The North Shore gained some political clout in the new federal government this week as all three new Liberal MPs were named as parliamentary secretaries by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
West Vancouver- Sunshine Coast-Sea to Sky Country MP Pam Goldsmith-Jones was named parliamentary secretary for the minister of foreign affairs while Jonathan Wilkinson, MP for North Vancouver, will take on that role for the minister of environment and climate change. Burnaby North-Seymour MP Terry Beech was named parliamentary secretary to the minister of science.
The three local MPs join Vancouver Quadra MP Joyce Murray, who was named parliamentary secretary to the president of the treasury board, as adding to B.C.’s voice in Ottawa.
“It was a good day for the North Shore,” said Wilkinson, shortly after Trudeau’s announcement.
Wilkinson said issues of environment and climate change are ones he’s very interested in. As the former head of green technology companies, Wilkinson said he has an understanding of “how technology can play a role in addressing not only climate change issues but also other significant environmental issues.”
During campaign events with Trudeau this summer, Wilkinson said they toured a number of green technology companies in B.C. “that have some amazing promise.”
Wilkinson said more than technology will be needed to combat climate change – the focus of the last week’s international summit in Paris. “We’ve made it clear Canada will do its part,” he said.
Wilkinson acknowledged in the past Canada’s follow-through on policies that would help meet its carbon emission targets has been disappointing.
But he said Europe is a good example of what can be done. “It’s a matter of political will,” he said. “This government has the political will to ensure that we meet our international commitments. People will obviously have to judge us based on our accomplishments over the next four years.”
Wilkinson said he expects the pace to be fast in his new role. “I think it’s going to be one of the busiest (ministries) over the next four years,” he said. “There are a range of issues, many of which are critical issues both for Canada and the world.”
Beech was equally enthused about his new role in the science ministry.
Beech said making decisions based on data is something he championed while in the private sector. “Data is widely available and cheaper to analyze than at any time in our history,” he said.
One of the tasks he will be assisting the minister with is creating an office of a chief science officer, whose role will be to ensure that government science is made available to the public and “our smartest minds” in government and the private sector, he said.
Beech said he’s also enthused about direction to support more co-op placements for students in areas of science, technology, engineering, math and business. “These are the types of programs I benefitted from,” he said. “These are the programs that provide a gateway to high value careers.”
Goldsmith-Jones could not be reached prior to press time.
Parliamentary secretaries assist cabinet ministers in carrying out their duties.
Being appointed as a parliamentary secretary is considered a step towards the inner circles of cabinet and has sometimes been seen as a training ground for cabinet positions.
Former North Vancouver Conservative MP Andrew Saxton was previously parliamentary secretary to the finance minister, as well as to the president of the treasury board and for western economic diversification.
The job comes with a slight boost in pay. Parliamentary secretaries earn an extra $16,600 per year, on top of the regular MP’s pay of $167,400.
