Carolyn Bennett to be named ambassador to Denmark, sources say

The Trudeau government will appoint former cabinet minister Carolyn Bennett as ambassador to Denmark, Radio-Canada has learned.

Bennett announced in December that she would be leaving her position as member of Parliament for Toronto–St. Paul's after more than 26 years.

The former family doctor was removed from cabinet last summer after announcing she would not seek another term as an MP.

This is not the first time that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has offered an important diplomatic position to an outgoing minister.

Ralph Goodale was appointed Canada's high commissioner to the United Kingdom after his election defeat in 2019.

Former foreign affairs minister Stéphane Dion was appointed Canadian ambassador to Germany in 2017 and to France in 2022.

Former immigration minister John McCallum was appointed ambassador to China in 2017 before being fired in 2019.

In the Trudeau government, Bennett served as minister of Indigenous and Northern Affairs, Crown-Indigenous Relations and Mental Health and Addictions.

In her role as ambassador, Bennett will also be responsible for diplomatic files affecting Greenland, where most of the population is Inuit and her experience as minister of Crown-Indigenous relations could be useful.

When she announced her departure, Trudeau described her as a source of inspiration and sound advice on things like how to "be a better feminist" and recruit extraordinary women to run for the party.

Bennett was first elected to Parliament in 1997.