In Canada from 1993 to 2003 and again from 2007 to 2008, secretary of state was a title given to junior ministers of state in the Government of Canada that sat outside

Cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...

. Because it was a position that was assigned to assist Cabinet ministers, a secretary of state was legally a minister of state; the distinction is that, unlike a minister, a secretary is not a full cabinet portfolio itself and thus not considered a member of Cabinet. (They were hence considered junior to ministers of state.) The Secretary of State (Training and Youth), for instance, would assist the Minister for Human Resources and Development. This usage is opposite to that in the United Kingdom, where junior ministers generally report to more senior secretaries of state. Secretaries of state were, however, members of the

ministry Ministry may refer to: Government * Ministry (collective executive), the complete body of government ministers under the leadership of a prime minister * Ministry (government department), a department of a government Religion * Christian ...

and the Queen's Privy Council for Canada. This generic usage should not be confused with the former cabinet positions of Secretary of State for Canada (1867–1996), Secretary of State for the Provinces (1867–1873), and Secretary of State for External Affairs (1909–1995).

History

These positions were first used by

Jean Chrétien Joseph Jacques Jean Chrétien (; born January 11, 1934) is a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 20th prime minister of Canada from 1993 to 2003. Born and raised in Shawinigan Falls, Quebec, Chrétien is a law graduate from Uni ...

as a way to decrease the size of the

without substantially decreasing the size of the ministry. When Paul Martin became Prime Minister in 2003, this usage ended, and he instead appointed ministers of state and increased the powers of parliamentary secretaries to act in junior policy positions."Martin's Team", ''The Globe and Mail'', 13 December 2003, A13. Martin's successor,

Stephen Harper Stephen Joseph Harper (born April 30, 1959) is a Canadian politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Canada from 2006 to 2015. Harper is the first and only prime minister to come from the modern-day Conservative Party of Canada, ...

, resumed the use of secretaries of state in a

cabinet shuffle A cabinet reshuffle or shuffle occurs when a head of government rotates or changes the composition of ministers in their cabinet, or when the Head of State changes the head of government and a number of ministers. They are more common in parlia ...

on 4 January 2007, but went back to ministers of state in his October 2008 cabinet.

List of Secretaries of State in Canada

External Affairs

Between 1993 and 2003, there were at least three junior Minister of State positions within the Department of External Affairs (renamed in 1995 to the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade) responsible for assisting the Minister of Foreign Affairs (known until 1993 as the Secretary of State for External Affairs). * the Secretary of State (Asia-Pacific) — relations within the

Asia-Pacific Asia-Pacific (APAC) is the part of the world near the western Pacific Ocean. The Asia-Pacific region varies in area depending on context, but it generally includes East Asia, Russian Far East, South Asia, Southeast Asia, Australia and Pacific Isla ...

* the Secretary of State (Latin America and Africa) — relations with Latin America and Africa. * the Secretary of State (Central and Eastern Europe and Middle East) — relations with

Central Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...

& Eastern Europe and the Middle East (introduced by Order-in-Council in 2002). Between 2007 and 2008, the Conservative Harper government included a less narrow position to assist with the Foreign Affairs minister, called the Secretary of State (Foreign Affairs and International Trade).

Heritage

Several Secretaries of State assisted the Minister of Canadian Heritage (and antecedents) with the various portfolios of the Department of Canadian Heritage (formerly Department of Communications), including multiculturalism, which at one point fell under the

Minister of Multiculturalism and Citizenship The Minister of Multiculturalism and Citizenship was an office in the Cabinet of Canada from 1991 to 1996 and from 2013 and 2015. It was superseded in 1996 and again in 2015 by the Minister of Canadian Heritage. In 2019, Bardish Chagger was appoin ...

Industry

The Secretary of State (Science, Research and Development) was a position introduced in 1993 to assist the Minister of Industry within

Industry Canada Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED; french: Innovation, Sciences et Développement économique Canada; french: ISDE, label=none)''Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada'' is the applied title under the Federal I ...

. The Secretary of State (Science, Research and Development) (Western Economic Diversification) was introduced in 1996 to provide assistance to the

Minister of Western Economic Diversification The Minister responsible for Prairies Economic Development Canada () is the Minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet who served as the chief executive of Western Economic Diversification Canada (WD). The post was traditionally held by an MP ...

within their department. Under Prime Minister

, the office of Secretary of State (Small Business and Tourism) was introduced. On 2008 October 30, a ministerial position was established by Harper as the Minister of State (Science & Technology).

Labour

The Secretary of State (Training and Youth) assisted the Minister of Labour for the Department of Labour until July 1996, when the labour ministry was abolished and transferred to the

Human Resources Development Training and development involve improving the effectiveness of organizations and the individuals and teams within them. Training may be viewed as related to immediate changes in organizational effectiveness via organized instruction, while devel ...

. In 1997, the secretarial position was changed to Secretary of State (Children and Youth). Between 2007 and 2008 during the conservative Harper government, Human Resources Development included a Secretary of State (Seniors) to assist with the seniors portfolio.

Others

References

{{reflist Former Canadian ministers