OTTAWA -- Six weeks after being sworn in to their current portfolios, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau鈥檚 cabinet has still not been issued mandate letters, according to a minister who says he doesn鈥檛 know when he鈥檒l receive his.
These letters are essentially marching orders for each minister, in which the prime minister spells out his expectations and priorities, calling on his front bench to act on certain campaign and throne speech commitments.
During a press conference discussing the second piece of legislation he鈥檚 tabled in recent days, Justice Minister David Lametti said Tuesday that he has yet to see his mandate letter.
Responding to a reporters鈥� question about a promised , Lametti said he couldn鈥檛 get into specifics 鈥渦ntil we see the mandate letters.鈥�
Asked whether he knows when he will receive his mandate letter his response was: 鈥淚 wish I did, I鈥檓 hoping it鈥檚 soon.鈥�
On Oct. 26, Trudeau shook up his cabinet roster, naming new ministers to key portfolios while adding in a handful of rookies following the 2021 federal election.
The 39-member gender-balanced cabinet includes several new ministerial positions and titles, with just seven ministers maintaining the same title and role they previously held.
Since 2015, Trudeau has been making his mandate letters public. Following the 2019 election, ministerial mandate letters were released just under a month after the prime minister named his cabinet. As of Tuesday afternoon, 42 days after the latest cabinet was named, the prime minister鈥檚 website indicates that the 鈥渘ew mandate letters are forthcoming.鈥�
The 44th Parliament was convened on Nov. 22 and in the few weeks since, ministers have gotten to work tabling priority legislation largely based on campaign commitments, ahead of a coming six-week break in the House of Commons sitting calendar.
CTVNews.ca has reached out to the Prime Minister鈥檚 office for comment.
