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Canada PM replaces minister, no major shuffle planned

Source: Thomson Reuters Foundation - Thu, 5 Jul 2012 12:50 AM
Author: Reuters
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TORONTO, July 4 (Reuters) - Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper named a new foreign aid minister on Wednesday and let it be known there were no plans for a larger shake-up of his Cabinet this summer.

Harper named former Toronto police chief Julian Fantino as minister of international cooperation, replacing Bev Oda.

Oda announced on Tuesday she was resigning from politics, giving no reason for her departure. She had been under fire from opposition politicians for extravagant spending, including a ${esc.dollar}16 glass of orange juice in a luxury London hotel.

There had been speculation Oda would be demoted from the Cabinet in a wider shuffle. But Harper's chief spokesman, Andrew MacDougall, said on Wednesday there would be no more major changes over the summer break.

That means Cabinet veterans such as Finance Minister Jim Flaherty will remain in place for the time being.

The only other change on Wednesday was the naming of Bernard Valcourt to fill Fantino's previous role as junior defense minister. (Reporting by Jeffrey Hodgson; Additional reporting by David Ljunggren; Editing by Peter Cooney)

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