Saskatchewan’s highways and infrastructure minister is going off-road in his next cabinet assignment as minister of agriculture.

David Marit, the MLA for the southwestern riding of Wood River since 2016, was named Wednesday by Premier Scott Moe to pick up the ag portfolio from Lyle Stewart.

Stewart, the MLA for the south-central riding of Lumsden-Morse, announced last week he would step down from the ag minister’s post he’d held since 2012 as he undergoes “aggressive” treatment for colorectal cancer.

Marit, who with his brother runs a grain and oilseed operation at Fife Lake, about 150 km south of Moose Jaw, was previously best known in the province as the president of the Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities (SARM) from 2006 to 2014.

Marit, who during his SARM stint also served on the boards of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities and economic development agency Enterprise Saskatchewan, had been elected to council in the RM of Willow Bunch in 1993 and joined the SARM board in 1999.

After entering provincial politics, Marit was appointed highways minister in August 2016 and would also later handle the SaskBuilds portfolio. SaskBuilds was set up as a Crown corporation in 2012 to review procurement options, with a focus on larger-scale infrastructure projects.

Lori Carr, the MLA for Estevan since 2016, was named Wednesday to replace Marit as highways minister. The SaskBuilds file goes to Education Minister and Deputy Premier Gordon Wyant.

“I am confident that both Dave and Lori will bring an important perspective to their new portfolios,” Moe said in a release.

Stewart, Moe said, “will remain a strong mentor and advisor to our cabinet when it comes to supporting our agriculture sector while we stand with him in his battle against cancer.” — Glacier FarmMedia Network