'Huge kettle of fish' faces new transport minister Pablo Rodriguez

Pablo Rodriguez has been sworn in as Canada's new transport minister, taking the baton on a raft of turbulent issues as the aviation sector emerges from a period of crisis.

Leaving his spot atop the Heritage Department, Rodriguez takes over from Omar Alghabra, who assumed the cabinet post in January 2021 while the pandemic pummelled the travel industry.

Alghabra steered the government through negotiations with airlines on financial aid, COVID-19 testing at airports and a new passenger rights charter.

But with the traveller complaint backlog at a record high topping 52,000, both advocates and airlines continue to find fault with parts of the overhauled regime, even as other issues demand ministerial attention.