Ontario cabinet minister Caroline Mulroney has shared that she is stepping down, expressing a wish to start fresh.
Mulroney was elected in 2018 during Premier Doug Ford’s first term and has held various cabinet roles, including attorney general, transportation, francophone affairs, and currently president of the Treasury Board.
In a public letter on Monday, Mulroney mentioned that her choice follows two years after the passing of her father, former prime minister Brian Mulroney, and now as she and her husband find themselves empty nesters.
“Together, they have led me to the conclusion that now is the right time to step back from elected life and begin a new chapter, one I am genuinely excited about,” Mulroney wrote.
During question period on Monday, Mulroney took a moment to acknowledge her resignation and express gratitude towards her colleagues at Queen’s Park.
“Serving this house has been one of the greatest privileges of my life,” she said. “I am so proud of all the important work we have accomplished together on behalf of Ontarians.”
Ford stated in a message that Ontario is fortunate to have benefited from Mulroney’s steady leadership.
“Politics is in Caroline’s blood,” he wrote. “The Ontario PC Party and our conservative movement will no doubt continue to benefit from her ideas and ideals.”
He has appointed Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy as interim president of the Treasury Board once Mulroney’s resignation takes effect on June 5. Long-Term Care Minister Natalia Kusendova-Bashta will take over as minister of francophone affairs, according to Ford’s office in a separate statement.
Mulroney’s departure will prompt a byelection in her riding of York-Simcoe, along with another in Scarborough Southwest that Ford must call by summer’s end.
![]()
Ontario Premier Doug Ford released a statement Monday, calling Caroline Mulroney a close, personal friend who provided the province with calm, steady leadership. (Frank Gunn/The Canadian Press)
Ford noted that Mulroney leaves behind an impressive record she can be proud of, which includes securing funding for North America’s largest public transit expansion.
In her letter, Mulroney fondly recalled her time as francophone affairs minister-a role she held throughout eight years-despite facing challenges initially due to funding cuts in 2018.
“There is an old line in politics that the worst day in elected life is better than the best day outside of it,” she wrote in closing her letter.
“I’m not sure that’s true, but I do know that I will miss the people I have worked with over the past eight years more than you know.”
Source link
Source link
