Canada’s prime minister step downs amid pressure
- Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he plans to resign as leader of his Liberal Party – and effectively, as prime minister – amid growing pressure.
- The embattled prime minister has suspended Parliament until late March and said he will stay on until the party can appoint his replacement.Elected Conservative Party leader in 2022, experts say the longtime politician’s rise signals the rightward shift of Canada’s main opposition party and its embrace of right-wing, populist discourse.
First elected to the House of Commons in 2004, Poilievre has represented Ottawa-area electoral districts ever since.
He held the democratic reform, and employment and social development portfolios in the cabinet of longtime Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper, who was in government from 2006 until the party lost to Trudeau’s Liberals in 2015.
Poilievre has spent the last two years hitting out at Trudeau over everything from rising grocery costs to Canada’s international reputation. He regularly attacks journalists and perceived critics, and has been compared to US President-elect Trump.
“Mr Poilievre portrays himself as this macho, alpha kind of guy — very much fitting the manly, macho attitude of the Trump administration and the MAGA movement.”
Trump again says Canada should become 51st US state
Trump has again floated Canada becoming the “51st state”, claiming the northern neighbour can no longer “stay afloat” on its own.
“Justin Trudeau knew this, and resigned,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“If Canada merged with the US, there would be no Tariffs, taxes would go way down, and they would be TOTALLY SECURE from the threat of the Russian and Chinese Ships that are constantly surrounding them,” Trump added.
While Trump said “many” in Canada would be in favour of such a merger, polls show paltry support. A December survey by Leger Marketing, a Canadian polling firm, found just 13 percent of Canadians support the idea, with 82 percent saying they don’t like it.
However, Conservatives and supporters of the far-right People’s Party were most in favour of a merger.
Freeland, whose resignation spelled trouble for Trudeau, wishes him well
In a post on X, the former finance minister has thanked Trudeau “for his years of service to Canada and Canadians”.
Chrystia Freeland, who resigned last month, added: “I wish him and his family the very best.”
Long considered one of Trudeau’s most loyal ministers, Freeland made a decision to step down that underscored deep discontent within the Liberal Party over Trudeau’s leadership.
In her resignation letter, Freeland said she had disagreed with Trudeau over a two-month sales tax holiday and other measures she said Canada could not afford in the face of possible US tariffs once President-elect Donald Trump takes office.
With the threat of those tariffs looming, she said Canada’s government should be “keeping our fiscal powder dry” and warned against “costly political gimmicks”.
Provincial leaders, some of Trudeau’s top critics, react to resignation
Canada’s provincial premiers – many of whom have sparred with Trudeau over his handling of the climate crisis, migration and the economy – have been reacting following the prime minister’s resignation announcement.
Alberta’s right-wing Premier Danielle Smith hammered Trudeau for his decision to suspend Parliament.
The Liberals “are putting their selfish political interests ahead of the Canadian people by paralyzing Parliament and suspending democracy for months while they fight a divisive internal leadership contest”, Smith wrote on X.
“It is one of the most irresponsible and selfish acts of a government in Canadian history.”
Ontario Premier Doug Ford – who in recent weeks has led a push to get Canada to do more in response to US President-elect Donald Trump’s tariffs threat – has not commented directly on Trudeau’s announcement.
Instead, he posted on X that “the federal government needs to do everything humanly possible” to avoid possible US tariffs.
For his part, Francois Legault, the right-wing premier of Quebec, who also has criticised Trudeau over his handling of the US-Canada border and possible American tariffs, thanked the prime minister for his public service.
Possible replacements praise Trudeau
Two Liberal Party members considered top contenders to take over the leadership role have taken to X to praise Trudeau.
Francois-Philippe Champagne, Canada’s minister of innovation, science and industry, wrote: “We should be thankful for Justin Trudeau’s dedication & service to our country for so many years.”
“From helping Canadians in times of need to reshaping our country’s industrial landscape & seizing generational opportunities, Canada can look forward to the future with confidence,” he wrote.
Mark Carney, the former governor of the Bank of England and the Bank of Canada, added: “Thank you Prime Minister for your leadership, for your many contributions to Canada, and for the sacrifices you and your family have made for public service”.
