Trudeau succession: Mark Carney launches campaign to “repair the economy”

Mark Carney officially launched Thursday in Edmonton in the race for leadership of the Liberal Party of Canada (PLC) in the hope of succeeding Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, from whose record he has somewhat distanced himself.

Former governor of the banks of Canada and England, he has positioned himself as a centrist candidate whose main objective will be to recover the economy of the country.

I am here to ask for your support in order to gain your trust and lead this fight. I am back home in Edmonton to declare my candidacy for Leader of the Liberal Party and Prime Minister of Canada.

If there is one thing to take away from my speech today, it is that I will be entirely focused on the need to get our economy back on trackhe announced in a speech that mixed English and somewhat hesitant French.

If you’re wondering why I could succeed where others can’t, remember that I’ve had to manage many crises and helped save the economies of two countrieshe added, referring to his roles in Canada and the United Kingdom.

I learned to be responsible and fair, to remain humble […] and to never, ever give up.

Originally from Fort Smith, Northwest Territories, Mark Carney, 59, grew up in Alberta. He is among the most prominent liberals who have officially announced their candidacy to run for the leadership of the PLC following the announcement of the resignation of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in early January.

After studying at the prestigious American University Harvard and then at the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom, Mr. Carney began his career as an investment banker at Goldman Sachs in New York, before returning to Canada to work a senior civil servant position in the Federal Ministry of Finance.

In 2008, against all odds, he was chosen to lead the Bank of Canada as governor at a time when the country was going through a severe economic recession.

Mr. Carney later served as Governor of the Bank of England between 2013 and 2020, as the United Kingdom went through a tumultuous economic period following the country’s exit from the European Union, known as the Brexit.

Start of the Twitter widget. Skip the widget?End of Twitter widget. Return to start of widget?

During the leadership race PLCMark Carney will likely have to face former Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, who is due to announce her candidacy on Sunday, according to a source close to his entourage.

Other candidates, including the government’s parliamentary leader, Karina Gould, are expected to announce their intention to seek the leadership of the party by January 23, the deadline for submitting candidacies.

Arrows against Poilievre… and Trudeau

Mr. Carney wanted to stand out from the other candidates by highlighting the fact that he is a outsiderthat is to say, he does not come from political circles.

I know I’m not the usual model when it comes to politics, but now is not the time for politics as usualhe said before launching arrows against Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre, calling his policies naive and dangerous.

If you choose me as your leader, we will offer Canadians a clear choice in the next election: it’s experience versus incompetence, plans versus slogans, calm versus chaos.Mr. Carney further declared.

The aspiring Liberal leader also did not hesitate to criticize Justin Trudeau’s government, accusing it of having overspending while investing very little.

I know I’m not the only Liberal in Canada who thinks the Prime Minister and his team have perhaps forgotten the economy too often.

Negotiating with Donald Trump

He also painted a poor portrait of Canada’s economy, saying that the country is already doing badly even without the threats of American President-elect Donald Trump, who raises the specter of customs tariffs of 25% on all imports from Canada.

Our growth is too slow, wages are too low, essential products like groceries and rent are too expensive for many […] Taxes affecting the middle class are too highlisted Mr. Carney.

He said he had meetings with Mr. Trump during the latter’s first term, describing the president-elect as a negotiator.

To deal with the tariffs, he believes it is important to show a united front against the Americans. He was also pleased to see that the majority of provinces and territories have rallied with the federal government not to rule out any retaliatory measures against Mr. Trump’s threats, including the imposition of a tax on energy exports. Alberta is the only province to have refused to sign the final joint declaration to protest this response.

[Imaginez] send Pierre Poilievre to negotiate with [Donald] Trump. This is the worst possible idea.

A future climate plan

Finally, with regard to the carbon tax, Mr. Carney showed himself open to the idea of ​​abolishing or modifying this measure which was at the heart of the Liberal government’s plan for the fight against climate change and the reduction greenhouse gas emissions.

However, he indicated that if this measure were to be eliminated, it should be replaced by another more effective tool. A comprehensive plan is neededhe said, promising to unveil his vision over the coming days.

Her liberal rival, Chrystia Freeland, would consider abandoning part of this measure, particularly that which affects individuals.

The name of the person who will succeed Justin Trudeau at the head of the PLC will be known on March 9.

Given the prorogation of Parliament until March 24, the candidate chosen as Liberal leader will become Prime Minister of Canada. However, this reign should be brief since the opposition parties have all made it known that they intend to bring down the minority Liberal government at the first opportunity, upon their return to Parliament.