One of Premier Christy Clark's frustrations for the past two years has been her struggle to put a new face on her government, to clearly show she was in charge and that there was a clear separation from the Gordon
Campbell era.
Winning an election outright (instead
of just a party leadership race) did just that. And so does the make-up of her post-election cabinet.
Clark displayed a deft touch in ensuring old hands remain at the cabinet table, while at the same time bringing in fresh faces that will help change the public image of the government. The combination of experience and new blood is a tricky equation to get right, but it appears Clark has done well.
Of course, some familiar faces continue to serve at the senior table. Rich Coleman, Shirley Bond and Mike de Jong were mainstays of previous B.C. Liberal government cabinets and they will be in Clark's government as well.
But their public profile may be lowered somewhat, allowing other lesser known names to emerge as the new face of the B.C. Liberals.
For example, Bond is moving from the justice portfolio to the jobs ministry. As justice minister, Bond practically resided on every television newscast and radio show, as the ministry is always dealing with hot button issues.
She won't have the same airtime as jobs minister, even though the portfolio is a key one in government. Instead, the new justice minister - former Vancouver city councillor Suzanne Anton - is the person who is about to become very well known with the public.
Anton is an interesting choice as justice minister and attorney-general. As a former Crown counsel, she obviously has a legal background, but she didn't distinguish herself at Vancouver city hall. Nevertheless, she will have ample opportunity to impress (or stumble) in her new high-profile role.
Coleman will continue in a senior position (natural gas and social housing minister and deputy premier), but he no longer has responsibilities for gaming or liquor, which will keep him out of the news cycle rather than in it.
Another new face that will have a high profile is Peter Fassbender, the mayor of Langley and now a Surrey MLA. He was a provocative choice as education minister, and soon he will be squaring off against the B.C. Teachers' Federation, which is sure to thrust him into the limelight on a regular basis.
I'm told Fassbender's appointment caught the federation leadership off guard. He's no stranger to big responsibilities - he helped negotiate B.C.'s RCMP contract and played a key role in formulating transit policy in Metro Vancouver - and the federation will find him no pushover.
Another newcomer you'll be hearing and seeing a lot of is Todd Stone, the Kamloops MLA who is now the transportation minister. It's a portfolio that's mostly about good news and big announcements, involving lots of money for various projects, and it usually attracts a fair amount of media coverage.
Finally, while not a new face, Terry Lake's profile is about to grow substantially. He performed well in the environment ministry, but now he's the new health minister, which has a whole higher level of challenges, many of which are never far away from the six o'clock news.
So Clark has cleverly kept some key veterans at her side, while ensuring newcomers like Anton, Fassbender and Stone (and veteran Lake) take over from Bond and Coleman as the dominant faces of government.
Clark can now say the Campbell era is well and truly over, and her own era is just beginning after a two-year try-out.
While who sits at the cabinet table is of course important, so too is determining who the deputy ministers are. Clark has quietly made at least one key change in this area.
A looming war with B.C.'s doctors may be averted with the removal of Graham Whitmarsh as deputy health minister and the bringing in of Stephen Brown to replace him.
Whitmarsh was on a collision course with the B.C. Medical Association, as he wanted to delve into the politically explosive area of doctors' financial compensation, with the aim of lowering it in many cases.
Brown, who had been the deputy minister of children and families, had been in the health ministry previously and was able to successfully negotiate deals with the association.
The highly-regarded Brown will likely defuse what appeared to be growing tensions between the two parties, thus sparing Clark the kind of political war with doctors that governments rarely, if ever, win.
