This just in: a look at Deputy PM and Finance Minister Freeland’s 30-plus staff ministerial team
Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland has more than 30 staff in her office, which is led by her chief of staff Leslie Church. Hill Climbers has been seeking to officially confirm Freeland’s staff team since late last year. To date, only a short list of staff has been confirmed, including Church, press […]
PMO’s executive, HR, research, and correspondence teams updated
There’s lots of movement to catch up on in Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s office, including the departure of senior adviser Olivier Duchesneau and the addition of James Armbruster as the PM’s new special assistant. Duchesneau left the PMO at the end of January after two years as a senior adviser. A former press secretary to […]
Read all about it: Immigration Minister Fraser’s new 17-member team
Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Minister Sean Fraser’s new office is now 17 staff strong, and includes a slate of five regional advisers, two of whom—Juan Sarmiento and Dorine Soundranayagam—cover Ontario. Sarmiento is a former constituency assistant to Ontario Liberal MP Judy Sgro. Soundranayagam is a former constituency assistant to Scarborough-Rouge Park, Ont., Liberal MP Gary Anandasangaree. […]
Liberals tap new research bureau head this Parliament
There’s been plenty of movement in the Liberal research bureau since the start of the 44th Parliament, where Linda Campbell has taken over as managing director. Melissa Cotton, who’d run the caucus research office for the last five years as managing director, left the Hill in January and is now a senior manager of government […]
Transport Minister Alghabra’s office reaches 19 staff
There are five new staff to report, and one departure, in Transport Minister Omar Alghabra’s office since Hill Climbers’ last dive into the team in late December, including Emma Kristensen, who’s been brought on as director of appointments, cabinet, and parliamentary affairs. Kristensen joined Alghabra’s team in January after roughly two years as an operations […]
Housing, Diversity, and Inclusion Minister Hussen’s team swells to 21 staff
Housing, Diversity, and Inclusion Minister Ahmed Hussen has built up a 21-member staff team led by chief of staff Hursh Jaswal, with 12 additions and one departure since Hill Climbers last checked in at the start of the year. Cédric Sarault—who had moved with Hussen from the families portfolio to serve as a Quebec policy […]
Ten new faces in Public Safety Minister Mendicino’s office
Ten staffers have joined Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino’s team since Mike Jones took over as chief of staff to the minister at the start of the year, including Kelly Murdock as director of parliamentary affairs. A staffer on Parliament Hill since 2013, Murdock spent the last two years as a senior policy adviser to […]
A look at new Public Services and Procurement Minister Tassi’s team
There are some new faces among the 20 political staff at work in new Public Services and Procurement Minister Filomena Tassi’s office, including former cabinet chief of staff Cory Pike, who’s now a senior adviser for COVID response. Pike joined Tassi’s team in February, and up until last November had spent roughly three years in […]
Two policy directors for Employment Minister Carla Qualtrough
The trend of two policy directors continues in Employment, Workforce Development, and Disability Inclusion Minister Carla Qualtrough’s office, where policy director Kelly Bryant is working alongside Kevin Murphy as director of policy for disability inclusion. International Development Minister Harjit Sajjan, who’s also responsible for the Pacific Economic Development Agency, similarly has two policy directors, as […]
Ukrainian Hill staffers find solace, community as they help compatriots and each other
Working on Parliament Hill means tackling a myriad of issues in a given year—and some hit close to home. For Ukrainians working in the offices of MPs and ministers, an already tumultuous time was made even more so when the Russian invasion of Ukraine began in late February. But grief can be a unifier, and […]
