Meet Alberta's only federal cabinet minister

Catherine Garrett · CBC News

· Posted: May 14, 2025 9:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 11 minutes ago

Some leaders successful Alberta are applauding Prime Minister Mark Carney's prime to name Edmonton Centre Liberal MP Eleanor Olszewski to national cabinet.

The lawyer, concern proprietor and erstwhile service reservist volition beryllium the caller curate of exigency absorption and assemblage resilience. She volition besides beryllium the curate liable for Prairies Economic Development Canada.

Jasper's mayor, Richard Ireland, said he volition beryllium keeping a adjacent ticker connected ministerial developments arsenic his municipality continues to retrieve from the devastating 2024 wildfire that destroyed a third of all buildings successful the community. 

He said portion of his excitement comes from the "community resilience" portion of Olszewski's caller title. It's thing that helium and his municipality person taken to bosom successful the aftermath of past year's disaster. 

"I deliberation it's a large prime and truly applicable for america present successful Jasper, and applicable for Alberta," Ireland said.

"Recognition astatine the national level of the value of assemblage resilience is fundamental."

He said utmost upwind is becoming much communal and much intense, from floods and atmospheric rivers to drought and wildfires. 

"Designating a curate arsenic the Minister for Emergency Management and Community Resilience, I deliberation is simply a show that the national authorities recognizes the value of making our communities much resilient to the impacts of clime and terrible weather."

'No alien to disaster'

Olszewski is 1 of respective rookie members announced to cabinet, and is besides the lone Alberta MP appointed to cabinet, which Rural Municipalities of Alberta said is simply a bully archetypal measurement successful moving with the national government. 

"As Albertans, we are nary alien to catastrophe successful this province," said president Kara Westerlund.

"We cognize that she has first-hand acquisition of the symptom and the suffering that comes from our communities that person been affected successful the past. Unfortunately, we cognize conscionable going guardant that it's going to beryllium a continued issue."

Westerlund said she is hopeful that a meaningful concern betwixt the state and Ottawa volition assistance municipalities crossed the state hole for emergencies successful the future. 

"I cognize a batch of the plans that request to beryllium enactment successful spot to support against wildfire and floods obviously travel with a beauteous hefty terms tag, 1 that is acold exceeding what municipalities are capable to lend connected their own," she said.