Legault to lead team of fresh faces and veteran politicians into legislature

Legault said Tuesday his new cabinet will be sworn in within the next two weeks, and he will have some experienced choices when filling such top posts as finance and health. (File Photo: @francoislegault/Twitter)

MONTREAL — Quebec Premier-designate Francois Legault will be welcoming a host of new faces along with some more familiar ones as his party forms Quebec’s next government.

Aside from Legault and a handful of veterans who have been at his side since the Coalition Avenir Quebec’s first election in 2012, his team features many political newcomers.

They include a former police officer, an economist who advocates for small government, a pediatric surgeon and an Olympic speed skater.

Legault said Tuesday his new cabinet will be sworn in within the next two weeks, and he will have some experienced choices when filling such top posts as finance and health.

Christian Dube, a former vice-president at Quebec’s pension-fund manager, the Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec, may land one of the key economic portfolios.

Legault will also be looking at Youri Chassin, an economist who until last year was research director at the conservative Montreal Economic Institute. Before that Chassin worked as an analyst with the Conseil du Patronat du Quebec, the province’s employers’ council.

The Coalition has touted Danielle McCann, the former CEO of the Montreal health and social services agency, as a possible health minister. In that role, McCann co-ordinated services for more than 60 health-care institutions, including seven university hospitals.

Lionel Carmant, a pediatric neurologist, is another star.

Carmant, who arrived in Quebec with his parents from Haiti at the age of four, studied at McGill University and Harvard and took part in humanitarian missions in Haiti, Mali and Vietnam.

He has been involved with the party since its founding.

Ian Lafreniere, a former Montreal police spokesman, is also expected to play an important role.

He became well-known for his presence at major news events, such as the 1998 ice storm crisis and the 2012 student protests.

Isabelle Charest, a retired speed skater, is also making her political debut wth the Coalition. A three-time Olympic medallist, Charest was Canada’s chef de mission at the Pyeongchang 2018 Olympic Games.

Another new face in politics is Sonia LeBel, who was in the public eye when she acted as chief prosecutor at the Charbonneau Commission, Quebec’s probe into corruption in the construction industry.

Her biography says Lebel worked for more than 20 years with Quebec’s Director of Criminal and Penal Prosecutions where she specialized in criminal law, drug-related offences and organized crime.

Genevieve Guilbault, a former spokeswoman for the Quebec coroner’s office, has also enjoyed a high profile. She managed all media relations during the tragic Lac-Megantic train derailment and the deadly fire at a nursing home in Isle-Verte, Que.

Legault’s team includes a number of veterans, including Marguerite Blais, a former Quebec Liberal cabinet minister for seniors, MNA Nathalie Roy, a lawyer and former journalist, and Eric Caire, first elected in 2007 for the now-defunct Action democratique du Quebec.