IBNS-CMEDIA: Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Monday announced his intention to appoint former cabinet minister Bill Blair as Canada’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom and senior public servant Nathalie G. Drouin as Ambassador to France and Monaco, as Ottawa seeks to deepen ties with two of its closest allies.
Blair, a former minister of national defence and public safety, brings four decades of experience in public service and security.
Before entering federal politics as the Member of Parliament for Scarborough Southwest, he served for 39 years with the Toronto Police Service, including as chief of police, and led national and provincial associations of police chiefs.
Drouin, a career public servant, has held several senior roles within the federal government, including deputy clerk of the Privy Council and national security and intelligence adviser to the prime minister.
She has also served as deputy minister of justice and deputy attorney general of Canada, and previously held senior positions within Quebec’s public service.
The appointments, to take effect upon presentation of credentials, come as Canada’s new government works to strengthen defence, security and commercial partnerships with long-standing allies in Europe.
“France and the United Kingdom are two of Canada’s deepest partners in defence, security, and commerce,” Carney said in a statement, adding that both appointees bring “deep backgrounds in defence, national security, and public policy.”
Carney thanked outgoing High Commissioner to the United Kingdom Ralph Goodale for his service during a period of global uncertainty, and expressed gratitude to Stéphane Dion for his tenure as Canada’s Ambassador to France and Monaco.
The government said Blair and Drouin are expected to play key roles in advancing cooperation with the UK and France across trade, investment and defence, while supporting multilateral engagement on both sides of the Atlantic.
(Reporting by Suman Das)
