Steven MacKinnon took over Transport Canada as Freeland left cabinet

In September 2025, Prime Minister Mark Carney named Steven MacKinnon minister of transport, replacing Chrystia Freeland, who stepped down from cabinet to become Canada's special representative for the reconstruction of Ukraine.

Freeland had held a combined portfolio as minister of transport and internal trade. In the shuffle, the two halves went to different ministers.

Who got what

• MacKinnon became minister of transport while staying on as Leader of the Government in the House of Commons. He had previously served as labour minister before becoming House leader after the federal election.
• Dominic LeBlanc took on internal trade, on top of his roles as President of the King's Privy Council and minister responsible for Canada-U.S. trade, intergovernmental affairs and One Canadian Economy.

Both ministers were sworn into their new responsibilities at Rideau Hall the same day, and both kept their existing portfolios.