President of the King's Privy Council for Canada

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President of the King's Privy Council for Canada
Président du Conseil privé du Roi pour le Canada
Incumbent Dominic LeBlanc since March 14, 2025
King's Privy Council for Canada
Style	The Honourable
Member of	House of Commons Privy Council Cabinet[1]
Reports to	Parliament Prime Minister[2]
Appointer	Monarch (represented by the governor general);[3] on the advice of the prime minister[4]
Term length	At His Majesty's pleasure
Inaugural holder	Adam Johnston Fergusson Blair
Formation	1 July 1867
Salary	CA$299,900 (2024)[5]
Website	pco-bcp.gc.ca

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President of the King's Privy Council for Canada (French: Président du Conseil privé du Roi pour le Canada)^{[n 1]} is the title held by a member of the Canadian Cabinet who has the – largely ceremonial – duty of chairing meetings of the Privy Council. The Privy Council president often holds an additional portfolio, commonly minister of intergovernmental affairs, and is supported by the Privy Council Office.

Dominic LeBlanc has been President of the Privy Council since March 14, 2025; he previously held the role from 2018 to 2021. LeBlanc concurrently serves as the minister responsible for Canada-U.S. trade, intergovernmental affairs and one Canadian economy. The officeholder is selected by the prime minister of Canada and appointed by the Crown.

The president of the Privy Council has additionally been designated as the minister responsible for the Major Projects Office since 2025.^[8]

The president of the Privy Council has the largely ceremonial duty of presiding over meetings of the Privy Council, a body which only convenes in full for affairs of state such as the accession of a new Sovereign or the marriage of the Prince of Wales or heir presumptive to the Throne. Accordingly, the last time the president of the Privy Council had to preside over a meeting of the Privy Council was in 2022 for the proclamation of the accession of King Charles III. It is the equivalent of the office of lord president of the council in the United Kingdom.

Under prime ministers Pierre Trudeau and Joe Clark, the position was synonymous with that of government house leader. In 1989, the government house leader became a separate position and the president of the Privy Council became a largely honorary title (not unlike that of deputy prime minister of Canada) given to a senior minister in addition to other portfolios. From 1993 it has regularly been held by whoever holds the portfolio of minister of intergovernmental affairs. In the past decade the position has generally been seen to be the closest thing to a sinecure posting within the Cabinet.

