Finance Minister Jim Flaherty introduced a 11-member advisory panel of prominent Canadians who will advise him on the federal budget and the economy. He said the members will be paid a dollar a year for their insight.

Carole Taylor, shown at a news conference in Victoria on Nov. 30, 2007, will serve as chair of the economic advisory council. (Adrian Lam/Canadian Press)Carole Taylor Former B.C. finance minister

The chair of the advisory panel, Taylor served as B.C.'s minister of finance from June 16, 2005 to June 23, 2008, after winning in the riding of Vancouver-Langara in the 2005 provincial general election. Prior to that, she served as chair of CBC/Radio-Canada from 2001 to 2005. She has chaired the Vancouver Board of Trade, Vancouver Port Corporation and Canada Ports Corporation.

James A. Pattison Chairman, president, CEO and sole owner, Jim Pattison Group

Pattison, 80, leads a sprawling empire spanning the automotive, media, packaging, food sales and financial industries, and the Ripley's Believe It or Not! museums at 27 locations in nine countries. Headquartered in Vancouver, the Jim Pattison Group is one of the largest privately held Canadian companies. The company recently acquired the Guinness World Records business and employs 30,000 worldwide.

Paul Desmarais, chairman of the executive committee of Power Corporation, walks to the Power Financial Corporation annual meeting May 9, 2007 in Montreal. (Paul Chiasson/Canadian Press) Paul Desmarais Jr. Co-chairman and CEO, Power Corporation of Canada

Desmarais is chairman of the executive committee of Power Financial Corporation (PFC) and a director and member of the executive committee of many Power group companies in North America. Desmarais' father, Paul Sr., has controlled the financial services giant Power Corp. since the 1960s. The family has deep ties to Canadian politics, particularly with the Liberal Party of Canada. But the Desmarais clan has cultivated relationships with leader of many political stripes — including former prime ministers Jean Chretien, Brian Mulroney and Paul Martin, among many others.

Geoff Beattie Deputy chairman, Thomson Reuters

Beattie is president of Woodbridge Company Ltd., the investment vehicle for the Thomson family and the principal shareholder of Thomson Reuters. He is also a director of Royal Bank of Canada and is chairman of CTVglobemedia Inc.

James Irving President of J.D. Irving Ltd.

Irving is the great-grandson of James Dargavel Irving, who founded the family-owned company in 1882 in New Brunswick. The company now has operations in Eastern Canada and the U.S. and is one of the top five private landowners in North America with nearly 1.4 million hectares.

George Gosbee CEO, Tristone Capital Inc.

Gosbee started his company, a Calgary-based investment bank catering to energy clients, in 2000, when he was 30. It now has over 170 employees in five offices in Canada, the U.K., the U.S. and Argentina. Gosbee is also vice chairman of the Alberta Investment Management Corporation, a Government of Alberta fund, and chairman of the board for the Alberta College of Art and Design.

Isabelle Hudon President, Marketel

Isabelle Hudon became the new president of Marketel, a Montreal marketing company, in November 2008. Before that, she was a member of the board of Holt Renfrew for several years. She also chairs the boards of directors of the Université du Québec à Montréal, the Société du Havre de Montréal and the Fondation les petits trésors of the Rivière-des-Prairies Hospital. As well, she sits on the board of the Aéroports de Montréal.

Mike Lazaridis, one of the key architects of the BlackBerry's success, speaks at the Empire Club on March. 2, 2006 in Toronto. (Nathan Denette/Canadian Press)Mike Lazaridis Founder and co-CEO, Research In Motion

Lazaridis founded RIM, of BlackBerry fame, while he was a student at the University of Waterloo. He is responsible for product strategy, research and development, product development, and manufacturing at the company. Lazaridis has donated millions to help establish an Institute for Quantum Computing at his alma mater and helped establish the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics, also in Waterloo, Ont.

Jack Mintz Former CEO, C.D. Howe Institute

A widely published tax expert, Mintz was appointed the Palmer Chair in Public Policy at the University of Calgary in January 2008, and is leading the creation of a new School of Policy Studies at the school. He serves on several committees including the boards Brookfield Asset Management, Imperial Oil Limited, the Ontario Financing Authority, the National Statistics Council, Statistics Canada, the Royal Ontario Museum and the Board of Management, International Institute of Public Finance.

Ajit Someshwar CEO, CSI Consulting Inc.

Ajit Someshwar was born in Mumbai, India, and moved to London before coming to Canada. He founded CSI Consulting, an information technology and risk management consulting organization, in Toronto in 1996.

Annette Verschuren Division president, Home Depot Canada.

Verschuren began her career as a development officer with the Cape Breton Development Corporation in Sydney, N.S. She then worked as executive vice president with Canada Development Investment Corporation. Prior to joining The Home Depot, Verschuren was president & co-owner of Michael’s, the chain of arts and crafts stores.