Alberta Premier Alison Redford is pictured at the Progressive Conservatives’ part convention on Nov. 22, 2013. Ms. Redford is shaking up her cabinet, with 10 ministers taking on new portfolios.Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press
Alberta Premier Alison Redford shuffled more than half the ministers in her cabinet Friday, promoting rising stars Manmeet Bhullar and Robin Campbell while demoting Doug Griffiths and deputy premier Thomas Lukaszuk.
Bhullar moves from the Service Alberta portfolio to replace Dave Hancock at Human Services, a sprawling portfolio that takes in child and youth issues, social programs and homelessness.
Campbell leaves Aboriginal Relations to take over as minister in charge of the Environment and Sustainable Resource development.
Campbell also takes over Hancock's job as government house leader and will now be in charge of steering government legislation through the house.
"The strengthened ministerial team will lead the next phase of the Building Alberta Plan, with a focus on expanding our economy, driving innovation and working every day to create an even better quality of life for Albertans," Redford said in a news release.
Redford increased the number of departments from 18 to 19, creating a new ministry of Jobs, Skills Training, and Labour, to be run by Lukaszuk.
Lukaszuk will be replaced in the Advanced Education portfolio and as deputy premier by Hancock.
Griffiths is out as head of Municipal Affairs and will take over Service Alberta, the department in charge of licensing and registries.
Ken Hughes leaves his job as Energy Minister to replaces Griffiths at municipal affairs.
Diana McQueen, the former environment minister, is now the Energy Minister.
Wayne Drysdale and Ric McIver are switching jobs – Drysdale is the new Transportation Minister and McIver becomes the head of Infrastructure.
Redford is also adding whip Steve Young and backbenchers Dave Quest, Donna Kennedy-Glans and Naresh Bhardwaj to associate minister portfolios.
The changes increase the total number of people with seats at the cabinet table from 27 to 30, half the total number of 59 Progressive Conservatives
Fred Horne remains Health Minister and Doug Horner continues as Finance Minister and president of Treasury Board.
Other ministers keeping their jobs are: Heather Klimchuk in Culture, Cal Dallas (International and Intergovernmental Relations), Jeff Johnson (Education), Verlyn Olson (Agriculture), Jonathan Denis (Justice and Solicitor General) and Richard Starke (Tourism).
The only new face with full cabinet rank is Frank Oberle.
Oberle, the former associate minister in charge of persons with disabilities, is now in charge of Aboriginal Relations.
Among the changes to the associate ministers, Quest takes over from George VanderBurg in the seniors issues job.
VanderBurg has been dropped from cabinet entirely and replaces Young as government whip.
Young moves into cabinet as associate minister in charge of a new public safety portfolio.
Kennedy-Glans will take over another new remit: electricity and renewable energy.
Bhardwaj replaces Oberle as the man in charge of persons with disabilities.