Minister of Finance (Canada) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Minister of Finance
Incumbent Chrystia Freeland since August 18, 2020
Department of Finance
Style	The Honourable
Member of	Parliament Privy Council Cabinet Treasury Board
Reports to	Parliament Prime Minister
Appointer	Monarch (represented by the governor general) on the advice of the prime minister
Term length	At His Majesty's pleasure
Inaugural holder	Alexander Galt
Formation	July 1, 1867
Salary	CA$269,800 (2019)

The Minister of Finance (called ministre des Finances in French) is a very important job in the Canadian government. This person is a minister of the Crown and part of the Cabinet. Their main role is to look after the Department of Finance.

One of their biggest tasks is to present the federal government's budget every year. This budget shows how the government plans to spend money. It is one of the most powerful positions in the Cabinet.

Currently, Chrystia Freeland is the 40th Minister of Finance. She took on this role in August 2020. She is also the deputy prime minister of Canada, which means she has two big jobs at once!

Because this job is so important, many people who have been Minister of Finance later become prime minister. For example, Charles Tupper, R. B. Bennett, John Turner, Jean Chrétien, and Paul Martin all served as Finance Minister before becoming Prime Minister.

What Does the Minister of Finance Do?

The Minister of Finance has many important duties. They are in charge of the Department of Finance. This department helps manage Canada's economy.

Key Responsibilities

The Minister of Finance also oversees several other important organizations. These groups help keep Canada's financial system strong and safe. They include:

• The Bank of Canada: This is Canada's central bank. It helps control the country's money supply.
• The Canada Deposit Insurance Corporation: This group protects your money if a bank fails.
• The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board: This board manages the money for your future pension.
• The Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions: This office makes sure banks and insurance companies are stable.
• The Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada: This centre helps fight against money laundering and terrorist financing.
• They also represent Canada at the International Monetary Fund. This is a global organization that helps countries with their money issues.
• The Minister of Finance is also a permanent member of the Treasury Board of Canada. This board helps decide how government money is spent.

Ministers of Finance Through History

Canada has had many Ministers of Finance since 1867. These leaders have played a big part in shaping Canada's economy. The table below shows some of the people who have held this important role.

Key:

     Liberal Party of Canada      Historical conservative parties: Liberal-Conservative, Conservative (historical), Unionist, National Liberal and Conservative, Progressive Conservative      Conservative Party of Canada