President of the Privy Council Parliamentary seat while President (Party affiliation) (Birth–Death)			Term of office	Concurrent Cabinet Posts	Ministry Party Term of ministry		Monarch Reign
1		Adam Johnston Fergusson Blair Senator for Ontario (Liberal, from October 1867) (1815–1867)	1 July 1867 30 December 1867	none		Macdonald (1st) Conservative (1867–1873)	Victoria (1837–1901)
–		John A. Macdonald MP for Kingston (Liberal-Conservative) (1815–1891) Acting President of the Privy Council	30 December 1867 30 January 1869	(acting)
2		Joseph Howe MP for Hants (Liberal-Conservative) (1804–1873)	30 January 1869 16 November 1869	none
3		Edward Kenny Senator for Nova Scotia (Conservative) (1800–1891)	16 November 1869 21 June 1870	none
4		Charles Tupper MP for Cumberland (Conservative) (1821–1915)	21 June 1870 2 July 1872	none
5		John O'Connor MP for Essex (Conservative) (1824–1887)	2 July 1872 4 March 1873	none
–		John A. Macdonald MP for Kingston (Liberal-Conservative) (1815–1891) Acting President of the Privy Council	4 March 1873 14 June 1873	(acting)
6		Hugh McDonald MP for Antigonish (Liberal-Conservative) (1827–1899)	14 June 1873 |1 July 1873	none
–		John A. Macdonald MP for Kingston (Liberal-Conservative) (1815–1891) Acting President of the Privy Council	1 July 1873 7 November 1873	(acting)
–		Alexander Mackenzie MP for Lambton (Liberal) (1822–1892) Acting President of the Privy Council	7 November 1873 20 January 1874	(acting)		Mackenzie (2nd) Liberal (1873–1878)
7		Lucius Seth Huntington MP for Shefford (Liberal) (1827–1886)	20 January 1874 9 October 1875	none
–		Alexander Mackenzie MP for Lambton (Liberal) (1822–1892) Acting President of the Privy Council	9 October 1875 7 December 1875	(acting)
8		Joseph-Édouard Cauchon MP for Quebec-Centre (Conservative) (1816–1885)	7 December 1875 8 June 1877	none
9		Edward Blake MP for Bruce South (Liberal) (1833–1912)	8 June 1877 17 January 1878	none
–		Alexander Mackenzie MP for Lambton (Liberal) (1822–1892) Acting President of the Privy Council	18 January 1878 17 October 1878	(acting)
(5)		John O'Connor MP for Russell (Conservative) (1824–1887)	17 October 1878 16 January 1880	none		Macdonald (3rd) Conservative (1878–1891)
10		Louis-Rodrigue Masson MP for Terrebonne (Conservative) (1833–1903)	16 January 1880 1 August 1880	none
–		John A. Macdonald MP for Victoria (Liberal-Conservative) (1815–1891) Acting President of the Privy Council	1 August 1880 8 November 1880	(acting)
11		Joseph-Alfred Mousseau MP for Bagot (Conservative) (1837–1886)	8 November 1880 20 May 1881	none
12		Archibald McLelan MP for Colchester (Conservative) (1824–1890)	20 May 1881 10 July 1882	none
13		John A. Macdonald MP for Carleton (until 1887) MP for Kingston (from 1887) (Liberal-Conservative) (1815–1891) Acting President of the Privy Council prior to 17 October 1883	17 October 1883 28 November 1889	Prime Minister Superintendent-General of Indian Affairs (1878-87, 88)
14		Charles Carroll Colby MP for Stanstead[a] (Liberal-Conservative) (1827–1907)	28 November 1889 1 May 1891	none
–		John A. Macdonald MP for Kingston (Liberal-Conservative) (1815–1891) Acting President of the Privy Council	1 May 1891 16 June 1891	(acting)
15		John Abbott Senator for Inkerman, Quebec (Liberal-Conservative) (1821–1893)	16 June 1891 5 December 1892	Prime Minister		Abbott (4th) Conservative (1891–1892)
–		John Sparrow David Thompson MP for Antigonish (Liberal-Conservative) (1845–1894) Acting President of the Privy Council	5 December 1892 7 December 1892	(acting)		Thompson (5th) Conservative (1892–1894)
16		William Bullock Ives MP for Town of Sherbrooke (Conservative) (1841–1899)	7 December 1892 12 December 1894	none
17		Mackenzie Bowell Senator for Hastings, Ontario (Conservative) (1823–1917)	21 December 1894 1 May 1896	Prime Minister		Bowell (6th) Conservative (1894–1896)
18		Auguste-Réal Angers Senator for De la Vallière, Quebec [b](Conservative) (1837–1919)	1 May 1896 8 July 1896	none		Tupper (7th) Conservative (1896)
19		Wilfrid Laurier MP for Quebec East (Liberal) (1841–1919)	11 July 1896 10 October 1911	Prime Minister		Laurier (8th) Liberal (1896–1911)
							Edward VII (1901–1910)
