Two local MLAs are looking forward to their new roles on Cabinet.
Moncton South MLA Greg Turner will serve as the Minister for Opportunities New Brunswick and Minister for Economic Development and Small Business.
“I’m very honoured, and I look forward to it. I think we’ve got a great team. I’ve worked with these people now for almost three years. This opportunity to move a province forward in my estimation is a great opportunity,” Turner says.
When asked his opinion on Premier Higgs’ leadership style, Turner responded that every team has to have a leader, “If a leader feels decisions have to be made, that’s his prerogative as a leader, he has that responsibility on his shoulders. At the end of the day, the province is what’s important. We have a role and responsibility to support the leader. I have full confidence in his leadership abilities for sure and there’s no question about that.”
Turner also added that everything he has witnessed with the Premier and committees has been consensus, “Although I hadn’t been on the cabinet, the consensus seems to work and when we leave there, we’re unified as one body. I’ve never seen us ever leave a meeting, where we weren’t unified in the direction we’re going. That’s when we are in the room.”
When asked why he thinks the Premier has chosen him for this new Cabinet role, he hopes it is because he has been a small businessman all of his life, and has also served on Moncton City Council as a Deputy Mayor, and on the Industrial Development Board.
He adds that he is a team player and he supports the team, “I relate everything back to hockey. Whatever the consensus is, it may not always be what I agree with, but I have to be a team player. You know, you can’t undermine the coach. You have to support the coach. He puts a plan in place and you execute the plan. Our province has done extremely well with the Premier, we’ve done a lot of great things, and we’ve moved the province forward in a lot of ways, and I hope to continue that. ”
Moncton Southwest MLA Sherry Wilson has been named to the role as the Minister Responsible for Women’s Equality and Minister of Addictions and Mental Health Services.
She is also very excited to take on this new role, “We know it’s been a growing issue in our province, in our country as well. So I really want to tackle that project and really make a difference.”
She adds she is very comfortable taking on this role, despite the concerns over Premier Higgs Cabinet as of late.
Wilson feels the reason she was chosen for these Ministerial positions is because of her past record working with police and Victim Services. She was also previously a member of the Riverview Town Council.
“This is a serious issue. We have people living on the streets and most of it is because of mental health issues. This has to be dealt with and I want to work towards bringing these people off the streets and making life better for them. We want people to be happy with their life. We want to see that they can go back and live a fulsome life, but they need help to get there. There’s a lot of work to do. I don’t know what I’ll achieve but I’ll certainly work towards achieving great goals,” Wilson says.
