(AFP) – Former central banker Mark Carney will be sworn in as Canada’s next prime minister on Friday with the country rattled by a breakdown in relations with the United States. He succeeds Justin Trudeau, who announced his resignation in January after nearly a decade in power and following dwindling support over the past year.
The ruling Liberal Party overwhelmingly backed Carney to replace Trudeau, hoping the technocrat’s experiences, leading two central banks through historic crises, will reassure a population facing a potentially devastating trade war. The swearing-in ceremony will take place at 11:00 am (1500 GMT) in Ottawa and will be administered by the governor general, a representative of King Charles III.
A political novice at age 59, who has never been elected to public office, Carney has promised a “seamless and quick” transition. However, he steps into office as US President Donald Trump imposes sweeping import tariffs and repeatedly taunts to annex the country as the 51st state of the United States.
“So the Americans, they should make no mistake, in trade as in hockey, Canada will win,” he said in his acceptance speech for the Liberal Party leadership last week. “Canada never ever will be part of America in any way, shape or form,” he stated, striking a defiant tone towards the United States. “That is never going to happen,” he added.
He said on Wednesday that he was “ready to sit down” with Trump to negotiate a renewed trade accord in a bid to avoid further economic tussling. A 25 percent levy on steel and aluminum imports into the United States took effect this week, prompting Canada to retaliate with tariffs on US goods.
Carney was an investment banker at Goldman Sachs before serving as governor of both the Bank of Canada, during the 2008-2009 financial crisis, and the Bank of England through the uncertainty surrounding the Brexit vote. He has sought to present himself as purpose-built to lead a country rocked by a trade war with a southern neighbor, a country Carney states Canada can “no longer trust.”
However, he may not have the job for long. Canada must hold elections by October but could well see a snap poll within weeks. Current opinion polls have the opposition Conservatives as slight favorites. The threats posed by Trump are sure to dominate the campaign. Trump’s tariff wars have targeted Canada, Mexico, and China over allegations they are not doing enough to curtail fentanyl smuggling or illegal immigration into the United States, even if in the case of Canada, the border sees negligible smuggling.
© 2024 AFP
