Wynne ministry
25th ministry of Ontario
Kathleen Wynne in 2015
Date formed	February 11, 2013 (2013-02-11)
Date dissolved	June 29, 2018 (2018-06-29)
People and organisations
Monarch	Elizabeth II
Lieutenant Governor	David Onley (2013–2014) Elizabeth Dowdeswell (2014–2018)
Premier	Kathleen Wynne
Deputy Premier	Deb Matthews (2013–2018) vacant (2018)
Member party	Liberal
Status in legislature	Minority (2013–2014) Majority (2014–2018)
Opposition party	Progressive Conservative
Opposition leader	Tim Hudak (2013-2014) Jim Wilson (2014–2015) (interim) Patrick Brown (2015–2018) Vic Fedeli (2018) (interim)
History
Election	2014
Legislature terms	40th Parliament of Ontario 41st Parliament of Ontario
Incoming formation	2013 Ontario Liberal Party leadership election
Outgoing formation	2018 Ontario general election
Predecessor	McGuinty ministry
Successor	Ford ministry

The Wynne ministry was the combined cabinet (formally the Executive Council of Ontario) that governed Ontario from February 11, 2013, to June 29, 2018. It was chaired by the 25th Premier of Ontario, Kathleen Wynne. The cabinet was made up of members of the Ontario Liberal Party, which commanded at first a minority and later a majority in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario.

The ministry replaced the McGuinty ministry following the 2013 Ontario Liberal Party leadership election. That election resulted in Wynne becoming the leader of the Ontario Liberal Party and hence the Premier of Ontario. The ministry governed through the last eighteen months of the 40th Parliament of Ontario and all of the 41st Parliament of Ontario. The Ontario Liberal Party was defeated in the 2018 election and was reduced to third-party status, and Wynne resigned the Premiership.

Premier Wynne's first cabinet^[1] was sworn on February 11, 2013. It numbered 27 cabinet members.

The newly assembled cabinet included many members with extensive ministerial experience. Jim Bradley (appointed Minister of the Environment) was the most experienced cabinet member, with over fourteen years of service, spanning the entire durations of the two previous Liberal ministries of Premiers David Peterson (1985–1990) and Dalton McGuinty (2003–2013); also, John Gerretsen (appointed Attorney General), Madeleine Meilleur (appointed Minister of Community Safety and Correctional Services), and Harinder Takhar (appointed Minister of Government Services) were approaching ten years of experience, as they too had already served the entire duration of the McGuinty ministry.

In total, seventeen of the cabinet members appointed by Wynne were holdovers from the McGuinty ministry, including Premier Wynne herself, as well as appointees to high-profile portfolios such as Deb Matthews (who was appointed Deputy Premier and Minister of Health and Long Term Care), Eric Hoskins (appointed Ministry of Economic Development, Trade and Employment) and Charles Sousa (appointed Minister of Finance), all four of whom had been later additions to the McGuinty ministry.

Of the ten newly appointed cabinet ministers, the highest profile portfolios were helmed by Liz Sandals as Minister of Education and Yasir Naqvi as Minister of Labour.

Wynne included in her cabinet all four of the candidates who had several weeks earlier competed with her for leadership of the Liberal Party that were also eligible to serve in cabinet: the aforementioned Takhar, Sousa, and Hoskins, as well as Glen Murray, who would serve in multiple portfolios as Minister of Transportation as well as Minister of Infrastructure. Wynne would also helm multiple portfolios, including the Premiership as well as the Ministry of Agriculture and Food.

There were two instances of ministerial portfolio reorganisation:

• Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs was divided into a Minister of Agriculture and Food, to be helmed by Kathleen Wynne herself, and a Ministry of Rural Affairs, assigned to newly appointed cabinet minister Jeff Leal.
• Ministry of Economic Development and Innovation was reorganised into the "Ministry of Economic Development, Trade and Employment" (assigned to Eric Hoskins, with an enhanced mandate to pursue trade strategies), and the recreated "Ministry of Research and Innovation," (assigned to newly appointed cabinet minister Reza Moridi).

Thus there were 27 cabinet members serving in 27 portfolios; there were two ministers without portfolio (John Milloy and Mario Sergio), and two cabinet members helming multiple portfolios (Wynne and Murray).

The cabinet included eight women, including the aforementioned Matthews, Meilleur, Sandals, and Wynne herself; holdovers from the McGuinty ministry Laurel Broten and Linda Jeffrey (the latter appointed Chair of Cabinet); and newly appointed cabinet ministers Tracey MacCharles and Teresa Piruzza.

Two members of cabinet, however, were not long for service: first, Harinder Takhar resigned from cabinet (but not from parliament) due to health concerns May 8,^[2] yielding his position as Chair of Management Board of Cabinet to Finance Minister Sousa, while his long-held position as Minister of Government Services was assigned to established cabinet member and minister without portfolio John Milloy.

