Heath MacDonald, MP from Prince Edward Island, is Canada’s new minister of agriculture.
MacDonald is among 28 ministers and 10 secretaries of state named to Prime Minister Mark Carney’s post-election cabinet on Tuesday.
He represents the riding of Malpeque, which was previously held by Wayne Easter, who was involved in many agriculture files affecting farmers as Liberal MP from 1993 to 2021.
MacDonald served as Minister of Economic Development and Tourism and then Minister of Finance for the provincial Liberals in PEI up until 2021, when he was elected federally. Prior to entering provincial politics in 2015, MacDonald, who some describe as a “blue Liberal,” worked in tourism and IT consulting.
More recently, MacDonald was a member of the House of Commons’ agriculture committee from late 2023 until Parliament was prorogued earlier this year.
Kody Blois, who chaired that committee and was appointed ag minister following Carney’s Liberal leadership win in early March, was left out of cabinet, to the disappointment of farmers and farm group leaders sharing their early reactions on social media.
Geographic representation was likely the main factor in Carney’s decision to drop Blois, as fellow Nova Scotia MPs Sean Fraser and Lena Metlege Diab were both given cabinet posts. MacDonald is also seen as filling a geographic void in Carney’s pre-election cabinet, which did not have any representation from PEI following the departure of former ag minister Lawrence MacAulay.
As for other portfolios that affect Canadian agriculture, Julie Dabrusin was sworn in as environment minister, while Chrystia Freeland remains transport minister and François-Philippe Champagne stays as finance minister. Dominic LeBlanc is now minister responsible for Canada-U.S. Trade, Intergovernmental Affairs and One Canadian Economy. Maninder Sidhu was named the new trade minister, and Marjorie Michel was tapped to serve as health minister. Northern Saskatchewan MP Buckley Belanger was named secretary of state for rural development.
Complete list of Mark Carney’s cabinet named May 13, 2025 (alphabetical order):
- Shafqat Ali, President of the Treasury Board
- Rebecca Alty, Minister of Crown-Indigenous relations
- Anita Anand, Minister of Foreign Affairs
- Gary Anandasangaree, Minister of Public Safety
- François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Finance and National Revenue
- Rebecca Chartrand, Minister of Northern and Arctic Affairs; and Minister responsible for the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency
- Julie Dabrusin, Minister of Environment and Climate Change
- Sean Fraser, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada; and Minister responsible for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
- Chrystia Freeland, Minister of Transport and Internal Trade
- Steven Guilbeault, Minister of Canadian Identity and Culture; and Minister responsible for Official Languages
- Mandy Gull-Masty, Minister of Indigenous Services
- Patty Hajdu, Minister of Jobs and Families; and Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario
- Tim Hodgson, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources
- Mélanie Joly, Minister of Industry; and Minister responsible for Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions
- Dominic LeBlanc, President of the King’s Privy Council for Canada; and Minister responsible for Canada-U.S. Trade, Intergovernmental Affairs and One Canadian Economy
- Joël Lightbound, Minister of Government Transformation, Public Works and Procurement
- Heath MacDonald, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food
- Steven MacKinnon, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
- David J. McGuinty, Minister of National Defence
- Jill McKnight, Minister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of National Defence
- Lena Metlege Diab, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship
- Marjorie Michel, Minister of Health
- Eleanor Olszewski, Minister of Emergency Management and Community Resilience; and Minister responsible for Prairies Economic Development Canada
- Gregor Robertson, Minister of Housing and Infrastructure; and Minister responsible for Pacific Economic Development Canada
- Maninder Sidhu, Minister of International Trade
- Evan Solomon, Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovation; and Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario
- Joanne Thompson, Minister of Fisheries
- Rechie Valdez, Minister of Women and Gender Equality; and secretary of state (small business and tourism)
Secretaries of State:
- Buckley Belanger, secretary of state (rural development)
- Stephen Fuhr, secretary of state (defence procurement)
- Anna Gainey, secretary of state (children and youth)
- Wayne Long, secretary of state (Canada Revenue Agency and financial institutions)
- Stephanie McLean, secretary of state (seniors)
- Nathalie Provost, secretary of state (nature)
- Ruby Sahota, secretary of state (combatting crime)
- Randeep Sarai, secretary of state (international development)
- Adam van Koeverden, secretary of state (sport)
- John Zerucelli, secretary of state (labour)
More to come.
Related:
New cabinet roster will signal Carney’s direction for Canada, including Canadian agriculture
So you want to be an effective ag minister? Here’s the top 5 things to do
