Canada’s next prime minister Mark Carney says transition will be quick after meeting with Trudeau
TORONTO (AP) — Canada’s next prime minister met with outgoing prime minister Justin Trudeau on Monday and vowed a quick transition.
Mark Carney said he had a long meeting with Trudeau in which they discussed U.S.-Canada relations, national security issues and when the hand over in power will take place.
“That transition will be seamless and it will be quick,” said Carney, adding there would be an announcement soon.
Carney, a two-time central bank chief, will become prime minister after the governing Liberal Party elected him its leader Sunday in a landslide vote with 85.9% support.
Carney, 59, replaces Trudeau who announced his resignation in January but remains prime minister until his successor is sworn in in the coming days. Carney is widely expected to trigger an election in the coming days or weeks amid U.S. President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariff and annexation threats.
Carney navigated crises when he was the head of the Bank of Canada from 2008, and then in 2013 when he became the first noncitizen to run the Bank of England since it was founded in 1694. His appointment won bipartisan praise in the U.K. after Canada recovered from the 2008 financial crisis faster than many other countries. He helped managed the worst impacts of Brexit in the U.K.
The opposition Conservatives hoped to make the election about Trudeau, whose popularity declined as food and housing prices rose and immigration surged.
Trump’s trade war and his talk of making Canada the 51st U.S. state have have infuriated Canadians, who are booing the American anthem at NHL and NBA games. Some are canceling trips south of the border, and many are avoiding buying American goods when they can.
The surge in Canadian nationalism has bolstered the Liberal Party’s chances in a parliamentary election expected within days or weeks, and Liberal showings have been improving in opinion polls.
“There is tremendous energy in the Liberal caucus,” Carney said. “This is a united party full of energy.”
Trump has postponed 25% tariffs on many goods from Canada and Mexico for a month, amid widespread fears of a broader trade war. But he has threatened other tariffs on steel, aluminum, dairy and other products.
Carney said Sunday night that Canada will keep its initial retaliatory tariffs in place until “the Americans show us respect.”
Carney repeatedly bought up the the threat of the Americans after winning Sunday evening. Carney said they didn’t start the fight but said Canada will win.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford, the leader of Canada’s most populous province, announced that effective Monday it is charging 25% more for electricity to 1.5 million Americans in response to Trump’s trade war. Ontario provides electricity to Minnesota, New York and Michigan.
The new surcharge is in addition to the federal government’s initial CA$30 billion ($21 billion) worth of retaliatory tariffs have been applied on items like American orange juice, peanut butter, coffee, appliances, footwear, cosmetics, motorcycles and certain pulp and paper products.
Trudeau previously offered to make Carney finance minister. Former Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper named Carney the head of Canada’s central bank. And Carney has said Harper later offered to make him finance minister.
Either Carney will call an election in the coming days or weeks, or the opposition parties in Parliament could force one with a no-confidence vote later this month.