President of the King's Privy Council for Canada

President of the King's Privy Council for Canada () 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.

Role

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.

List of presidents of the Privy Council

{| class="wikitable" width=100% style="text-align:center; border:1px #aaf solid;"

! colspan=3 style="width: 44%;" | President of the Privy Council

! style="width: 10%;" | Term of office

! style="width: 30%;" | Concurrent Cabinet Posts

! colspan="2" style="width: 8%;" |Ministry

! style="width: 8%;" | Monarch

! style="background:;" |1

|130x130px

|Adam Johnston Fergusson Blair

| 1867

---- 1867

|none

| rowspan="9" style="background:;" |

| rowspan="9" |102x102px Macdonald

----

| rowspan="29" |113x113px Victoria

! style="background:;" |–

|102x102px

|John A. Macdonald

| 1867

---- 1869

|(acting)

! style="background:;" |2

|137x137px

|Joseph Howe

| 1869

---- 1869

|none

! style="background:;" |3

|Edward Kenny

| 1869

---- 1870

|none

! style="background:;" |4

|98x98px

|Charles Tupper

| 1870

---- 1872

|none

! style="background:;" |5

|93x93px

|John O'Connor

| 1872

---- 1873

|none

! style="background:;" |–

|102x102px

|John A. Macdonald

| 1873

---- 1873

|(acting)

! style="background:;" |6

|135x135px

|Hugh McDonald

| 1873

----| 1873

|none

! style="background:;" |–

|102x102px

|John A. Macdonald

| 1873

---- 1873

|(acting)

! style="background:;" |–

|103x103px

|Alexander Mackenzie

| 1873

---- 1874

|(acting)

| rowspan="6" style="background:; " |

| rowspan="6" |103x103px Mackenzie

! style="background:;" |7

|89x89px

|Lucius Seth Huntington

| 1874

---- 1875

|none

! style="background:;" |–

|103x103px

|Alexander Mackenzie

| 1875

---- 1875

|(acting)

! style="background:;" |8

|98x98px

|Joseph-Édouard Cauchon

| 1875

---- 1877

|none

! style="background:;" |9

|100x100px

|Edward Blake

| 1877

---- 1878

|none

! style="background:;" |–

|103x103px

|Alexander Mackenzie

| 1878

---- 1878

|(acting)

! style="background:;" |(5)

|93x93px

|John O'Connor

| 1878

---- 1880

|none

| rowspan="8" style="background:;" |

| rowspan="8" |102x102px Macdonald

! style="background:;" |10

|80x80px

|Louis-Rodrigue Masson

| 1880

---- 1880

|none

! style="background:;" |–

|102x102px

|John A. Macdonald

| 1880

---- 1880

|(acting)

! style="background:;" |11

|130x130px

|Joseph-Alfred Mousseau

| 1880

---- 1881

|none

! style="background:;" |12

|130x130px

|Archibald McLelan

| 1881

---- 1882

|none

! style="background:;" |13

|102x102px

|John A. Macdonald

| 1883

---- 1889

|Prime Minister

Superintendent-General of Indian Affairs (1878–87, 88)

! style="background:;" |14

|80x80px

|Charles Carroll Colby

| 1889

---- 1891

|none

! style="background:;" |–

|102x102px

|John A. Macdonald

| 1891

---- 1891

|(acting)

! style="background:;" |15

|101x101px

|John Abbott

| 1891

---- 1892

|Prime Minister

| style="background:;" |

|101x101px Abbott

! style="background:;" |–

|101x101px

|John Sparrow David Thompson

| 1892

---- 1892

|(acting)

| rowspan="2" style="background:;" |

| rowspan="2" |101x101px Thompson

----

! style="background:;" |16

|130x130px

|William Bullock Ives

| 1892

---- 1894

|none

! style="background:;" |17

|112x112px

|Mackenzie Bowell

| 1894

---- 1896

|Prime Minister

| style="background:;" |

|112x112px Bowell

! style="background:;" |18

|107x107px

|Auguste-Réal Angers

| 1896

---- 1896

|none

| style="background:;" |

|99x99px Tupper

|- style="height:40px;"

