PM Carney selects Janice Charette to lead Canada through CUSMA review

Janice Charette, the former head of the public service, has been chosen by Prime Minister Mark Carney to serve as the country’s chief trade negotiator to the United States.

A career bureaucrat, Charette served twice as clerk of the Privy Council and once as high commissioner to the United Kingdom.

She steps into the role just ahead of a major review of the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA).

The move also comes a day after Mark Wiseman, a global investment banker and pension fund manager, took the reins as Canada’s next ambassador to Washington.

Kirsten Hillman, Canada’s last ambassador to the U.S., recently stepped down so a new and fresh team could be put together to take on the review of the trade pact.

After slamming Canada with tariffs in key sectors over the past year, U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to use a hardline approach during the upcoming CUSMA review.

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