Then, Laurel Broten resigned her position as Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs (as well as from parliament) June 23,^[3] yielding her portfolio to Premier Wynne herself (thus Wynne took on a third portfolio). Wynne's ministry shrank to 25 cabinet members, serving in 27 portfolios, while the number of women shrank to seven. Broten was succeeded as "Minister Responsible for Women's Issues" by Teresa Piruzza.

Her minority governing party caucus also shrank, as on August 1,^[4] five by-elections triggered by the retirement from parliament of McGuinty ministry stalwarts Chris Bentley, Margarett Best, Laurel Broten, Dwight Duncan, and McGuinty himself, resulted in three losses against two wins for the Liberal Party. Hopes to flip the minority for a bare majority were thus significantly diminished.

On March 25, Linda Jeffrey resigned from parliament to pursue the office of mayor of Brampton.^[5] She was replaced at Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing by newly appointed cabinet minister Bill Mauro, and as Chair of Cabinet by John Gerretsen. Jeffrey was successful in her efforts to be elected mayor of Brampton later that year.

Gerretsen, meanwhile, surrendered his high-profile portfolio as Attorney General to veteran established cabinet minister Madeleine Meilleur in a minor shuffle that also involved established cabinet minister Yasir Naqvi and newly appointed cabinet minister Kevin Flynn. Gerretsen remained in cabinet as minister without portfolio, and so the number of cabinet members rose to 26, though the number of women dropped to six.

The 2014 Ontario general election was called unexpectedly on May 2, after the opposition NDP announced they would not vote in support of an upcoming budget proposal.^[6] The election was held on June 12, and resulted in a slim Liberal majority, as they won 58 out of 107 seats.^[7] With a renewed mandate, Premier Wynne set out to assemble a new cabinet, which was sworn in June 24.^[8]

Three vacancies in cabinet opened up with the election. While Teresa Piruzza, who had been Minister of Children and Youth Services and Minister Responsible for Women's Issues, was the only cabinet member to lose a seat in the election, both John Gerretsen and John Milloy had opted for retirement and declined to run for re-election.

Four incoming newly appointed cabinet ministers filled the vacancies and expanded the cabinet. Future Liberal Party leader Steven Del Duca was appointed to the ministry for the first time as Minister of Transportation, and Helena Jaczek was appointed Minister of Community and Social Services, while Dipika Damerla and Mitzie Hunter, were both newly appointed as "associate ministers:"

• Associate Minister of Health and Long Term Care (Long Term Care and Wellness), assigned to Damerla, to assist newly appointed Minister of Health and Long Term Care Eric Hoskins, who was grappling with ongoing spending scandals involving Ornge Air^[9] and electronic health records.
• Associate Minister of Finance (Ontario Retirement Pension Plan), assigned to Hunter to assist Minister of Finance Charles Sousa in creating the Ontario Retirement Pension Plan.

There were several further instances of re-organisation of ministries:

• Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs was reestablished after earlier being divided into the "Ministry of Agriculture and Food" and the "Ministry of Rural Affairs," and assigned to incumbent Rural Affairs minister Jeff Leal.
• Ministry of Citizenship, Immigration and International Trade was created when the mandate to promote international trade was transferred to the "Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration" from the "Ministry of Economic Development, Trade and Employment." This portfolio was assigned to Michael Chan.
• Ministry of Economic Development, Employment and Infrastructure was created by combining the "Ministry of Economic Development, Trade and Employment" with "Ministry of Infrastructure" and transferring the mandate for trade to "Ministry of Citizenship, Immigration and International Trade." This portfolio was assigned to Brad Duguid.
• Ministry of Infrastructure thus ceased to exist, as it was folded into the "Ministry of Economic Development, Employment and Infrastructure."
• Ministry of Environment was renamed "Ministry of Environment and Climate Change" and assigned to Glen Murray with an enhanced mandate to combat the effects of climate change.
• Ministry of Government and Consumer Services was reestablished by combining the "Ministry of Government Services" and "Ministry of Consumer Services." This portfolio was assigned to established cabinet member David Orazietti.
• President of Treasury Board replaced the non-cabinet position of "Chair of Management Board of Cabinet," and was assigned to Deb Matthews, who would assist Finance Minister Charles Sousa by taking on public sector unions in an effort to freeze wage increases to combat the deficit. Also, the position was elevated to the status of a full ministry.

