Kody Blois named Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food

In a significant reshuffle of the parliamentary secretary team, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced several new appointments aimed at bolstering the government’s efforts on key priorities.

Among the notable changes, Kody Blois has been named the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, as well as the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Rural Economic Development and Minister responsible for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency.

Kody Blois, elected in 2019 to represent the Nova Scotia riding of Kings-Hants, has been the chair of the House of Commons agriculture committee since 2021. He is succeeding Francis Drouin, who has decided not to run in the upcoming federal election.

In his new role, Blois will support the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food in advancing policies and initiatives that are crucial to Canada’s agriculture sector. This includes engaging with farmers, industry stakeholders, and rural communities to ensure their voices are heard and their needs addressed.

Blois joins a team of newly appointed parliamentary secretaries, including:

• Vance Badawey as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Trade and Internal Trade
• Jaime Battiste as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs and Minister responsible for the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency
• Chris Bittle as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities and Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Families, Children, and Social Development
• Michael Kelloway as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Fisheries, Oceans, and Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Rural Economic Development and Minister responsible for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
• Irek Kusmierczyk as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Labour and Parliament Secretary to the Minister of Seniors
• Bryan May as Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister
• Yasir Naqvi as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Health and Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Mental Health and Addictions and Associate Minister of Health
• Taleeb Noormohamed as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance and Intergovernmental Affairs (Canada-U.S.)
• Jennifer O’Connell as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Safety (Cybersecurity)
• Marc G. Serré as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources
• Terry Sheehan as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Indigenous Services and Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario
• Ryan Turnbull as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance and Intergovernmental Affairs and Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry
• Adam van Koeverden as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change and Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Sport and Minister responsible for Prairies Economic Development Canada

These appointments are effective immediately. The new parliamentary secretaries will work closely with their respective ministers to drive progress on key initiatives and represent the government both domestically and internationally.