Canada’s Governor General will be visiting the Queen City next week.
Mary Simon, Canada’s 30th Governor General, will make her first official visit to Saskatchewan on Monday, which includes a stop at Government House in Regina to meet with Russ Mirasty, Saskatchewan’s lieutenant governor, and attend a reception.
Simon, who assumed the role in July of 2021 after the resignation of Julie Payette, is Canada’s first Indigenous Governor General.
Born in Quebec, she began her career as a radio broadcaster before moving into diplomacy, and gained recognition for her years of advocacy on Indigenous and Inuit issues. She served as Canadian Ambassador for Circumpolar Affairs and Canadian Ambassador to Denmark, as well as secretary to the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples.
During her tenure, Simon has participated in events during Pope Francis’ visit to Canada and hosted King Charles III (then Prince Charles) and Camilla during a state visit in 2022. She also became the first Governor General since 1936 to serve under two different monarchs and joined the Canadian delegation at the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II.
Simon has been criticized for high expenses during her tenure, with a report by the National Post indicating that $93,000 was spent on in-flight catering during Simon’s eight-day trip to the Middle East in 2022.
She also came under fire this week for hosting a symposium on online abuse attended by the federal justice minister while the government’s controversial Online Harms Act is being debated by Parliament.