							George V (1910–1936)
20		Robert Borden MP for Halifax (Conservative, until 1917) MP for Kings (Unionist, from 1917) (Conservative) (1854–1937)	10 October 1911 12 October 1917	Prime Minister		Borden (9th) Conservative (1911–1917) (10th) Unionist (1917-1920)
21		Newton Rowell MP for Durham (Unionist) (1867–1941)	12 October 1917 10 July 1920	Minister presiding Department of Health (1919-20)
22		James Alexander Calder MP for Moose Jaw (Unionist) (1868–1956)	10 July 1920 21 September 1921	Minister of Immigration and Colonization, Minister presiding Department of Health		Meighen 11th Unionist (1920–1921)
23		Louis-Philippe Normand Candidate in Three Rivers and St. Maurice[a] (Unionist) (1863–1928)	21 September 1921 29 December 1921	none
24		William Lyon Mackenzie King MP for York North until 1925 MP for Prince Albert from 1926 (Liberal) (1874–1950)	29 December 1921 29 June 1926	Prime Minister, Secretary of State for External Affairs		King (12th) Liberal (1921–1926)
25		Arthur Meighen MP for Portage la Prairie[a] (Conservative) (1874–1960)	29 June 1926 25 September 1926	Prime Minister, Secretary of State for External Affairs		Meighen (13th) Conservative (1926)
(24)		William Lyon Mackenzie King MP for Prince Albert (Liberal) (1874–1950)	25 September 1926 7 August 1930	Prime Minister, Secretary of State for External Affairs		King (14th) Liberal (1926–1930)
26		R. B. Bennett MP for Calgary West (Conservative) (1870–1947)	7 August 1930 23 October 1935	Prime Minister, Minister of Finance (until 1932), Secretary of State for External Affairs,		Bennett (15th) Conservative (1930–1935)
(24)		William Lyon Mackenzie King MP for Prince Albert until 1945 MP for Glengarry from 1945 (Liberal) (1874–1950)	23 October 1935 15 November 1948	Prime Minister, Secretary of State for External Affairs (until 1946)		King (16th) Liberal (1935–1948)
							Edward VIII (1936)
							George VI (1936–1952)
27		Louis St. Laurent MP for Quebec East (Liberal) (1882–1973)	15 November 1948 25 April 1957	Prime Minister		St. Laurent (17th) Liberal (1948–1957)
							Elizabeth II (1952–2022)
28		Lionel Chevrier MP for Laurier (Liberal) (1903–1987)	25 April 1957 21 June 1957	none
29		John Diefenbaker MP for Prince Albert (Progressive Conservative) (1895–1979)	21 June 1957 28 December 1961	Prime Minister		Diefenbaker (18th) Progressive Conservative (1957–1963)
30		Noël Dorion MP for Bellechasse[a] (Progressive Conservative) (1904–1980)	28 December 1961 5 July 1962	none
(29)		John Diefenbaker MP for Prince Albert (Progressive Conservative) (1895–1979) Acting President of the Privy Council prior to 21 December 1962	5 July 1962 22 April 1963	Prime Minister
31		Maurice Lamontagne MP for Outremont–Saint-Jean (Liberal) (1917–1983)	22 April 1963 3 February 1964	none		Pearson (19th) Liberal (1963–1968)
32		George McIlraith MP for Outremont–Saint-Jean (Liberal) (1908–1992)	3 February 1964 7 July 1965	none
33		Guy Favreau MP for Papineau (Liberal) (1917–1967)	7 July 1965 4 April 1967	Registrar General (from 1966)
34		Walter L. Gordon MP for Davenport (Liberal) (1906–1987)	4 April 1967 11 March 1968	none
–		Pierre Trudeau MP for Mount Royal (Liberal) (1919–2000) Acting President of the Privy Council	11 March 1968 2 May 1968	(acting)
						P. Trudeau (20th) Liberal (1968–1979)
–		Allan MacEachen MP for Inverness—Richmond/Cape Breton Highlands—Canso (Liberal) (1921–2017) Acting President of the Privy Council	2 May 1968 6 July 1968	(acting)
35		Donald Stovel Macdonald MP for Rosedale (Liberal) (1932–2018)	6 July 1968 24 September 1970	Government House Leader
36		Allan MacEachen MP for Cape Breton Highlands—Canso (Liberal) (1921–2017)	24 September 1970 8 August 1974	Government House Leader
37		Mitchell Sharp MP for Eglinton (Liberal) (1911–2004)	8 August 1974 14 September 1976	Government House Leader
(36)		Allan MacEachen MP for Cape Breton Highlands—Canso (Liberal) (1921–2017)	14 September 1976 4 June 1979	Government House Leader
38		Walter Baker MP for Nepean—Carleton (Progressive Conservative) (1930–1983)	4 June 1979 3 March 1980	Minister of National Revenue		Clark (21st) Progressive Conservative (1979–1980)