! style="background:;" rowspan="3" |19

| rowspan="3" |114x114px

| rowspan="3" |Wilfrid Laurier

| rowspan="3" | 1896

---- 1911

| rowspan="3" |Prime Minister

| rowspan="3" style="background:; " |

| rowspan="3" |114x114px Laurier

|124x124px Edward VII

|- style="height:40px;"

| rowspan="10" |113x113px George V

! style="background:;" |20

|106x106px

|Robert Borden

| 1911

---- 1917

|Prime Minister

| rowspan="2" style="background:;" |

| rowspan="2" |106x106px Borden

! style="background:;" |21

|106x106px

|Newton Rowell

| 1917

---- 1920

|Minister presiding Department of Health (1919–20)

! style="background:;" |22

|111x111px

|James Alexander Calder

| 1920

---- 1921

|Minister of Immigration and Colonization, Minister presiding Department of Health

| rowspan="2" style="background:;" |

| rowspan="2" |103x103px Meighen

! style="background:;" |23

|100x100px

|Louis-Philippe Normand

| 1921

---- 1921

|none

! style="background:;" |24

|104x104px

|William Lyon Mackenzie King

| 1921

---- 1926

|Prime Minister, Secretary of State for External Affairs

| style="background:; " |

|104x104px King

! style="background:;" |25

|103x103px

|Arthur Meighen

| 1926

---- 1926

|Prime Minister, Secretary of State for External Affairs

| style="background:;" |

|103x103px Meighen

! style="background:;" |(24)

|104x104px

|William Lyon Mackenzie King

| 1926

---- 1930

|Prime Minister, Secretary of State for External Affairs

| style="background:; " |

|104x104px King

! style="background:;" |26

|108x108px

|R. B. Bennett

| 1930

---- 1935

|Prime Minister, Minister of Finance (until 1932), Secretary of State for External Affairs,

| style="background:;" |

|108x108px Bennett

|- style="height:40px;"

! style="background:;" rowspan="3" |(24)

| rowspan="3" |104x104px

| rowspan="3" |William Lyon Mackenzie King

| rowspan="3" | 1935

---- 1948

| rowspan="3" |Prime Minister, Secretary of State for External Affairs (until 1946)

| rowspan="3" style="background:; " |

| rowspan="3" |104x104px King

|107x107px Edward VIII

|- style="height:40px;"

| rowspan="2" |110x110px George VI

! style="background:;" rowspan="2" |27

| rowspan="2" |116x116px

| rowspan="2" |Louis St. Laurent

| rowspan="2" | 1948

---- 1957

| rowspan="2" |Prime Minister

| rowspan="3" style="background:; " |

| rowspan="3" |116x116px St. Laurent

|- style="height:40px;"

| rowspan="38" |102x102px Elizabeth II

! style="background:;" |28

|116x116px

|Lionel Chevrier

| 1957

---- 1957

|none

! style="background:;" |29

|102x102px

|John Diefenbaker

| 1957

---- 1961

|Prime Minister

| rowspan="3" style="background:;" |

| rowspan="3" |102x102px Diefenbaker

! style="background:;" |30

|Noël Dorion

| 1961

---- 1962

|none

! style="background:;" |(29)

|102x102px

|John Diefenbaker

| 1962

---- 1963

|Prime Minister

! style="background:;" |31

|Maurice Lamontagne

| 1963

---- 1964

|none

| rowspan="5" style="background:;" |

| rowspan="5" |121x121px Pearson

! style="background:;" |32

|121x121px

|George McIlraith

| 1964

---- 1965

|none

! style="background:;" |33

|Guy Favreau

| 1965

---- 1967

|Registrar General (from 1966)

! style="background:;" |34

|122x122px

|Walter L. Gordon

| 1967

---- 1968

|none

|- style="height:40px;"

! style="background:;" rowspan="2" |–

| rowspan="2" |111x111px

| rowspan="2" |Pierre Trudeau

| rowspan="2" | 1968

---- 1968

| rowspan="2" |(acting)

| rowspan="6" style="background:; " |

| rowspan="6" |111x111px P. Trudeau

! style="background:;" |–

|122x122px

|Allan MacEachen

| 1968

---- 1968

|(acting)

