Last week’s shuffle of deputy ministers included some “very rare” moves, say insiders.

Spurred by the retirement announcement of National Security Adviser Richard Fadden in late March, deputy ministers in several departments were moved around to fill the space, including Foreign Affairs DM Daniel Jean moving to fill Fadden’s role, and Ian Shugart, current DM of employment and social development, to fill Mr. Jean’s shoes.

The prime minister’s recent shuffle of deputy ministers could suggest an emphasis on international affairs when it comes to national security.

When asked if he thought moving Mr. Jean to national security was indicative of the government’s emphasis on national security threats abroad, Foreign Affairs Minister Stephane Dion said, “you could say that,” before stressing that Global Affairs also deals with national security.

Mr. Dion said Mr. Jean had been responsible for the fusion of departments at Global Affairs. “It was a huge task,” he said. “He’s a great manager, as it should be.”

In 2013, the Conservative government merged the Canadian International Development Agency with the foreign affairs department, which then became known as DFATD. Mr. Jean was brought on as DM in November 2013, months after the announcement was made that the foreign ministry would absorb CIDA.

Andrew Caddell, a senior policy adviser at Global Affairs, told The Hill Times that Mr. Jean is a meticulous and friendly manager, who is hugely invested in the skills of his team.

“Daniel Jean was one of the few deputies who really did identify with the regular foreign service officers and a lot of that was because he’d been on a few postings himself,” said Mr. Caddell.

He described Mr. Jean as a personable leader, who would often hold meetings over coffee, and be very prompt in getting back to people.

“He was the type of guy who’d go down to the cafeteria when he first started and I think subsequently too, and he would just go and sit at a table and chat with people.”

Calling Mr. Jean a reliable listener and a straightforward person, Mr. Caddell had nothing but good things to say about the future national security adviser.

“He was very, very frank about what the situation with the department was, what his objectives were, what his priorities were, and he’s a very, very good listener and took notes and was very quick to respond, and I think that was a sign of his sort of leadership.”

Mr. Dion said he’s not surprised that the prime minister wants Mr. Jean close by. He also stressed that Mr. Jean had gained valuable experience in security during his time at Global Affairs.

“At Foreign Affairs, we have a lot of responsibilities regarding security. A lot of the information received is completely secret and very touchy and we work very closely with the PCO and with [Public Safety Minister Ralph] Goodale’s office and department, and in defence. So the years that he has been in foreign affairs, he has [this expertise],” Mr. Dion told reporters after a committee meeting last week.

Colin Robertson, a former Canadian diplomat and current fellow at the Canadian Global Affairs Institute, wrote in an email that Mr. Jean is “a very experienced public servant who has never lost a sense of proportion.”

The two served together in Hong Kong during what was “a very intense time” Mr. Robertson said. The pair were so close that Mr. Jean even taught Mr. Robertson’s daughter how to swim. “He is a very good sportsman,” Mr. Robertson said.

At the time, Mr. Jean was responsible for directing the entrepreneurial immigration program. Mr. Robertson said he was “renowned” for getting to work at six in the morning in order to be able to leave in time for dinner with his family.

Mr. Robertson said that “despite the pressures” of their time in Hong Kong, “the program got high marks for its efficiency, satisfied clients and the good morale of those who worked with him.”

Mr. Caddell said “it’s very rare for a deputy of foreign affairs to become the head [national security adviser].”

The last person to do so was Marie-Lucie Morin, who served as associate deputy minister of foreign affairs from 2003 to 2006, then deputy minister of international trade from 2006 to 2008, before being appointed national security adviser to the PM in November, 2008.

“I think that’s a sign of how much the prime minister values his advice, and how he’s perceived at PMO and PCO for him to make that kind of a leap,” Mr. Caddell said.

Mr. Fadden told The Globe and Mail in a Q&A last month that he thinks Mr. Trudeau “comes to office with a very strongly-held view that national security is a core responsibility of the prime minister.”

Mr. Shugart, who will be taking Mr. Jean’s place, has a varied background that appears to be based largely in health. In the mid-90’s, Mr. Shugart was the executive director of the Medical Research Council, now called the Canadian Institutes of Health Research. In the early 2000s, he served as assistant deputy minister in the health policy branch of Health Canada. After that, his focus shifted to have an emphasis on the environment, as he served as the associate deputy minister and then the deputy minister at Environment Canada.

His current position, which he has held since 2010, is deputy minister of employment and social development.

Mr. Dion said he does not know Mr. Shugart, but has been assured by Mr. Jean and Mr. Shugart’s current minister, Jean-Yves Duclos, that he will make a great replacement.

“I have heard only positive things. And perhaps it will not [do to] give one of the most demanding jobs you could imagine to someone who they would not have full confidence. It’s a recommendation of the clerk. The clerk knows that his reputation is directly linked to the quality of the person he will appoint at Foreign Affairs, at Global Affairs. It’s the deputy not only for me, but it’s the top deputy of Global Affairs. For Madame [Chrystia] Freeland and Madame [Marie-Claude] Bibeau as well,” he said, referring to the ministers of international trade and international development, respectively.
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