The minister of fisheries (French: ministre des pêches) is the minister of the Crown responsible for the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO). The minister is a member of the King's Privy Council for Canada and the Canadian Cabinet.
Joanne Thompson has been the minister of fisheries since March 14, 2025. The minister is selected by the prime minister and appointed by the Crown. The title was first used in 1930, however, the role as it exists today was established in 1979 as the minister of fisheries and oceans. From 2015 to 2025, the officeholder was known as the minister of fisheries, oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard, before it was changed to the current title in 2025.
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History
There was a minister of marine and fisheries from Confederation in 1867 onwards. The role was split in two in 1930, with duties related to fisheries going to the new minister of fisheries, and all other responsibilities going to the new minister of marine, which was merged into the role of minister of transport a few years later.
The minister of fisheries lasted from 1930 to 1969, at which point the post was merged with forestry to create the post of minister of fisheries and forestry. This lasted only two years, until 1971, when the minister of fisheries became a secondary role held concurrently by the minister of the environment. In 1974, the fisheries portfolio was assigned to Roméo LeBlanc as the minister of state (fisheries) assisting the minister of the environment. When LeBlanc was appointed as the minister of the environment in 1976, the post was restyled minister of fisheries and environment.
The current post of minister of fisheries and oceans was established in 1979, and it has continued under various names since then. Hunter Tootoo was the first Indigenous person to hold this portfolio, from November 4, 2015, until May 31, 2016.
From 1995 to 2025, the minister was responsible for the Canadian Coast Guard (CCG), which was a special operating agency of Fisheries and Oceans Canada. Until 1995, the CCG was housed under Transport Canada. In 2025, the government transitioned the CCG to the Department of National Defence.
Ministers of Marine and Fisheries (1867–1930)
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Ministers of Fisheries (1930–1969)
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Ministers of Fisheries and Forestry (1969–1971)
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Ministers responsible for Fisheries through the Department of Environment (1971–1979)
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Ministers of Fisheries and Oceans (1979–present)
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