Alberta Premier Rachel Notley to shake up cabinet Thursday

He will also chair a Cabinet committee tasked with guiding the Municipal Government Act (MGA) review process.

Danielle Larivee takes over for Bilous to serve as the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Service Alberta.

The oil-producing province will likely post a deficit of about C$6.5 billion ($5 billion) in the current fiscal year, the biggest ever, and won’t end deficits until fiscal 2019-2020, Finance Minister Joe Ceci said Wednesday.

This new ministry brings work now spread between several departments under one umbrella. The province’s department of innovation and global relations will also fall under his ministry, the latter having previously been the responsibility of the Premier. It is to be guided by the advice of the Premier’s Advisory Committee on the Economy.

Bilous will lead the new ministry of economic development and trade and will oversee the NDP government’s diversification plan, which is set to be unveiled in next week’s provincial budget.

“Supporting economic diversification and job creation in communities across Alberta requires teamwork and focus”.

The move meets with the approval of the Alberta Chambers of Commerce.

The new ministry Bilous heads is tasked with broadening the province’s economy, as energy prices continue to slump and hurt government revenues.

The provincial budget being tabled next week gets Albertans working again and puts the province on the path to long-term economic growth and stability.

Opposition Wildrose Leader Brian Jean said while the NDP is promising to help business people, it has so far worked to hamstring them by increasing corporate taxes, boosting income taxes on high-end earners and raising the minimum wage.