Shuffle

McGuinty shuffles the deck:

Hoping to breathe new life into his government after a summer marked by blunders, Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty unveiled a cabinet shuffle that elevated two new faces, and had several veterans either demoted or switching chairs.

John Gerretsen lost his position Wednesday as the province’s Environment Minister, and has been moved to Minister of Consumer Services, after the controversial eco-fees program that led to a significant backlash from consumer and retail groups last month. And Rick Bartolucci was shuffled from Minister of Community Safety and Correctional Services to Municipal Affairs and Housing after the government faced scrutiny about handing special powers to police during the recent G20 summit in Toronto. Jim Bradley is switching jobs with Mr. Bartolucci.

In addition to shuffling some of his veterans, Mr. McGuinty added two former mayors to the mix.Former Winnipeg mayor Glen Murray and former Ottawa mayor Bob Chiarelli, who both won Liberal by-elections earlier this year, were awarded posts as Minister of Research and Innovation and Minister of Infrastructure, respectively.

For analysis, check out Radwanski.