Thus despite the extensive reorganisation, the number of portfolios in Wynne's ministry remained at 27 (including the Premiership and associate ministries), even though it also grew to 27 cabinet members. Jim Bradley, who was newly appointed Cabinet Chair, and Mario Sergio remained in cabinet as ministers without portfolio. It would now be Reza Moridi, who (as Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities and Minister of Research and Innovation) would be joining Kathleen Wynne herself (as Premier and Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs) in helming multiple portfolios. The number of women in cabinet rose to eight; established cabinet minister Tracy MacCharles was named Minister Responsible for Women's Issues, succeeding the outgoing Piruzza.

Most members of cabinet were involved in this shuffle (or the March 25 shuffle) in some way, including high-profile moves involving the aforementioned Duguid, Hoskins, Matthews, Meilleur, and Naqvi. Only Bob Chiarelli (Minister of Energy), Michael Gravelle (Northern Development and Mines), Mario Sergio (Minister without portfolio Responsible for Seniors), and David Zimmer (Minister of Aboriginal Affairs) remained unchanged in their roles, while the only change impacting Finance Minister Charles Sousa was that the non-cabinet-level position he held as Chair of Management Board of Cabinet was eliminated.

On June 13, Wynne shuffled her cabinet at the approximate midterm of parliament.^[10] Three established cabinet ministers serving in minor roles (Jim Bradley, Ted McMeekin, and Mario Sergio) were dismissed from cabinet and returned to the back benches, while high-profile minister Madeleine Meilleur (Attorney General) retired from parliament, creating a fourth vacancy.

Seven newly appointed cabinet ministers joined the Wynne ministry, including Laura Albanese, Chris Ballard, Marie-France Lalonde, Kathryn McGarry, Eleanor McMahon, Indira Naidoo-Harris, and Glenn Thibeault, the latter filling the highest profile portfolio among the rookies, appointed Minister of Energy

Several ministries experienced reorganisation:

• Ministry of Citizenship, Immigration, and International Trade was divided into the "Ministry of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade|Ministry of International Trade," which was retained by incumbent Michael Chan, and the "Minister of Citizenship and Immigration," which was assigned to newcomer Laura Albanese.
• Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing was divided into a Ministry of Municipal Affairs, retained by incumbent Bill Mauro, and a Ministry of Housing, assigned to newcomer Chris Ballard, who was also named "Minister Responsible for Poverty Reduction."
• Ministry of Economic Development, Employment and Infrastructure was divided into a "Ministry of Economic Development and Growth", retained by incumbent Brad Duguid, and a "Ministry of Infrastructure", assigned to established cabinet minister Bob Chiarelli.
• Minister of Aboriginal Affairs was renamed Ministry of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation and retained by incumbent David Zimmer.
• Ministry of Research and Innovation was renamed "Ministry of Research, Innovation and Science" and retained by incumbent Reza Moridi.
• Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities was renamed Ministry of Advanced Education and Skills Development and assigned to established cabinet minister Deb Matthews.
• Associate Minister of Health and Long-Term Care was eliminated as a position.

Thus while there were 30 cabinet members, the number of portfolios grew only to 29, including the Premiership and one remaining associate ministries. Wynne remained the only cabinet member to helm two roles, as she remained Premier and Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs. Tracy MacCharles and Dipika Damerla were the only two ministers without portfolios. The number of women increased to twelve; alas, Wynne was not able to meet the expectation of gender parity created by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau when he achieved parity the previous autumn.^[11]

Most established cabinet ministers were involved in this shuffle, including Liz Sandals moving to Presidency of Treasury Board and Mitzie Hunter moving to Ministry of Education. Among those few retaining high-profile portfolios were Steven Del Duca remaining at Ministry of Transportation, Kevin Flynn remaining at Ministry of Labour, Eric Hoskins remaining at Ministry of Health and Long Term Care, and Charles Sousa at Ministry of Finance

Shortly after the shuffle, the office of Associate Minister of Finance (Ontario Retirement Pension Plan) was shuttered, as the ORPP plan was scrapped.^[12] Incumbent minister Indira Naidoo-Harris was granted a new role on August 24, as she was appointed to a new associate ministry, Associate Minister of Education (Early Years and Child Care). This was the only remaining associate ministry.

On January 12, Wynne reorganised several ministries, mostly on the basis of changes to ministerial responsibilities:^[13]

• Ministry of Senior Affairs was created, elevating the position (held by incumbent Minister without portfolio Responsible for Senior Affairs Dipika Damerla) to the status of a full ministry.
• Ministry of Women's Issues (soon renamed "Ministry of the Status of Women") was created, elevating the position (assigned to established cabinet minister Indira Naidoo-Harris) of Minister Responsible for Women's Issues to the status of a full ministry.
• Associate Minister of Education (Early Years and Child Care) position was eliminated; and with it was eliminated the last "associate ministry."
• "Minister Responsible for Early Years and Child Care" was created and assigned to Naidoo-Harris, who had been filling a similar role as "Ministry of Education (Ontario)|Associate Minister of Education (Early Years and Child Care)".
• "Minister Responsible for Small Business" was created and assigned to Jeff Leal, to relieve Minister of Economic Development and Growth Brad Duguid of some of his responsibilies in anticipation of challenges from a newly elected American administration that had campaigned on a punitive renegotiation NAFTA.

