John McCallum

On 23 January 2019, McCallum spoke to Chinese-language Canadian and state-owned Chinese media in Markham, Ontario, concerning the detainment and extradition request by the United States, which resulted in the arrest of Huawei deputy chairwoman Meng Wanzhou, who was awaiting court judgement. The United States alleges that Meng Wanzhou is in violation of the United States Sanctions against Iran and the Canadian Federal government reaffirms that they are obligated to follow judicial protocol and that the arrest is not political in nature. McCallum shared his thoughts with the media by restating public facts that could make Meng's legal defence case strong against this extradition request. This included President Donald Trump's political intrusion, which undermined the integrity of the Canadian judicial protocol, thereby contradicting Canada's stance by making it political in nature. Furthermore, McCallum re-stated other well-reported motives the United States could have, citing the alleged intent of the arrest by the United States was to attempt to obtain trade concessions from China. McCallum withdrew his comments, saying he "misspoke" and that they did "not accurately represent [his] position on this issue". That week, McCallum is further quoted as later saying it "would be great for Canada" if the US extradition request were dropped, conditional on release of Canadians since detained in China.

On 26 January 2019, McCallum submitted his resignation as ambassador to China, at the request of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who did not disclose the reasoning behind this decision. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau thanked McCallum for serving with honour and distinction for over two decades and acknowledged his former contributions as the Minister of Immigration and Refugees, which included fulfilling Trudeau's campaign promise of accepting over 39,000 Syrian Refugees. Justin Trudeau stated that McCallum remains an inspiration to all Canadians and an example to the world.

On 10 January 2017, it was announced that McCallum would be appointed as Canada's Ambassador to China. This resulted in a cabinet reshuffle as he stepped down from his position as the Minister of Immigration and Citizenship to pursue his new post. McCallum expressed eagerness to take on the posting in Beijing, citing his strong personal connections to China, as his former riding Markham has primarily Chinese constituents and both his wife and children are of Chinese ethnicity.

On 4 November 2015, he was appointed the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship in the newly-elected 29th Canadian Ministry of Justin Trudeau. As a senior cabinet minister, McCallum was then fourth in line in case of the PM's incapacity. As Immigration Minister, he oversaw the intake of Syrian refugees during the Syrian refugee crisis.

When the Conservatives came to power in January 2006 under Stephen Harper, McCallum was appointed as the Immigration Critic.

McCallum was quite vocal in Canada's debate on same-sex marriage. He told the Edmonton Sun in August 2003, "If people want to do something and it doesn't hurt other people, doesn't reduce other people's rights, we should let them do it. Why not?" He also significantly contributed to the final debate before the vote on same-sex marriage on 21 March 2005 saying:

Under Paul Martin, McCallum introduced a new charter for younger, postwar veterans who have been physically or mentally injured while serving in the Canadian Forces. This charter, which became law in 2005, is modelled on the range of services provided for returning veterans after World War II. This "new model" stripped veterans of a monthly pension opting for a lump sum payment.

As Minister of National Revenue and Chair of the Cabinet's Expenditure Review Committee, McCallum achieved in 2005 expenditure reductions of $11 billion over the next five years.

In January 2003, McCallum suggested Canadian troops could avoid so-called "friendly fire" incidents by wearing some of female Conservative MP Elsie Wayne's clothes. McCallum later apologized both inside and outside the House of Commons for using inappropriate language, blaming the excitement of the moment, and had his apologies accepted by Wayne.

He became widely known and criticized in 2002 when he admitted, while serving as the Minister of National Defence, that he had never heard of the 1942 Dieppe raid, a fateful and nationally significant operation for Canadian Forces during the Second World War. Ironically, he wrote a letter to the editor of the National Post in response, but committed a further gaffe, confusing Canadian participation in the 1917 Battle of Vimy Ridge in France with Vichy France from 1940 to 1944. Response at the continued historical ignorance prompted outrage and humour among the press.

In November 2002, while still serving as Defence Minister, McCallum encountered further controversy when officials refused to allow him to board an Air Canada flight because his breath smelt heavily of alcohol. McCallum announced soon thereafter that the incident prompted him to abstain completely from alcohol consumption. He reportedly also intended to lose weight and give up smoking.

A veteran federal politician who began his political career in 2000, McCallum has served in the governments of Liberal prime ministers Jean Chrétien, Paul Martin, and Justin Trudeau. McCallum has previously been Secretary of State (International Financial Institutions), Minister of National Defence, Minister of Veterans Affairs, and Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship.

McCallum was the Royal Bank of Canada's chief economist for six years. He consistently achieved the highest media coverage of bank chief economists, making regular appearances on CBC's The National as an economics panellist. He also engaged in social issues, notably a 1997 Royal Bank conference designed to align the business community with the recommendations of the 1996 Report on the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples. His paper at that conference, "The Cost of Doing Nothing", was highlighted ten years later in the Aboriginal Times magazine.

He also participated in the national unity debates of the early 1990s, editing the Canada Round Series of the C. D. Howe Institute and engaging in debate with then Opposition Leader Jacques Parizeau at Quebec's National Assembly.

McCallum was a professor of economics at the University of Manitoba from 1976 until 1978, Simon Fraser University from 1978 until 1982, the Université du Québec à Montréal from 1982 until 1987, and McGill University from 1987 until 1994. He is an honorary member of the Royal Military College of Canada, student No. S139.

John McCallum PC (born 9 April 1950) is a Canadian politician, economist, diplomat and former university professor. A former Liberal Member of Parliament (MP), McCallum was the Canadian Ambassador to China from 2017 to 2019. He was asked for his resignation by Prime Minister Trudeau in 2019. As an MP, he represented the electoral district of Markham—Thornhill, and had previously represented Markham—Unionville and Markham. He is a member of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada.