet in Canada is composed of Members of Parliament of the main Opposition party responsible for holding the Government to account and for developing and disseminating the party's policy positions. Members of the Official Opposition are generally referred to as Opposition Critics, but the term Shadow Minister is also used. The Conservative Party of Canada served as the Official Opposition in the 42nd Parliament.
Stephanie Kusie is a Canadian politician and former diplomat who was elected to the House of Commons of Canada in a by-election on April 3, 2017. She represents the electoral district of Calgary Midnapore in Alberta as a member of the Conservative Party of Canada and serves as Shadow Minister of Treasury Board in the Official Opposition Shadow Cabinet of the 44th Parliament of Canada.
The Official Opposition Shadow Cabinet in Canada was formed after the 2020 Conservative Party of Canada leadership election. Erin O'Toole appointed a Shadow Cabinet in September 2020.