Finance Minister Paul Martin today announced that Paul Tellier has been appointed 2002 National Campaign Chair for the New Canada Savings Bonds Payroll Program.

Tellier, president and CEO of Canadian National Railway Company since 1992, becomes the fifth National Campaign Chair and follows Maureen Kempston Darkes, former president and general manager of General Motors of Canada.

The New Canada Savings Bonds Payroll Program is one of the largest automatic savings plans in Canada, enabling Canadians to purchase Canada Savings Bonds through the workplace. About 13,000 employers and approximately 1 million Canadians participate each year. The program is an important component of the Government’s strategy to provide Canadians with greater access to Government of Canada securities, including Canada Savings Bonds.

Tellier will work with Jacqueline Orange, president and CEO of Canada Investment and Savings, the agency responsible for New Canada Savings Bonds and the Payroll Savings Program, to increase awareness among Canadian business leaders about the importance of saving. Tellier will help to develop new relationships with employers across Canada to provide more Canadians with the opportunity to put money aside on a regular basis.

“I am delighted that Mr. Tellier has agreed to take on the task of promoting the Payroll Savings Program,” said Martin. “Allowing Canadians greater access to Government of Canada securities is a priority of the Government’s Retail Debt Plan.”

Tellier has accepted the voluntary position as 2002 National Campaign Chair, which runs until the end of this calendar year. Prior to joining CN, Tellier had been Clerk of the Privy Council and Secretary to the Cabinet of the Government of Canada, the top public servant in the country, since August 1985. He has also been Deputy Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development in 1979 and Deputy Minister of Energy, Mines and Resources in 1982.