With official word now out as to the terms of the coalition government, I'll note that I'm pleasantly surprised to see how the cabinet has been designed. When I wrote my earlier post on who the NDP should seek to place in cabinet, it was based on the assumption that the party would have only 6-8 spots total to work with - leaving a difficult choice between selecting those most experienced in a particular area and those with a chance to turn a current cabinet role into bright futures on the national scene. But with the NDP holding six parliamentary secretary positions as well, it'll have an obvious development ground for its younger MPs - meaning that the cabinet position can focus more on some of the caucus' senior members.
Which isn't to say that the allocation of responsibilities will be easy. But here's a rough rundown on the rest of the options.
After the three shoo-ins described earlier, I'd think that next in line would be Charlie Angus. About the only downside would be the likely position: Heritage would seem to be the obvious fit for the NDP's longtime critic, but the position has also proven to be a dangerous one at times...particularly when ministers have given in to the temptations of big media. (Remember Sarmite Bulte, anybody?)
Fortunately, Angus has taken a strong enough position against the dominance of corporate entertainment that I'd think we could count on avoiding that problem. And since he combines a strong enough reputation to get the job done from day one with plenty of potential to move up in the party in the future, he should be an ideal choice for the fourth slot in cabinet - even if he's somewhat less than assured of a spot.
The last possible candidate that I'll deal with individually is Olivia Chow. All indications are that she'd do a great job given a shot at a ministry related to immigration or social development. But particularly if Layton is going to be in cabinet, I'd think it would be a must to keep Chow on the ground in Toronto as often as possible to keep building the NDP's base there.
From there, the possibilities can be put into a few different categories. There are the stalwarts: Libby Davies and Judy Wasylycia-Leis might be slightly in front of the pack based on a combination of seniority and diversity of experience, but any of Dawn Black, David Christopherson, Joe Comartin, Jean Crowder, Yvon Godin, Brian Masse, or Peter Stoffer could be counted on to do a solid job in their areas of relative expertise - with the Libs' choices as to their own members likely determining whether any is needed to fill in geographic voids. And then there are the up-and-comers with enough caucus experience to hold their own in cabinet: Nathan Cullen might be at the head of the pack, but Paul Dewar, Peter Julian and Bill Siksay would have to at least be in the mix.
As for the parliamentary secretary positions, any of the up-and-comers listed above who don't make it into cabinet would seem to be first in line. But some new MPs would likely also be in the mix - and indeed the NDP will presumably be glad to highlight Niki Ashton, Don Davies and Megan Leslie if possible, though it may need to include at least one or two more experienced MPs in the mix as well.
Of course, the NDP's goals and strengths in designing its contribution will have to be balanced with those of the Libs as well. Which is why it's fortunate that the NDP has an abundance of talent to offer up for its positions - and I'm definitely looking forward to seeing who joins the first NDP contingent in the federal cabinet.
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