No.	Portrait	Name	Term of office		Political party	Ministry
1		Alexander Galt	July 1, 1867	November 7, 1867	Liberal-Conservative	1 (Macdonald)
2		Sir John Rose	November 18, 1867	September 29, 1869	Liberal-Conservative
3		Sir Francis Hincks	October 9, 1869	February 21, 1873	Liberal-Conservative
4		Samuel Leonard Tilley (1st time)	February 22, 1873	November 5, 1873	Liberal-Conservative
5		Richard John Cartwright	November 7, 1873	October 16, 1878	Liberal	2 (Mackenzie)
(4)		Sir Samuel Leonard Tilley (2nd time)	October 17, 1878	November 11, 1885	Liberal-Conservative	3 (Macdonald)
–		Vacant	November 11, 1885	December 10, 1885	—
6		Archibald McLelan	December 10, 1885	January 27, 1887	Conservative (historical)
7		Sir Charles Tupper	January 27, 1887	May 22, 1888	Conservative (historical)
8		George Foster (1st time)	May 29, 1888	June 6, 1891	Conservative (historical)
			June 16, 1891	November 24, 1892		4 (Abbott)
			December 5, 1892	December 12, 1894		5 (Thompson)
			December 21, 1894	January 6, 1896		6 (Bowell)
–		Mackenzie Bowell (Acting)	January 6, 1896	January 15, 1896	Conservative (historical)
(8)		George Foster (2nd time)	January 15, 1896	April 27, 1896	Conservative (historical)
			May 1, 1896	July 8, 1896		7 (Tupper)
–		Vacant	July 8, 1896	July 20, 1896	—	8 (Laurier)
9		William Stevens Fielding (1st time)	July 20, 1896	October 6, 1911	Liberal
10		Sir Thomas White	October 10, 1911	August 2, 1919	Conservative (historical)	9•10 (Borden)
11		Sir Henry Drayton (1st time)	August 2, 1919	July 10, 1920	Conservative (historical)
			July 10, 1920	December 29, 1921		11 (Meighen)
(9)		William Stevens Fielding (2nd time)	December 29, 1921	September 5, 1925	Liberal	12 (King)
12		James Robb (1st time)	September 5, 1925	June 29, 1926	Liberal
–		Sir Henry Drayton (2nd time; Acting)	June 29, 1926	July 13, 1926	Conservative (historical)	13 (Meighen)
13		Richard Bedford Bennett (1st time)	July 13, 1926	September 25, 1926	Conservative (historical)
(12)		James Robb (2nd time)	September 25, 1926	November 11, 1929	Liberal	14 (King)
14		Charles Avery Dunning	November 26, 1929	August 7, 1930	Liberal
(13)		Richard Bedford Bennett (2nd time)	August 7, 1930	February 2, 1932	Conservative (historical)	15 (Bennett)
15		Edgar Nelson Rhodes	February 3, 1932	October 24, 1935	Conservative (historical)
(14)		Charles Avery Dunning (2nd time)	October 24, 1935	September 6, 1939	Liberal	16 (King)
16		James Ralston	September 6, 1939	July 4, 1940	Liberal
17		James Lorimer Ilsley	July 8, 1940	December 10, 1946	Liberal
18		Douglas Abbott	December 10, 1946	November 15, 1948	Liberal
			November 15, 1948	June 30, 1954		17 (St. Laurent)
19		Walter Harris	July 1, 1954	June 21, 1957	Liberal
20		Donald Fleming	June 21, 1957	August 9, 1962	Progressive Conservative	18 (Diefenbaker)
21		George Nowlan	August 9, 1962	April 22, 1963	Progressive Conservative
22		Walter L. Gordon	April 22, 1963	November 11, 1965	Liberal	19 (Pearson)
23		Mitchell Sharp	November 11, 1965 (Acting until Dec.18)	April 20, 1968	Liberal
24		Edgar Benson	April 20, 1968	January 28, 1972	Liberal	20 (P. E. Trudeau)
25		John Turner	January 28, 1972	September 10, 1975	Liberal
–		Charles Drury (Acting)	September 10, 1975	September 26, 1975	Liberal
26		Donald Stovel Macdonald	September 26, 1975	September 16, 1977	Liberal
27		Jean Chrétien	September 16, 1977	June 4, 1979	Liberal
28		John Crosbie	June 4, 1979	March 3, 1980	Progressive Conservative	21 (Clark)
29		Allan MacEachen	March 3, 1980	September 10, 1982	Liberal	22 (P. E. Trudeau)
30		Marc Lalonde	September 10, 1982	June 30, 1984	Liberal
			June 30, 1984	September 17, 1984		23 (Turner)
31		Michael Wilson	September 17, 1984	April 21, 1991	Progressive Conservative	24 (Mulroney)
32		Don Mazankowski	April 21, 1991	June 25, 1993	Progressive Conservative
33		Gilles Loiselle	June 25, 1993	November 4, 1993	Progressive Conservative	25 (Campbell)
34		Paul Martin	November 4, 1993	June 2, 2002	Liberal	26 (Chrétien)
35		John Manley	June 2, 2002	December 12, 2003	Liberal
36		Ralph Goodale	December 12, 2003	February 6, 2006	Liberal	27 (Martin)
37		Jim Flaherty	February 6, 2006	March 18, 2014	Conservative	28 (Harper)
38		Joe Oliver	March 19, 2014	November 4, 2015	Conservative
39		Bill Morneau	November 4, 2015	August 18, 2020	Liberal	29 (J. Trudeau)
40		Chrystia Freeland	August 18, 2020	Incumbent	Liberal