New Transport Minister Pablo Rodriguez is taking a portfolio rife with turbulent issues as the aviation sector emerges from a period of crisis. With a professional background in communications and cleantech following a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the Universite de Sherbrooke, he was first elected in 2004, and has served in cabinet since 2019, when he became government house leader. He leaves his spot atop the Heritage Department to take over from Omar Alghabra, who assumed the cabinet post in January 2021 while the pandemic pummelled the travel industry.
Alghabra steered the government through negotiations with airlines on financial aid, COVID-19 testing at airports and a new passenger rights charter.
But with the traveller complaint backlog at a record high topping 52,000, advocates and airlines continue to find fault with parts of the overhauled regime, even as other issues demand attention.
Rodriguez will take over on topline items including nascent plans for a high-frequency railway between Toronto and Quebec City, ongoing supply chain hitches and infrastructure vulnerable to natural disasters amid increasingly extreme weather.
Alghabra announced his decision Tuesday not to run in the next election, saying simply in a video posted to Twitter that “it’s the right time for me.”
John Lawford, executive director of the Public Interest Advocacy Centre, called Rodriguez “fearless,” having shepherded online streaming legislation to passage in April after previous attempts foundered. Known as Bill C-11, the act endured two years of controversy over the effort to force platforms such as Netflix, YouTube and TikTok to contribute to and promote Canadian content – a requirement traditional broadcasters already follow.
“He has navigated where an entire industry of people hate each other’s guts. So, all I can say is he must like that kind of challenge, because transport is another huge kettle of fish,” Lawford said.
He holds out hope Rodriguez will address advocates’ concerns – aviation sector transparency is one – around proposed new rules. The would-be changes to the passenger rights charter stem from legislative reforms passed last month to toughen penalties on airlines, shore up the complaint process and target flight disruption loopholes that have allowed carriers to avoid compensating travellers.
“If nothing else, you know he’ll bring the juice to the file,” Lawford said.
The airline world is equally worried about its future, even as demand continues to soar out of the crater wrought by COVID-19 travel restrictions.
“We had a very challenging time ramping up. Once pandemic restrictions were lifted last summer, we faced a growing list of increasing cost pressures,” said National Airlines Council CEO Jeff Morrison, citing labour shortages and third-party charges.
Morrison, whose organization represents four carriers including Air Canada and WestJet, also had sharp words for Alghabra.
“With the previous minister, the approach was almost always to be punitive – to punish the airlines.” He pointed to passenger rights reforms, “which frankly will do nothing to actually improve the overall air travel sector.”
Morrison called on Rodriguez to work with airlines toward developing sustainable aviation fuels, reducing cost overheads, filling job gaps and spreading accountability for flight disruptions across the industry.