Cenovus CEO Brian Ferguson named to Trudeau's economic advisory council

Alberta's oilpatch will have a voice on what could be the most influential group of people around Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Finance Minister Bill Morneau.

Cenovus CEO Brian Ferguson is among the six men and eight women appointed to the federal government's new economic advisory council, which wasunveiledFriday.

The group is made up ofbusiness and academic leaders all of whom will be paid an annual salary of $1.

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Their task is tohelp the government prepare a long-term economic growth strategy, setto be released by the end of the year.

"I look forward to working with the council members, whose diverse backgrounds and impressive expertise will inform our work as we develop and implement a strategy that will build on the foundation we will lay with budget 2016," Morneau said in a statement.

The Liberal government plans to table its first budget Tuesday, spelling out much of Ottawa's plan to boost productivity and economic growth.