TORONTO, Ontario -- Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne reshuffled her cabinet Wednesday after one of her ministers suddenly took ill.
Government Services Minister Harinder Takhar has resigned due to medical issues, but will continue to serve as a member of provincial parliament, officials said.
A source says he had chest pains before his mother's funeral May 4 and went to hospital, but still managed to make it to the funeral.
Government House Leader John Milloy will take over Takhar's government services portfolio. Finance Minister Charles Sousa will take on the job of chair of the management board of cabinet.
"I wish Harinder Takhar a speedy recovery and thank him for the role he has played in my new government," Wynne said in a statement.
Takhar was among Wynne's rivals in the Liberal leadership race and the only one who threw his support behind Sandra Pupatello after he dropped off the ballot.
But Wynne kept him in the cabinet job he held before former premier Dalton McGuinty prorogued the legislature last October.
Takhar, 62, was first elected in the Liberal sweep of 2003 to represent a riding in Mississauga, west of Toronto. He was elevated to cabinet after the Liberals won a second majority government in 2007 and served in a number of portfolios, including minister of transportation as well as small business and entrepreneurship.
Married with two daughters, Takhar previously worked as chief financial officer of the Peel District School Board. He also held various senior positions at a number of corporations, including president and CEO of Chalmers Group -- a private manufacturing company in which he has a controlling interest.
