Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - January 8, 2025, Winnipeg, Manitoba A4 ● WINNIPEGFREEPRESS.COM O TTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Monday he will resign as prime minister and Liberal leader once the party chooses a successor. Trudeau, who was first elected Oct. 19, 2015, steps down after nearly a decade in power. Here are the key pieces of his political legacy. Legalizing pot On Oct. 17, 2018, cannabis became legal in Canada. Legalization sparked a new industry, with a domestic rec- reational market now valued in the bil- lions. Cannabis legalization was one of the campaign promises Trudeau made in the 2015 election that saw him win a landslide majority government. Andrew McDougall, an assistant pro- fessor in the department of political sci- ence at the University of Toronto, said cannabis legalization was “a political debate in Canada literally for decades.” “While I think people are still fight- ing about the public health implications of that,” legalization is “here to stay,” he said. “I think most people would point to that as being a success of the Trudeau government, something he promised to do, and it was a promise that he kept.” Reneging on electoral reform One key early pledge Trudeau did not keep was bringing about electoral reform. Speaking to reporters after his resignation, Trudeau said if he had one regret about his time in office, it would be reneging on that promise. In 2015, Trudeau said that if he was elected, the federal election held that year would be the last to use the first- past-the-post method. “I do wish that we had been able to change the way we elect our govern- ments in this country, so that people could simply choose a second choice or a third choice on the same ballot,” he said Monday. He said that would have resulted in people “looking for things they have in common instead of try- ing to polarize and divide Canadians against each other.” But Trudeau said it was something he “could not change unilaterally without support of other parties.” Jennifer Wallner, an assistant profes- sor in the school of political studies at the University of Ottawa, said Trudeau had a majority government in his first mandate and could have made it happen. “There would have been ways of do- ing it, and he certainly didn’t need all parties to be supporting it.” Reconciliation When it comes to Trudeau’s record on reconciliation, Wallner said “there’s no denying that this government has been oriented, at least symbolically, to trans- forming the relationship” with Indigen- ous Peoples. McDougall said Trudeau did his “best to associate the Liberal party with rec- onciliation in a way that maybe it hadn’t been before.” Assembly of First Nations National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak point- ed to a historic $23-billion settlement for First Nations children harmed by the child welfare system, Trudeau’s work to end long-term boil water advis- ories in First Nations communities and the advancement of Indigenous rights on the world stage. She said during his time in power, Trudeau has “done more to help im- prove the quality of life for First Na- tions than any other prime minister.” “While many generational and rights challenges remain unsolved, the prime minister has been an ally for meaning- ful reconciliation and set a new standard for future prime ministers to exceed.” Woodhouse Nepinak said that by the time Trudeau came in, First Nations hadn’t been “talked to for over a dec- ade” under the government of Conserv- ative prime minister Stephen Harper. Canada child benefit In 2016, the Liberals launched the Canada Child Benefit to replace Harp- er’s Universal Child Care Benefit. The new benefit was not taxable and is de- pendent on family income. Marking the seven-year anniversary of its launch in 2023, Trudeau said the program reduced poverty across the country. In 2021, 7.4 per cent of Can- adians lived in poverty, down from 12.9 per cent in 2016 when the benefit came into place. Jennifer Robson, an associate profes- sor of political management at Carleton University, told The Canadian Press at the time that it’s hard to prove that the benefit is fully responsible for the re- duction of poverty in the country. But she said a look at the data shows child poverty rates declined more sharply after it came into place, while the “intensity” of poverty was also re- duced. Carbon price In 2018, Trudeau’s government introduced the Greenhouse Gas Pol- lution Pricing Act, which imposed a revenue-neutral price on carbon for provinces that don’t already have one. A carbon price makes it more expen- sive to burn fossil fuels, which produce the greenhouse gases that cause global warming. The government put in place rebates designed to encourage people to save money by curbing their fossil fuel use without penalizing those who don’t. But the carbon price has become the centrepiece of Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre’s attacks on Trudeau’s government, under Poilievre’s “axe the tax” rallying cry. “Fighting climate change … and the environment generally was central to the Trudeau brand, and that made sense coming in against the backdrop of Stephen Harper,” said McDougall. Carbon pricing was central to Tru- deau’s agenda, McDougall said, noting “the extent to which this has actual- ly been turned on him in the last two years or so.” What was supposed to be a central legacy for Trudeau is “now being used very powerfully against him.” That means it will take more time to determine the ultimate effects of the carbon price on Trudeau’s legacy, he said. COVID — and backlash After the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a global pandemic in March 2020, Trudeau responded with a $1-billion package, including support for surge capacity at provin- cial hospitals. There was also billions in domestic aid to help workers who were laid off and businesses that tried to stay afloat through closures. The government also introduced vac- cine mandates, requiring COVID-19 vaccines for public servants and train and air