Carney government shakes up diplomatic missions in U.S. with new consular appointments

Carney government shakes up diplomatic missions in U.S. with new consular appointments

New appointments include former Liberal MP and former Shell executive

The federal government announced a handful of new consular appointments on Tuesday, shaking up the diplomatic team across the U.S. after trade talks stretched past the early July benchmark.

Among the new appointees that will take up posts in major U.S. cities are a former Liberal MP and a former Shell executive.

Kamal Khera, the former MP for Brampton West, has been named the consul general in Los Angeles.

A nurse by training, Khera failed to hold the seat she first won in 2015 during last year's election. She was a minister in Justin Trudeau's government and briefly in Prime Minister Mark Carney's first cabinet.

Susannah Pierce, a former executive with oil giant Shell Canada, has been tapped to take up the consul general role in New York.

Pierce was reportedly mulling a run for the Liberals in an upcoming B.C. byelection after former MP Jonathan Wilkinson announced he would be leaving Parliament, according to multiple media reports.

Pierce will replace outgoing consul general Tom Clark, who took up the role in 2023. Clark's tenure was roiled in a controversy over the government's purchase of a $9-million apartment to serve as the official residence for the consul general.

Clark was twice called to committee to discuss the matter, though he denied having any influence in the purchase of the apartment. The government has since sold the property.

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The government also appointed Claire Kennedy, a former director of the Bank of Canada, and career diplomat Andrea Clements to the consul general posts in Chicago and Detroit, respectively.

The new appointments come after the U.S. declined to renew the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement earlier this month.

The three countries had until July 1 to publicly declare whether they want to extend it to 2042 or renegotiate its terms.

While the U.S. move was largely anticipated, it now triggers rolling reviews of the deal until an agreement is reached or it expires in 2036. Any country can pull out of the deal ahead of that date with six months' written notice.

Darren Major is a senior writer for CBC's parliamentary bureau in Ottawa. He previously worked as a digital reporter for CBC Ottawa and a producer for CBC's Power & Politics. He holds a master's degree in journalism and a bachelor's degree in public affairs and policy management, both from Carleton University. He also holds a master's degree in arts from Queen's University. He can be reached at darren.major@cbc.ca.

With files from The Canadian Press