Carney reshapes Canada-U.S. advisory committee

Prime Minister Mark Carney retooled an advisory committee on Canada-U.S. trade on Tuesday, adding a former Conservative leader and the former high commissioner to the United Kingdom to the team.

The committee revives the Council on Canada-U.S. Relations established by former prime minister Justin Trudeau in January 2025, renaming it the Advisory Committee on Canada-U.S. Economic Relations and adding several high profile individuals.

Those include former Conservative leader Erin O’Toole, former Liberal cabinet minster and high commissioner to the United Kingdom Ralph Goodale, former Conservative cabinet minister Lisa Raitt and former Nunavut premier P.J. Akeeagok.

Among the names retained from the original Trudeau’s committee, including former Quebec premier Jean Charest, Automotive Parts Manufacturers’ Association president Flavio Volpe and Unifor president Lana Payne.

“It’s a diverse group. Leaders in the union movement, experts in industry, CEOs in finance and across the economy,” Carney said in a brief statement as he arrived on Parliament Hill Tuesday.

Dominic LeBlanc, the minister responsible for Canada-U.S. trade, will chair the new committee.

Carney said the council will advise him, LeBlanc and the rest of the negotiating team as Canada prepares for the review of the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement on trade this June.

Carney’s revamped committee has more top level business executives than the previous version.

The new committee includes presidents and CEOs of major Canadian energy, resource, forestry and transportation companies. They include the heads of CN Rail, the Bank of Montreal, Nutrien, TC Energy, Canfor and Teck Resources, among others.

The list of business leaders covers major Canadian industries exposed to U.S. tariffs.

Candace Laing, CEO of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, and Tabitha Bull, CEO of the Canadian Council for Indigenous Business, have been appointed to the committee as representatives of broader business groups.

Cameron Bailey, CEO of the Toronto International Film Festival, has been added to the committee as a representative of Canada’s cultural sector.

Some names from Trudeau’s committee that have been dropped include former Alberta premier Rachel Notley and “Dragon’s Den” fixtures Arlene Dickinson and Wes Hall.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 21, 2026.