THUNDER BAY – Kenora MP Greg Rickford has kept his position as the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development, for the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency and for the Federal Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario.
The announcement from the Prime Minister’s office keeps a voice for Northwestern Ontario inside the Conservative government.
Rickford was first elected to the House of Commons in October 2008 and re-elected in 2011. He was appointed Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development in January 2011. Previously he was Parliamentary Secretary for Official Languages.
Rickford’s apppointment comes as there have been concerns raised as to what the Conservative government might have meant in changing the name of the department from Indian and Northern Affairs. A spokesperson for the Minister’s office states there is not any major changes and the name change was made to keep in line with more modern thinking.