Thus the number of portfolios swelled to 30.

Also, note that the cabinet had shrunk by one member the previous December, as David Orazietti resigned from parliament; his position as Minister of Community Safety and Correctional Services was ultimately filled by established cabinet minister Marie-France Lalonde; her position as Minister of Government and Consumer Services was filled by minister without portfolio Tracy MacCharles. Thus the number of cabinet members had already shrunk to 29 before the reorganisation. Only Wynne held two portfolios, Premier and Intergovernmental Affairs. With this reorganisation, there were no longer any ministers without portfolio.

On July 31, yet another area of ministerial responsibility was elevated to the status of full ministry:^[14]

• Ministry of Francophone Affairs was created and assigned to incumbent Minister Responsible for Francophone Affairs Marie-France Lalonde, who also remained at her post as Minister of Community Safety and Correctional Services.

Glen Murray also resigned from parliament, and his spot in the cabinet was filled by newly appointed cabinet minister Peter Milczyn. The number of cabinet members remained unchanged at 29, while the number of portfolios grew to 31, with Wynne and Lalonde holding multiple portfolios.

On January 17, Wynne dismissed high-profile cabinet ministers Brad Duguid, Deb Matthews, and Liz Sandals, as they had announced they would not be running for re-election in the election scheduled for June.^[15] They did not resign from parliament but sat on the backbenches. They were replaced at their respective ministries by established cabinet members Steven Del Duca at Ministry of Economic Development and Growth, Mitzie Hunter at Ministry of Advanced Education and Skills Development, and Eleanor McMahon as President of Treasury Board. Their vacancies in Cabinet were filled by newly appointed cabinet ministers Nathalie Des Rosiers, Harinder Malhi, and Daiene Vernile, all of whom took low profile portfolios in a cabinet shuffle that involved nine established cabinet ministers in total.

The number of cabinet members remained steady at 29, but with two women dismissed from cabinet and three women appointed, the number of women increased to thirteen. The three new additions represented the last new faces to join Wynne's ministry. Helena Jaczek took over as Chair of Cabinet from Matthews, while the position of Deputy Premier would remain vacant for the balance of the ministry.

On February 26, the last cabinet change occurred, as Wynne lost a fourth high-profile cabinet minister in the run up to the election^[16] with the resignation from cabinet and from parliament of Eric Hoskins. He was replaced as Minister of Health and Long Term Care by established cabinet minister Helena Jaczek. Thus, going into the election, there were 28 cabinet members.

The results of the June 7, 2018 Ontario general election were catastrophic for the governing Liberal Party and for Wynne's cabinet alike.^[17] Of the 26 established cabinet ministers who contested their seats (Michael Chan and Tracy MacCharles ended up not contesting the election), only six were returned, including Wynne herself, Michael Coteau, Nathalie Des Rosiers, Michael Gravelle, Mitzie Hunter, and Marie-France Lalonde, as the party itself only managed a total of seven seats in the 42nd Parliament of Ontario.

Of the 27 ministers appointed to Wynne's initial Cabinet, eleven were still serving at the end, including Michael Chan, Bob Chiarelli, Michael Gravelle, Charles Sousa, and Wynne herself, all five of whom also served for part of the previous ministry of Premier Dalton McGuinty.

44 people served in the Wynne ministry. It was the first significantly racially diverse ministry in the history of Ontario, as nine cabinet members were people of colour, including high-profile members Yasir Naqvi (as Attorney General from June 13, 2016, to June 29, 2018), and Michael Chan (as Minister of International Trade from June 24, 2014, to June 29, 2018).

Five ministers held their portfolios for the entire duration of the ministry: Michael Gravelle at Ministry of Northern Development and Mines, Jeff Leal at Ministry of Rural Affairs (including the term after it merged with Ministry of Agriculture and Food), Reza Moridi at Ministry of Research, Innovation and Science, Charles Sousa at Ministry of Finance, and David Zimmer as Minister of Indigenous Affairs.

Kathleen Wynne was the first female Premier of Ontario. Nineteen women served in the Wynne ministry. Other than Wynne herself, high-profile woman cabinet members include Deb Matthews and Liz Sandals, both of whom filled multiple vital roles including Deputy Premier and Minister of Education. Gender parity was nearly achieved toward the end of the ministry, as the 28 members of the final cabinet included 15 men and 13 women.

Premier Wynne was the first openly gay Premier in Canada. Glen Murray was also a member of the LGBTQ community.