Canadian foreign minister John Baird to resign

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/feb/03/canadian-foreign-minister-john-baird--resign

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The Canadian foreign minister, John Baird, one of conservative prime minister Stephen Harper’s most trusted cabinet ministers, will announce his resignation on Tuesday and move into the private sector, a senior government official said.

The move was unexpected and shocked many in Canada.

Baird, 45, shares the same conservative philosophy and hyper-partisan temperament as Harper, who has kept tight control over his cabinet during his nine-year tenure, rarely letting ministers stray from script. But Baird is one of the few allowed to speak freely, and even for the prime minister. He often escorted Harper’s wife, Laureen, to official events when Harper couldn’t attend.

An official who is close to the minister said Baird will be exploring opportunities in the private sector, but we won’t be making any announcements about that on Tuesday.

The official said that Baird simply felt it was the right time to move on after a successful career in both the Ontario provincial legislature and federal parliament.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak ahead of Tuesday’s announcement.

Baird helped Harper nudge a liberal-leaning country further to the right. Since taking office in 2006, Harper and Baird, previously the environment minister, have promoted the potential of Alberta’s oil sands, the world’s third-largest oil reserves, despite objections. Baird has been a staunch supporter of Israel and an outspoken critic of Russia.

Harper is expected to run again in the October election, although he has now lost one of his most trusted lieutenants. Baird still planned to help Harper get re-elected, the official said.

Baird previously served in Harper’s cabinet as house leader, environment minister, transport minister and treasury board president.

A statement from Baird’s office said he planned to make an announcement in parliament on Tuesday morning, but did not disclose any details.

The official said Baird won’t be running for parliament in the next federal election, scheduled for October.

“The minister is looking to turn the page on 20 years of public service, and like anyone in public office is looking for new opportunities at the young age of 45,” the official said.

Baird had little international experience before becoming foreign minister in 2011. Palestinian protesters hurled eggs and shoes at Baird’s convoy last month during a visit to the West Bank city of Ramallah to meet with the Palestinian foreign minister.

In recent days, Baird has been working to secure the release of Egyptian-Canadian journalist Mohamed Fahmy from a Cairo prison. Baird said it was “imminent”.

The former Liberal opposition leader Bob Rae tweeted that he admired Baird’s energy, humor, and willingness to listen and engage.

“John Baird is bombastic, mean-spirited, vicious, eloquent, generous, smart, cantankerous, hardworking, ingratiating, effective, human,” Rae tweeted. Baird sparked a diplomatic furor in 2009 when he sent a short text to a friend that read simply: “Thatcher has died.”

Harper had his spokesman prepare an official statement to mourn the passing of the former British prime minister after word spread through a crowd of about 1,700 people at a black-tie event in Toronto that Harper was attending. The spokesman contacted officials in Buckingham Palace and in British prime minister Gordon Brown’s office. But in fact, it was Baird’s beloved tabby cat, Thatcher, who had passed away.