Alberta Attorney General Kathleen Ganley expecting first child

CALGARY — Alberta’s annual tradition of revealing the most popular baby names had special meaning Friday for one member of Premier Rachel Notley’s cabinet.

Notley teared up as she announced that Justice Minister Kathleen Ganley and her husband are expecting their first child later this year.

The premier said it will be the first time that she knows of that an  attorney general in Canada has given birth while in office.

Fellow legislature members Stephanie McLean and Brandy Payne were both pregnant when they were appointed to cabinet last year.

“We’re so excited,” Notley said at a Calgary baby store.

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“It’s really important for us in cabinet to have a new baby every year, really just to keep the dynamic entertaining and fun.”

Notley announced the news alongside Ganley and McLean before revealing the province’s most popular baby names in 2016.

For the third year in a row, Liam topped the names for boys and Olivia was the favourite for girls. Other popular names for boys included Benjamin and Lucas, while Emma and Sophia were the runners up for girls.

Some of the more unusual names were Riversong, Notorious-Link, Righteousness, Awesome, Zyron-Thunder and BlueEagle.

Alberta welcomed 55,594 babies in 2016, shy of the previous year’s record-breaking 56,529.

Alberta has one of Canada’s youngest populations, with an average age of 37.8, compared with the national average of 41.

“The fact that we have so many young Albertans, it’s one of many signs of our economic strength,” Notley said.

“And, in fact, what we are starting to see already is that population shifts are moving back into Alberta’s favour. Fewer people are moving away as a result of the oil price slide. And we … continue to be a net growth province, even through the worst of economic times.”

Lauren Krugel, The Canadian Press