travellers, as well as require- ments for Canadian truck drivers to be vaccinated. In response, the self-styled “Freedom Convoy” protesters rolled into Ottawa in January 2022, in a massive, three- week demonstration against COVID-19 mandates and Trudeau’s government. The crowds, big-rig trucks and police barriers gridlocked the streets around Parliament Hill, and many of the pro- testers carried flags and signs with ex- pletives directed at the prime minister. Wallner said COVID enabled a “real buildup of resentment and outright an- ger toward the government.” McDougall said Trudeau was cred- ited for handling the pandemic well at the beginning, which is one of the rea- sons Trudeau opted to trigger an elec- tion in 2021. He was re-elected with a minority government. “He felt he would get rewarded for that,” McDougall said. “But obviously not all Canadians were on the same page with some of the restrictions.” NAFTA A big challenge of Trudeau’s time in government was how to handle U.S. President Donald Trump’s first term. Trudeau’s government renegotiated the North American Free Trade Agree- ment, an effort in which Chrystia Free- land played a significant role. It was Freeland’s surprise resigna- tion as finance minister on Dec. 16 that intensified calls for Trudeau to resign, leading to Monday’s announcement. McDougall said there were initial fears that Trump would “sink that agreement altogether and that would have obviously had a very negative im- pact on the Canadian economy.” He said “most people perceived the way that (Trudeau) managed the first Trump administration as being basic- ally a success for Canada, given that it was in a tough situation.” Trump’s second term in office is set to begin Jan. 20. — The Canadian Press NEWS I TOP NEWS WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 8, 2025 SEAN KILPATRICK / THE CANADIAN PRESS Any goodwill Prime Minister Justin Trudeau built during his early days in office was washed away by reaction to the carbon tax and COVID. Key steps forward, and missteps, across nearly a decade as PM ANJA KARADEGLIJA Trudeau’s political legacy Liberal party starts process to select new leader OTTAWA — As the Liberal party be- gins charting a course for an expedited race to replace Justin Trudeau, some former party advisers are split on just how swift that race should be, and who exactly should pick the next leader. Some are also warning about the po- tential for bad actors to try and influ- ence the outcome or take over the party. Trudeau said Monday he will step aside as soon as a new leader is chosen, capitulating to the growing number of voices in his own caucus who no longer think he is the best person to lead them into the next campaign. Party officials are expected to meet this week to work out the ground rules for the leadership race, which will in- clude everything from the race’s time- line to financial provisions. Gov. Gen. Mary Simon did agree Mon- day to prorogue Parliament until March 24. Trudeau himself said Monday he anticipates an immediate series of con- fidence votes on government spending, which have to happen before the end of March. With leaders of the main oppos- ition parties all saying they will bring down the government the next chance they get, a new leader could have very little time to lead before the govern- ment falls and an election begins. Zita Astravas, vice-president at Wel- lington Advocacy and a former adviser to Trudeau, said those intending to run should reveal themselves fairly quickly. “They don’t have the luxury of time to really kick the tires for weeks on end for those who haven’t started already,” she said. “The phones are pretty busy of Lib- erals calling other Liberals. Either en- couraging certain individuals to run, or they’re soliciting support from others.” Charles Bird, a principal at Earnsc- liffe Strategies and former adviser to several Liberal cabinet ministers, said a quick race leaves less time for party members to get to know the candidates. He said a longer race is needed to give leadership contenders enough time to become better known among registered Liberals and party activists. “Can we do a full-blown leadership contest with registered Liberals voting within 41 days? I think that’s a fairly tall order,” Bird said. He said having an extended leadership race presents its own set of challenges. “One of the key concerns that is out there is that the party could be prone to something approaching a takeover, or could be prone to a lot of people who don’t give a hoot about the Liberal party who might be termed single-in- terest activists signing up and having a very real impact on the selection of our next leader,” he said. The party’s constitution says anyone who has been a registered Liberal for 41 days prior to the leadership vote can cast a ballot. The provisions don’t require vot- ing members be Canadian citizens, but they must reside regularly in Canada. “You don’t have to go much further than the politics of the Middle East and the kinds of demonstrations we’ve seen in large urban centres to wonder if an organized effort on the part of these kinds of activists could actually make a serious dent in the Liberal leadership process,” Bird said. Asked if the party is in trouble, Bird said that would be an understatement. “I think the timing of the prime min- ister’s resignation presents a host of problems for the party and Justin Tru- deau’s successor as Liberal leader,” he said. “None of it bodes terribly well, and it’s left a lot of Liberals wishing the prime minister had made this move six months ago or a year ago.” Eddie Goldenberg, who was former prime minister Jean Chrétien’s chief of staff, said he also would like to see an accelerated leadership selection. But rather than holding a national race to choose the next leader — and prime minister, until the next election — Goldenberg said the next leader should be chosen by the caucus. He said the party executive should only be asking what it can do to ensure the new leader is in the best position to win the next election. “My own belief is that the faster they put a new prime minister in place, the better the chances of winning the next election,” Goldenberg said. He said the party should find a way within its constitution to do it, rather than seeking what he called “constitu- tional purity.” “If the new leader wins the election, nobody is going to say, ‘Well, you know, (the constitution) wasn’t followed to the letter,’” he said. “And if they lose the election, nobody is going to say, ‘Oh, if you know, you did a great job. You fol- lowed the constitution to the letter.’ “It would be a bit like the doctor say- ing that your operation was a complete success, except that the patient died. So you don’t want the patient to die. So do what you can to make sure that the pa- tient survives and flourishes.” — The Canadian Press Biden praises Trudeau as friend but other leaders mum on resignation OTTAWA — U.S. President Joe Biden praised Justin Trudeau as a friend and ally Tuesday, making him one of a handful of world leaders weighing in on the prime minister’s plan to resign his post later this year. The muted response from world lead- ers comes despite Trudeau’s efforts to emphasize international connections over his nine years in office. Some ana- lysts suggest those efforts were not al- ways well received. Trudeau announced Monday he will retire as prime minister as soon as a new Liberal leader is chosen. Biden said he spoke with Trudeau not long af- ter that announcement. “Over the last decade, Prime Minis- ter Trudeau has led with commitment, optimism, and strategic vision,” Biden said in a written statement. “The U.S.-Canada alliance is strong- er because of him. The American and Canadian people are safer because of him. And the world is better off be- cause of him,” wrote the president. The small number of foreign officials who publicly noted Trudeau’s pending departure include Ireland’s foreign min- ister Micheál Martin, who thanked Tru- deau for his “significant contribution to the global stage,” and Japanese foreign minister Takeshi Iwaya, who thanked Trudeau for his work with the G7. “He has made tremendous efforts, and I’d like to extend my heartfelt re- spect,” the ministry’s English inter- preter translated Iwaya as saying dur- ing a news conference Tuesday. “Japan and Canada are important strategic partners in the Indo-Pacific re- gion,” he said, adding the G7 is critical to maintaining an international rules-based order facing numerous challenges. The British embassy in Ottawa pro- vided a statement Tuesday attributed to a spokesperson for U.K. Prime Min- ister Keir Starmer. “The Prime Minister has always worked closely with the Canadian PM and wishes him well for the future,” the statement reads. “Canada and the U.K. have a historic, close relationship and that will continue to grow.” The German embassy in Ottawa con- firmed that the German government has offered no comment on Trudeau’s resignation, which occurred during that country’s ongoing election. The Canadian Press asked diplomatic missions for the other G7 members — France, Italy and the European Union — for comment Tuesday but has not re- ceived responses. Beijing, New Delhi and Moscow had not commented on Trudeau’s departure as of Tuesday afternoon. Stephen Nagy, a senior fellow with the Asia-Pacific Foundation based in Tokyo, said Trudeau’s “evangelistic” focus on progressive politics strained international relations, although some of his policy choices resonated. “We’re probably worse off, in terms of our Canadian footprint within the re- gion,” he said. Nagy said most Asian countries were pleased with the Indo-Pacific strategy the Liberals released in late 2022 be- cause it allocated significant funds to bolster projects to detect illegal fishing and monitor North Korea’s sanctions evasion. Canada recently signed a free-trade deal with Indonesia that has vast po- tential for both countries, despite being “very late to the game” in boosting ties with Southeast Asia, Nagy said. Nagy said many conservative coun- tries “superficially welcomed” Canada’s championing of gender equality and de- mands it be part of trade agreements. “Whether we like it or not, almost all of these countries in the region are run by men that dye their hair dark,” he said. Canada shifted its attention to Japan only when relations with China soured, Nagy said. He called that “a bit insult- ing,” even if Tokyo is glad to partner on supply chains, international develop- ment and the environment. He said Japan and South Korea want Canada to push back more on Russia’s co-ordina- tion with North Korea and China. In Europe, Trudeau took office with “immense” popularity and high expect- ations, which he met at the start before later falling short, said Marcin Gabrys, chair of Canadian Studies at Jagiello- nian University in Krakow. “Trudeau’s leadership, and Canada’s leadership in general, has been per- ceived as weakened over the years,” he said. “Canada under Trudeau set many goals, but in reality never fulfilled them.” Europeans praised Trudeau for re- versing the Conservatives’ move away from international climate-change ac- cords, and for doubling down on multi- lateralism, refugee protection and hu- man rights. Gabrys said Trudeau remains an icon across Europe for both liberals and conservatives. Europeans welcomed Canada’s NATO deployment in Latvia, despite it falling short of spending targets. Canada’s em- bassy in Warsaw gained prominence in Poland for helping resettle displaced Ukrainians and for supporting Belarus’ opposition movement. But as time went on, Trudeau was un- able to deliver liquefied natural gas to European countries that sought alterna- tives to Russian energy. Canada also failed to make as much progress on cli- mate as many European leaders hoped. “European leaders expected more sup- port, and I think that would’ve helped the image of Canada on the path to transition from fossil fuels to a green economy,” said Gabrys. “That’s something, I think, from a European perspective, could be considered as Trudeau’s failure.” — The Canadian Press DYLAN ROBERTSON NICK MURRAY ;