39		Yvon Pinard MP for Drummond (Liberal) (born 1940)	3 March 1980 30 June 1984	Government House Leader		P. Trudeau (22nd) Liberal (1980–1984)
40		André Ouellet MP for Papineau (Liberal) (born 1939)	30 June 1984 17 September 1984	Minister of Labour		Turner (23rd) Liberal (Liberal) (1984)
41		Erik Nielsen MP for Yukon (Progressive Conservative) (1924–2008)	17 September 1984 27 February 1985	Deputy Prime Minister		Mulroney (24th) Progressive Conservative (1984–1993)
42		Ray Hnatyshyn MP for Saskatoon West (Progressive Conservative) (1934–2002)	27 February 1985 30 June 1986	Government House Leader
43		Don Mazankowski MP for Vegreville (Progressive Conservative) (1935–2020)	30 June 1986 21 April 1991	Deputy Prime Minister, Government House Leader
44		Joe Clark MP for Yellowhead (Progressive Conservative) (born 1939)	21 April 1991 25 June 1993	Minister responsible for Constitutional Affairs
45		Pierre Blais MP for Bellechasse[a] (Progressive Conservative) (born 1948)	25 June 1993 4 November 1993	Minister of Justice and Attorney General		Campbell (25th) Conservative (1993)
46		Marcel Massé MP for Hull—Aylmer (Liberal) (born 1940)	4 November 1993 25 January 1996	Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs		Chrétien 26th Liberal (1993–2003)
47		Stéphane Dion MP for Saint-Laurent—Cartierville (Liberal) (born 1955)	25 January 1996 12 December 2003	Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs
48		Denis Coderre MP for Bourassa (Liberal) (born 1963)	12 December 2003 20 July 2004	Minister res. for La Francophonie, for the Office of Indian Residential Schools Resolution, Federal interlocutor for Métis and non-status Indians		Martin 27th Liberal (2003–2006)
49		Lucienne Robillard MP for Westmount—Ville-Marie (Liberal) (born 1945)	20 July 2004 7 February 2006	Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs
50		Michael Chong MP for Wellington—Halton Hills (Conservative) (born 1971)	7 February 2006 27 November 2006	Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, Minister of State for Sport		Harper (28th) Conservative (2006–2015)
51		Peter Van Loan MP for York—Simcoe (Conservative) (born 1963)	27 November 2006 4 January 2007	Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs
52		Rona Ambrose MP for Edmonton—Spruce Grove (Conservative) (born 1969)	4 January 2007 30 October 2008	Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs
53		Josée Verner MP for Louis-Saint-Laurent[a] (Conservative) (born 1959)	30 October 2008 18 May 2011	Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs
54		Peter Penashue MP for Labrador (Conservative) (born 1964)	18 May 2011 14 March 2013	Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs
55		Denis Lebel MP for Roberval—Lac-Saint-Jean (Conservative) (born 1954)	15 March 2013 4 November 2015	Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, Minister of Infrastructure
56		Maryam Monsef[9][10] MP for Peterborough—Kawartha (Liberal) (born 1984)	4 November 2015 10 January 2017	Minister of Democratic Institutions		J. Trudeau (29th) Liberal (2015–2025)
57		Karina Gould[11] MP for Burlington (Liberal) (born 1987)	10 January 2017 18 July 2018	Minister of Democratic Institutions
58		Dominic LeBlanc MP for Beauséjour (Liberal) (born 1967)	18 July 2018 26 October 2021	Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, Northern Affairs and Internal Trade
59		Bill Blair MP for Scarborough Southwest (Liberal) (born 1954)	26 October 2021 26 July 2023	Minister of Emergency Preparedness
							Charles III (since 2022)
60		Harjit Sajjan MP for Vancouver South (Liberal) (born 1970)	26 July 2023 14 March 2025	Minister of Emergency Preparedness, Minister responsible for the Pacific Economic Development Agency of Canada
(58)		Dominic LeBlanc MP for Beauséjour (Liberal) (born 1967)	14 March 2025 Incumbent	Minister of Internal Trade, Minister responsible for Canada-U.S. Trade, Intergovernmental Affairs and One Canadian Economy		Carney (30th) Liberal (since 2025)

1. ^ Referred to as the President of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada (French: Président du Conseil privé de la Reine pour le Canada) during the reign of a female monarch.^[6][7]

• Privy Council Office