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Politics : Foreign Affairs Discussion Group -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: maceng2 who wrote (45829)	9/21/2002 12:36:48 PM
From: Eashoa' M'sheekha	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 281500

FYI:Canadian PM names new ambassador to Great Britain By SHELDON KIRSHNER TORONTO - Mel Cappe, a former clerk of the Canadian Privy Council, secretary to the cabinet and head of the public service, has been appointed Canada's ambassador to Britain and Northern Ireland. "I am the first Jewish high commissioner to London as far as I know," he said in an interview on the eve of the High Holy Days. "I'm not sure whether Donald MacDonald, Roy McMurtry, Fred Eaton or Roy McLaren were Jewish," he added, displaying a touch of wry humour. He was referring to his predecessors in Britain. Cappe, who was Prime Minister Jean Chrétien's special advisor until May, is 53.He was born and educated in Toronto, the son of Dave and Patty Cappe, whom he described as his "guiding lights." An economist who graduated from the University of Toronto and the University of Western Ontario, Cappe joined the civil service in 1975.He and his wife, Marni - an urban planner who left her job with the Federation of Canadian Municipalities to accompany her husband - arrived in London on Aug. 17. "Her majesty, the queen, will be having us over for tea shortly," he said.This is Cappe's first posting as a diplomat. "I'm very pleased and excited to have been given the opportunity to represent my country abroad. My 27 years of experience as an economist and senior government official prepared me well for this job," he said. His first priorities will be to promote British investment in Canada and to facilitate trade with Britain. "Government-to-government relations start off deep and strong and I want to continue to maintain that," he noted. "I also want to change British preconceptions of Canada by advancing Canadian culture." Cappe, who had aspired to be an academic, joined the civil service with the intention of staying a year while he finished his PhD thesis. "I found, instead, that the issues I worked on were fascinating and the people I worked with, contrary to the preconceptions and prejudices I had, were intellectually stimulating and personally challenging. So I never did finish my PhD." During his years in Ottawa, Cappe held several senior economic and policy positions. He was deputy secretary to the Treasury Board and deputy minister of the environment. In addition, Cappe was deputy minister of human resources developoment, deputy minister of labour and chair of the Employment Insurance Commissioin.As Privy Council clerk, he was Canada's top civil servant. He held the position for three and a half years, during which time he dealt with the Y2K phenomenon, the war in Kosovo, the Sept. 11 attacks and the war in Afghanistan.Cappe's father was a pharmacist before he retired. He refers to his mother as "E-bubby, because of her obsession with e-mail." His brother, Lorne, an architect and urban designer, works for the city of Toronto. "He has taught me a tremendous amount about life and what's important in it." Cappe enjoys photography, travel and books as well as the company of his children, who attended a Jewish school in Ottawa. Danny, 26, a graduate of Queen's University, worked in the high-tech sector in Ottawa and Toronto. Currently, he studies law at the University of Toronto. Emily, 24, resides in Vancouver and works for an upscale Italian restaurant. Cappe said that his children are "the most important part" of his life. When he lived in Ottawa, he was a member of Agudath Israel Congregation. In the past, he chaired the public service division of the United Jewish Appeal and the United Way campaigns. Last year, he was chair of the United Way campaign.