Justin Trudeau has named longtime anti-energy sector activist Joyce Murray President of the Treasury Board, the newest addition to cabinet after multiple resignations and shuffles.
Murray, Member of Parliament for Vancouver Quadra, was named President of the Treasury Board after Jane Philpott resigned citing her loss of confidence in the Trudeau government two weeks ago.
Murray has been a lifelong climate activist who has spent her time in office fighting oil and gas development projects.
Recently Murray spoke out in disappointment at her own party for approving the Trans Mountain Expansion project, which they later bungled and spent $4.5 billion of taxpayer money to buy.
“Cabinet’s decision to approve the Kinder Morgan Trans Mountain Expansion project is incredibly disappointing for me and for many in Vancouver Quadra and British Columbia,” Murray said.
She also took partial credit for the recent Trudeau government ban of oil tankers off the coast of Northern B.C. which effectively killed the Northern Gateway pipeline project.
“I am very pleased that my seven years of effort to protect B.C.’s north coast by legislating a ban on crude oil tanker traffic have now born fruit,” she said.
As President of the Treasury Board, Murray will be in charge of administering regulations, cabinet order, and managing public finances.
Trudeau’s decision to appoint Murray to this important position is just one of many examples of the government’s disdain for the energy sector.
In 2017, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said, “we can’t shut down the oil sands tomorrow. We need to phase them out.”
Former Treasury President Jane Philpott resigned in wake of the SNC-Lavalin scandal and the alleged treatment of former Attorney General Jody Wilson-Raybould.
“I have been considering the events that have shaken the federal government in recent weeks and after serious reflection, I have concluded that I must resign as a member of Cabinet,” she said in her resignation.
“Sadly, I have lost confidence in how the government has dealt with this matter and in how it has responded to the issues raised,” she said.
Wilson-Raybould herself also resigned from cabinet after being demoted to Minister of Veterans Affairs – a move that came after she alleges high ranking Liberals pressured her to give a beneficial deal to SNC-Lavalin.
