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Northwestern Ontario’s federal Member of Parliament, Eric Melillo, has received two roles under the Progressive Conservative’s Opposition Shadow Cabinet.
Shadow Ministers are members of the Opposition party who are tasked with specific policy files within the House of Commons, and work to hold the government and MPs to account.
Announced last week, Melillo will once again serve as the Shadow Minister for FedNor – the Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario – which aims to support projects that lead to job creation and economic growth in the region. It’s Melillo’s third time serving in the role.
As well, Melillo has also been named as the Deputy Shadow Minister for Crown-Indigenous Relations, working alongside Haliburton-Kawartha Lakes-Brock MP Jamie Schmale. The Ministry aims to strengthen the federal government’s relationship with First Nation communities across the region.
“It’s certainly an honour for me to continue serving in the role as Shadow Minister for FedNor, working to ensure Northern Ontario is well-represented in the region with our fair share of reports,” said Melillo, in an interview with the Q Morning Show.
“I’m also excited to be taking on an additional role as the Deputy for Crown-Indigenous Relations. These are both files that are very important for northwestern Ontario. I’m looking forward to getting back with our team to resume our work, to hold this government to account,” Melillo adds.
Overall, leader of the PCs and the Official Opposition, Polievre, appointed 51 critics and 20 deputy critics – which includes a number of new roles, such as the Shadow Minister of ‘Red Tape Reduction’. It’s larger than most shadow cabinets – as the Liberal government only has 38 Ministers to critique.
“I am proud to announce our hard-working and strong team that will take on Trudeau and his costly coalition and their plans to continue to cripple the Canadian economy and make life more costly for Canadians,” said Poilievre.
“Together with this team, Conservatives will take on ‘Justinflation’, fight all of Trudeau and his costly coalition’s tax hikes – including his plans to triple the expensive carbon tax – and tackle the cost-of-living crisis so that young people can buy a home, families can afford nutritious food, and our seniors can retire with dignity,” he added.
Former Conservative Party leader, Erin O’Toole, asked to not receive a Shadow Minister role as he ‘did not want to be a distraction to the team’.