Two words: “It’s 2015.” brought Canada, and our new Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, attention on a global scale. Jubilant tweets and headlines from the likes of Emma Watson, The Washington Post, and countless other celebrities and media outlets chronicled the instantaneous and widespread drooling over Trudeau’s popular feminist views. Trudeau’s decision to have a gender-equal cabinet has been met with global praise – however, with such praise comes criticism.
One common concern seems to be the decision to bring women into the cabinet solely because of their gender, may mean those who are more qualified are being overlooked. While this seems to be a valid argument on the surface, it is interesting that very few have voiced concerns over the qualifications of the cabinet before.
While Harper’s cabinet had members with their own merits, one could argue the cabinet had members seemingly under-qualified for their positions. An example of this can be seen in the position for health minister.
In 2011, Harper assigned this position to Leona Aglukkaq. Hailing from Nunavut, Aglukkaq was the first Inuk in Canadian history to be appointed to Cabinet. She was a long-time public servant in the territory. That being said, her experience in healthcare matters isn’t very clear. She would have been an interesting candidate for Indigenous Affairs and Northern Development, however that was not the case.
Just this week, Trudeau appointed Jane Philpott. Philpott is a first time MP. She has been a family doctor in Markham for nearly two decades and is also an associate professor at the University of Toronto. She has done work with NGOs around the world including Medecins Sans Frontières.
If the priority for cabinet ministers is political experience, she is not an ideal choice. However, considering her knowledge and experience within the medical field, she is more than qualified as a health minister.
While in these particular cases, it would appear the Liberal cabinet is more qualified; there are several examples in which the roles are reversed. The qualifications of those serving in our nation’s cabinet have never been widely questioned before, and in analyzing our current and previous cabinet members and their experience, there are many members who are extremely well qualified; as well as many who are under-qualified, or who have political experience rather than experience specific to the field in which they are minister. Trudeau’s cabinet holds members equally qualified as those in the cabinets’ before – the only difference? Gender equality.
Trudeau had a perfect answer to the question, “Why is having a gender equal cabinet important?”
His response was simply, “It’s 2015.”
While this may have been a planned response on a part of Trudeau’s team, catering to the popular feminist movement in Canada and across the globe, it worked in his favour. He has garnered international attention, and in many ways, I feel it is rightly so. His cabinet is no more or less qualified, but it has the added benefit of a fresh perspective on important issues, and more accurate representation of the people of Canada.
Jennifer Hamilton is a local student and writer.