! style="background:;" |35

|Donald Stovel Macdonald

| 1968

---- 1970

|Government House Leader

! style="background:;" |36

|122x122px

|Allan MacEachen

| 1970

---- 1974

|Government House Leader

! style="background:;" |37

|122x122px

|Mitchell Sharp

| 1974

---- 1976

|Government House Leader

! style="background:;" |(36)

|122x122px

|Allan MacEachen

| 1976

---- 1979

|Government House Leader

! style="background:;" |38

|Walter Baker

| 1979

---- 1980

|Minister of National Revenue

| style="background:;" |

|97x97px Clark

! style="background:;" |39

|Yvon Pinard

| 1980

---- 1984

|Government House Leader

| style="background:; " |

|111x111px P. Trudeau

! style="background:;" |40

|André Ouellet

| 1984

---- 1984

|Minister of Labour

| style="background:; " |

| Turner

! style="background:;" |41

|Erik Nielsen

| 1984

---- 1985

|Deputy Prime Minister

| rowspan="4" style="background:;" |

| rowspan="4" |112x112px Mulroney

! style="background:;" |42

|Ray Hnatyshyn

| 1985

---- 1986

|Government House Leader

! style="background:;" |43

|Don Mazankowski

| 1986

---- 1991

|Deputy Prime Minister, Government House Leader

! style="background:;" |44

|97x97px

|Joe Clark

| 1991

---- 1993

|Minister responsible for Constitutional Affairs

! style="background:;" |45

|Pierre Blais

| 1993

---- 1993

|Minister of Justice and Attorney General

| style="background:;" |

|113x113px Campbell

! style="background:;" |46

|Marcel Massé

| 1993

---- 1996

|Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs

| rowspan="2" style="background:;" |

| rowspan="2" |96x96px Chrétien

! style="background:;" |47

|120x120px

|Stéphane Dion

| 1996

---- 2003

|Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs

! style="background:;" |48

|121x121px

|Denis Coderre

| 2003

---- 2004

|Minister res. for La Francophonie, for the Office of Indian Residential Schools Resolution, Federal interlocutor for Métis and non-status Indians

| rowspan="2" style="background:; " |

| rowspan="2" |107x107px Martin

! style="background:;" |49

|Lucienne Robillard

| 2004

---- 2006

|Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs

! style="background:;" |50

|80x80px

|Michael Chong

| 2006

---- 2006

|Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, Minister of State for Sport

| rowspan="6" style="background:;" |

| rowspan="6" |114x114px Harper

! style="background:;" |51

|97x97px

|Peter Van Loan

| 2006

---- 2007

|Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs

! style="background:;" |52

|80x80px

|Rona Ambrose

| 2007

---- 2008

|Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs

! style="background:;" |53

|Josée Verner

| 2008

---- 2011

|Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs

! style="background:;" |54

|Peter Penashue

| 2011

---- 2013

|Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs

! style="background:;" |55

|95x95px

|Denis Lebel

| 2013

---- 2015

|Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, Minister of Infrastructure

! style="background:;" |56

|106x106px

|Maryam Monsef

| 2015

---- 2017

|Minister of Democratic Institutions

| rowspan="7" style="background:; " |

| rowspan="6" |109x109px J. Trudeau

! style="background:;" |57

|103x103px

|Karina Gould

| 2017

---- 2018

|Minister of Democratic Institutions

! style="background:;" |58

|103x103px

|Dominic LeBlanc

| 2018

---- 2021

|Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, Northern Affairs and Internal Trade

|- style="height:40px;"

! style="background:;" rowspan="2" |59

| rowspan="2" |120x120px

| rowspan="2" |Bill Blair

| rowspan="2" | 2021

----26 July 2023

| rowspan="2" |Minister of Emergency Preparedness

| rowspan="3" |100x100px Charles III

|- style="height:40px;"

! style="background:;" | 60

| 120x120px

| Harjit Sajjan

| 2023

---- 2025

|Minister of Emergency Preparedness, Minister responsible for the Pacific Economic Development Agency of Canada

|- style="height:40px;"

! style="background:;" | (58)

| 126x126px

| Dominic LeBlanc

| 2025

---- Incumbent

|Minister of Internal Trade, Minister responsible for Canada-U.S. Trade, Intergovernmental Affairs and One Canadian Economy

|109x109px Carney

Role

List of presidents of the Privy Council

Notes