July 10, 2026 — Jane Seyd/North Shore News

North Vancouver Lonsdale MLA and Infrastructure Minister Bowinn Ma took time out this week from delivering government projects to deliver something more personal – her second child.

Ma, 40, announced the latest addition to her family, baby Jack, was born July 6 at Lions Gate Hospital at 8:42 p.m., weighing 7 lbs 3 oz., two days ahead of his due date.

With Jack’s arrival, Ma is the first woman to give birth twice while holding a position as a cabinet minister. Her daughter Azalea was born in November 2023 when Ma served as Minister of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness.

Now a “very busy” two-and-a-half-year-old, Azalea is “thrilled to be a big sister,” said Ma.

Ma will take July and August as a leave for family time with her newborn.

Lisa Beare, minister of education and child care, will take on Ma’s ministerial duties in the meantime.

Giving birth while in cabinet – or even while serving as an MLA – is still relatively rare. Former B.C. Premier Christy Clark was the first woman to give birth as a cabinet minister.

Ma also gave a shout out to former Speaker of the House Linda Reid, who was both the longest-serving female MLA in the Legislature and the first woman to hold the position of Speaker.

“She is a trailblazer in her own right,” said Ma. “She raised two kids in the Legislature. She’s just an absolute dynamo that blazed a really wide path for all of us and that was built upon by many others. It still isn’t a very common thing.”

Ma plans to return to her political duties in September. While, in theory, she could take a longer leave, the current political environment means that’s not a practical reality, Ma said.

Read the full article at nsnews.com.