On Monday, Stephen Harper announced a cabinet shuffle that ended Peter Kent’s term as Environment Minister, and promoted Leona Aglukkaq to that portfolio, a former Health Minister and the first Inuk to be appointed to Cabinet.

On the surface, the shuffle may seem like progress on climate change and environment. By appointing an Aboriginal representative, it appears the government is seeking to win over First Nations on its controversial plans. However, the move is same old ideology with a few new faces. After all, Natural Resources Minister Joe Oliver, the government’s 73-year-old pipeline cheerleader and front man on its so-called responsible resource development approach, remains in the post he has held since entering Parliament two years ago.

Through her role as Chair of the Arctic Council, Aglukkaq has already demonstrated her view that climate change in the north means jobs and that northern extraction of resources like oil and gas must trump environmental concerns. Inheriting unfinished oil and gas pollution rules as part of a sector-by-sector approach to reducing greenhouse gas pollution, Aglukkaq’s first major announcement as Minister will likely be the long-awaited regulations on Canada’s fastest growing source of emissions.

Furthermore crushing hopes of a new beginning, the CBC obtained a leaked email with an internal briefing package for new Ministers which included a list of “friend and enemy stakeholders”. John Bennet, Executive Director of the Sierra Club says he is likely on that list, under the ‘enemy’ category. On hearing about the leaked email he said, “I wasn’t surprised, but I continue to be disappointed that stakeholders like environmentalists are considered enemies rather than stakeholders who are trying to pursue important issues”.

Related:

Aglukkaq takes environmental post as Ottawa seeks to win over First Nations
Stephen Harper pushes youth but relies on old guard
Is Peter Kent’s trail of destruction finally coming to an end?
Makeover about the messengers, not the message
Unfinished oil and gas pollution rules greet Stephen Harper’s new environment minister, Leona Aglukkaq

The Lac-Mégantic Tragedy & the Pipeline vs Rail Debate