Pierre Stewart Pettigrew (born in Quebec City on April 18, 1951) is a Canadian politician. He is currently serving in the Liberal cabinet of Paul Martin as Canada's Minister of Foreign Affairs, after having been re-elected as the Member of Parliament for the Montreal-area electoral district of Papineau.

Pettigrew has a BA in Philosophy from the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières (1972) and an MPhil in International Relations from Oxford University (1976).

Following the 1995 Quebec referendum Prime Minister Jean Chrétien was committed to bringing in more star candidates from Quebec to his cabinet. He thus appointed Pettigrew and Stéphane Dion to cabinet, even before they were in the house.

André Ouellet was made head of Canada Post, opening the riding of Papineau—Saint-Michel . Pettigrew was elected to Parliament in a March 25, 1996 by-election. He was re-elected in 1997 and 2000, representing the new riding of Papineau—Saint-Denis . In 1996 he became Minister for International Cooperation and Minister responsible for La Francophonie.

As Minister for International Trade, he was a tireless promoter of free trade and always characterized NAFTA as "a tremendous success" and a model to expand upon. He was a key participant in the World Trade Organization (WTO) trade talks, claiming that Canada's main goal of lowering agricultural subsidies would be of great benefit to the world's poorer nations. At the 2003 WTO Ministerial Conference in Cancún, Pettigrew played an aggressive role as chair of the working group on the Singapore Issues , controversial sectors of proposed liberalization which were bitterly opposed by developing nation delegates, not to mention masses of protesters outside of the gates where the meetings were held. He also championed the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA), and in the period leading up to the Summit of the Americas in Quebec City in 2001, he spearheaded a campaign to allay growing public suspicion of the deal by promising the eventual release of the draft negotiating texts. Throughout his mandate at International Trade, he was heavily embroiled in the US - Canada softwood lumber dispute.

On December 12, 2003, he was appointed Minister of Health and Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs by newly-appointed Prime Minister Paul Martin. On July 20, 2004, he moved to his long-desired portfolio of Foreign Affairs minister, displacing Bill Graham.

Pettigrew has long been rumoured to be a possible leadership candidate for the Liberal Party of Canada or as a leader of the more Quebec-nationalist Parti liberal du Quebec.

In 1999, Pettigrew wrote Pour une politique de la confiance, its English translation The New Politics of Confidence. It reviewed poorly, but does contain insights into Pettigrew's belief that the Canadian federal model benefits Quebec and is an example for the world.

Pettigrew is perhaps best known among the general public for his attention to his appearance: he is always immaculately dressed and every year is judged to have the best hair among male MPs. He also had plastic surgery on his nose during the 1990s, which reduced its size.

In an odd coincidence, his name is similar to that of Peter Pettigrew, a character in the Harry Potter series of novels.

External links

• No Thank You, Pierre Pettigrew
• Official Biography
• Anti-Pettigrew Page