Canada’s Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland announced on Monday that she is leaving her job and resigning from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Cabinet.
She said she differed with Trudeau on choosing the best path for the country on how to deal with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s threats of tariffs against Canadian goods.
“Our country faces a grave challenge today,” Freeland said in her resignation letter to Trudeau, pointing to Trump’s planned 25% tariffs on imports from Canada.
“For the past several weeks, you and I have been at odds about the best path forward for Canada,” he said.
What caused the conflict between Trudeau and Freeland?
Freeland and Trudeau have clashed in recent weeks.
The Trudeau government recently announced plans to temporarily remove federal sales tax on many items and send checks to millions of Canadians who are struggling with rising costs and the threat of a federal election.
As Canada prepares for a transition to deal with the threats of higher tariffs, the country must avoid “costly political maneuvers” it cannot afford, the former minister wrote in his letter.
Trudeau named long-time ally Dominic LeBlanc as the next finance minister of the minority Liberal government.
The political earthquake that rocked the country also came on the same day as the government announced its downbeat economic report – a deficit of 62 billion Canadian dollars (€41.4 billion), nearly 22 billion Canadian dollars more than expected.
What does Freeland’s exit mean for the government?
Trudeau’s ruling Liberals need the support of at least one other major party in Parliament, as they do not have an outright majority.
Opposition New Democratic Party (NDP) leader Jagmeet Singh demanded Trudeau’s resignation early Monday.
The federal election must be held before October, but could be called at any time if the NDP withdraws its support.
Trudeau flew to Florida last month to dine with Trump at his Mar-a-Lago resort in an effort to head off the threat of tariffs, but there’s nothing so far to suggest the US president- The polls may be changing their minds.
Canada’s top trading partner is the United States – 75% of Canada’s exports go to its southern neighbor each year.
dh/rm (AP, AFP, Reuters)
