(Ottawa) Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced his resignation on Monday, although he will remain in office until a successor is named as leader of the Liberal Party of Canada (PLC). He met with Governor General Mary Simon on Monday morning to extend the legislative session until March 24, thereby extending the life of his government.
Posted at 9:13 a.m.
Updated at 2:46 p.m.
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Mr. Trudeau thus put an end to the speculation that had been rife since the resounding resignation of the Minister of Finance and Deputy Prime Minister, Chrystia Freeland, on December 16, the same day she was to present her economic update.
He summoned the press on Monday outside Rideau Cottage, his residence, after reflecting on his political future.
“As you know, I am not someone who easily backs down from a fight, especially a fight that is so important for the party and for the country, but I do this job because the interest of Canadians and the well-being of our country, our democracy is close to my heart and it has become clear that I cannot be the leader in the next elections because of internal battles,” he admitted.
He did not want to give his version of the facts on the departure of Mme Freeland of the Cabinet simply said that he would have liked her to stay to take on “one of the most important files” between now and the next elections, that of Canadian-American relations, before adding that he was not going to share the content of private conversations.
This comes as US President-elect Donald Trump threatens to impose 25% tariffs after taking office on January 20. He was quick to react to the resignation of the Canadian Prime Minister on his Truth Social network.
“Many people in Canada LOVE being 51e State. The United States can no longer endure the massive trade deficits and subsidies that Canada needs to stay afloat, he wrote. Justin Trudeau knew this and resigned. If Canada merged with the United States, there would be no tariffs, taxes would go down significantly, and they would be TOTALLY safe from the threat of Russian and Chinese ships constantly surrounding them. Together, what a great Nation it would be! ! ! »
IMAGE FROM DONALD TRUMP’S TRUTH SOCIAL ACCOUNT
In his resignation letter, Mr.me Freeland wrote that the government must “take this threat seriously” and preserve its “fiscal capacity today” in order to have reserves to engage in a tariff war and “avoid costly political tricks.” He had announced to her a few days earlier that he was going to replace her after the economic update by the former governor of the Bank of Canada, Mark Carney.
The Prime Minister therefore carried out a cabinet reshuffle a few days after the departure of his Finance Minister, but he did not respond to questions from the media. He took the time to think about his future during the holiday season, but the situation was becoming more and more untenable for him. He has in turn lost the support of the three largest caucuses within the Liberal delegation, that of the Atlantic, that of Ontario and that of Quebec.
The Liberal Party of Canada (PLC) will therefore have to launch a leadership race quickly to find a successor. The political party’s lawyers were already studying ways to do this before the Prime Minister’s announcement.
Aspiring chefs are already getting busy. Among them, Mr. Carney and Mr.me Freeland who remains an MP and plans to run again in the next federal election.
The prorogation of Parliament extends the life of the Liberal government at a time when the three opposition parties – the Conservative Party, the Bloc Québécois and the New Democratic Party – had already indicated that they would withdraw their confidence in the government, thus leaving it hanging the possibility of an election in the spring.
No matter who the next Liberal leader is, they have no intention of supporting this minority government after March 24. This means that the government would fall after the presentation of a new Speech from the Throne unless the new Prime Minister decides to go to the Governor General to dissolve Parliament and call an election.
Had it not been for the prorogation, parliamentary work would have resumed on January 27.
“Parliament needs a resetneeds to calm down a little to get back to work for Canadians and not engage in constant petty politics,” Justin Trudeau justified.
He defended this two-month pause citing the paralysis of the House of Commons since the end of September.
With Maryse Tessier, The Press
Justin Trudeau’s resignation changes nothing, according to opposition parties
Justin Trudeau’s resignation does not change the negative record of the Liberal Party of Canada, according to the opposition parties in Ottawa, who are quickly calling for general elections.
Less than an hour after Justin Trudeau’s press conference on Monday, the leader of the Conservative Party of Canada, Pierre Poilievre, wrote on the social network that Justin Trudeau did for nine years and, therefore, a new leader is not going to “change anything”.
“Now they want to deceive voters by swapping another Liberal face to continue scamming Canadians for another 4 years,” wrote Pierre Poilievre, for whom the only way to “repair what the Liberals have broken is to hold elections so to elect common-sense conservatives who will bring back the promise of Canada.”
In a video published on “to have contributed to the release of repeat criminals”.
Le chef du Bloc québécois, qui a convoqué la presse en fin d’avant-midi, a également souligné que l’ensemble du caucus libéral devait porter la responsabilité des déboires du parti.
Pour Yves-François Blanchet, « quoi qu’on fasse, le Parti libéral du Canada actuel, c’est le Parti libéral de Justin Trudeau et, dans tous les gens qui pourraient être intéressés par sa succession, tous ceux qu’on connaît sont des gens de l’entourage de Justin Trudeau ».
Yves-François Blanchet a balayé du revers de la main la possibilité de travailler avec le prochain chef libéral avant des élections générales.
Selon lui, le ou la successeur de Justin Trudeau devra appeler les Canadiens aux urnes dès son arrivée en poste au printemps.
“It’s the same organization, the same values, the same ideology. So, for me, there is no question of giving anyone any chance,” said the Bloc member.
The leader of the New Democratic Party of Canada, Jagmeet Singh, also noted that “the problem is not just Justin Trudeau”, but “all the ministers”.
In a statement, he wrote that they “disregarded the concerns of Canadians, from the exorbitant cost of living to the crumbling health care system.”
During a press conference early in the afternoon, Jagmeet Singh affirmed that under no circumstances will he support Justin Trudeau’s replacement between now and the elections.
“It’s over, that’s clear. When there is a motion of censure, the New Democrats will vote against the government,” and “no matter who the new leader is,” said the leader of the NDP.
Stéphane Blais, The Canadian Press
Justin Trudeau: 9 years at the head of Canada
