Stephen harper won’t have an abundance of experience to draw upon when he sets up his cabinet. He does, however, have several good candidates to tap for the economic portfolios.

Word out of Conservative headquarters is that Harper is looking for five candidates from Ontario and five from Quebec for a cabinet of about 29. Here are some possibilities for those critical posts:



> Finance minister. The lead candidate to be the first Conservative finance minister in just over 12 years is Jim Flaherty, the newly elected MP for Oshawa-Whitby and former Ontario MPP.

Flaherty has the distinction of already having the post of finance minister on his resumé. It was a post Flaherty held in the late years of the “Common Sense Revolution” of former Ontario premier Mike Harris.

Flaherty was also deputy premier. In fact, his resumé includes a steady string of cabinet promotions from 1997 onward, as Harris continually called on him to fill gaps on his front benches. This means Flaherty is a battle-tested candidate whom Harper will be able to count upon to withstand whatever the Opposition can throw at his government’s first budget. Bay Street would feel very comfortable.

Most important, Flaherty is from the 905 area-code belt around Toronto. Now, as was the case for the Harris government, the 905 belt was key to the election victories of the Conservatives.

Flaherty’s is a face the 905 belt will know and with whom they’ll feel comfortable. At the same time, he is right-wing enough that the hardliners in the West will feel comfortable with him.

Harper may not feel quite as mellow, however, because Flaherty tried twice to win the Ontario Conservative leadership. There is an outside chance that potential future rivalry might keep him out of the finance post.

Monte Solberg, a member of the original Reform caucus of Preston Manning in the early 1990s, has been a very able and visible finance critic, first under Manning and later under Harper, pre- and post-merger.

That makes the Alberta MP a strong contender for the finance post. Solberg, a former radio station manager, is media savvy and has long been popular with the Parliamentary Press Gallery, something his boss has never been able to achieve. And being approachable may also explain why many in the media seem to think that Solberg is the natural choice for finance minister.

Of all the original Reform caucus members, Solberg is the least scary to Ontario’s voters. He has also made an effort in his years as finance critic to be known to Bay Street.

Should Harper decide the finance minister should be from Alberta, Solberg would be an acceptable choice to both the West and Central Canada.

There is, of course, a small chance that Harper, an economist, will want to take an active role in the finance portfolio and appoint someone less prominent.

Rob Nicholson, MP from Niagara Falls, Ont., is a name that keeps coming up as an outside possibility. He has the distinction of being a member of Brian Mulroney’s cabinet, in charge of science and technology as well as small business.



> Treasury board. Solberg would also be an excellent choice as president of the Treasury Board. With the high price-tag attached to the Conservative’s spending promises, there is bound to be a protracted expenditure review once the new government takes office.

Tough medicine requires a public face that can help manufacture the political consent necessary to prevent it from becoming a political liability.

One reason the Conservatives are about to form a government is that they understood the value of policies and programs that are visible and understandable to the public.

In that regard, Solberg will be a decided improvement over Reg Alcock, the last Liberal Treasury Board president, who never seemed to have a handle on things, at least as far as the public was concerned.

Public servants felt Alcock ran roughshod over them in the Liberals’ version of expenditure review. Solberg’s affable personality would be a welcome change for those who toil in the civil service.

Another possible choice for the high-profile job would be Rona Ambrose, an addition to the Conservatives from the 2004 election upon whom Harper has closely relied.

A smart young lawyer from Edmonton, Ambrose is often held out as an example of the party’s promise for the future. She also is moderate and affable enough to comfort the civil service.

@page_break@Harper may also feel obliged to reserve a high-profile cabinet post for the original loyalists in the Western caucus. Jay Hill and Diane Ablonczy would be candidates if that is the case.

Another possibility is Josée Verner, whose riding is near Quebec City, if Harper chooses to use the Treasury post to show Quebecers he is serious about including their province in his government’s plans.



> Industry minister. Garth Turner is a good bet. The newly elected MP from Halton, also in the 905 belt of Ontario, had the distinction of being revenue minister in the short-lived government of Kim Campbell.

As a former financial journalist with newspaper and television experience, and right-wing populist leadings, Turner would be a comfortable face to business, especially small- and medium-sized business on Main Street.

Another prime candidate is the highly regarded James Rajotte of Edmonton, who was industry critic in the last Parliament.

Although the industry minister is supposed to be a business booster, responsibilities under the portfolio include the Lobbyist Registration Act and the code of conduct that governs the government relations industry.

Harper may want his industry minister to quarterback the proposed federal Accountability Act.

In that case, he may want a crusader from the anti-corruption movement, such as Jason Kenney or Ablonczy, to demonstrate that the Tories are determined to rid Ottawa of Grit corruption.

Turner, of course, was also a member of the scandal-plagued government of Brian Mulroney, which may work against him.



> Trade minister. Kenney, deputy house leader in the last Parliament, has already been in Washington as a sort of unofficial envoy for the Harper government. He is also on good terms with the Republicans, so he would be a very good bet for the post, given this relationship as well as his media smarts.

Kenney is also a good bet for deputy prime minister, a post he could hold simultaneously with trade.

Of course, Kenney could also be in line for Foreign Affairs. In that case, former Quebec cabinet minister Lawrence Cannon of West Quebec could be in line for trade minister. IE