Chaos right now up in Ottawa, says Ontario Premier Ford

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FILE PHOTO: Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland arrive to pose for a picture holding the 2024-25 budget, on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, April 16, 2024. REUTERS/Patrick Doyle/File Photo · Reuters / Reuters

Chrystia Freeland resigned as Minister of Finance on Monday, hours before she was due to deliver the federal government’s latest fiscal update in the House of Commons, saying she and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau are “at odds about the best path forward for Canada.” Freeland refused an offer of another ministerial role and will leave Cabinet, but said she is committed to running in the next federal election.

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In a scathing resignation letter addressed to Trudeau and posted to X, Freeland said the Prime Minister told her on Friday that he no longer wanted her to serve as Finance Minister.

“Upon reflection, I have concluded that the only honest and viable path is for me to resign from the Cabinet,” she wrote in the letter.

“To be effective, a minister must speak on behalf of the Prime Minister and with his full confidence. In making your decision, you made clear that I no longer credibly enjoy that confidence and possess the authority that comes with it.”

Freeland said that “for the past number of weeks, you and I have found ourselves at odds about the best path forward for Canada.” She pointed to incoming U.S. President Donald Trump’s “grave threat” of a 25 per cent tariff on Canadian exports to the United States, saying that “we need to take that threat extremely seriously.”

“That means keeping our fiscal powder dry today, so we have the reserves we may need for a coming tariff war. That means eschewing costly political gimmicks, which we can ill afford and which make Canadians doubt that we recognize the gravity of the moment,” Freeland wrote.

“That means pushing back against ‘America First’ economic nationalism with a determined effort to fight for capital and investment and the jobs they bring.”

While Freeland did not specify in the resignation letter what those “costly political gimmicks” are, a GST-break went into effect on the weekend. The government has temporarily lifted the federal sales tax on a range of items, including toys, diapers, restaurant meals, beer and wine, through to Feb. 15. The Globe and Mail reported last week that tensions had risen between Freeland and the Prime Minister’s Office over spending plans. The government also planned to issue $250 rebate cheques for Canadians who worked and made less than $150,000, although the National Post reported on the weekend that Freeland planned to reverse the measure.

The estimated cost of the two measures would total $6.28 billion, according to the Department of Finance, with the GST-break costing $1.6 billion while the rebate would total $4.68 billion.

The government has not said if the fiscal update will be tabled in the House of Commons today, as planned.

Freeland, who has been Finance Minister since Aug. 2020, was a key figure for the Trudeau government through Trump’s first term in office. As Foreign Affairs Minister, she helped lead trade NAFTA trade negotiations.

“Inevitably, our time in government will come to an end. But how we deal with the threat our country currently faces will define us for a generation, and perhaps longer,” Freeland wrote in her letter.

“It is this conviction which has driven my strenuous efforts this fall to manage our spending in ways that will give us the flexibility we will need to meet the serious challenges presented by the United States.”

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Fiscal update going forward, but not clear who will table it

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While plans were thrown into chaos following Freeland’s resignation, the Liberal government will still unveil a fall economic update on Monday in the House of Commons, the Canadian Press reports.

A senior government source, who was not authorized to speak publicly about the plans, told the Canadian Press that a cabinet minister will present the update in Parliament, although it is not clear who that will be. The source noted that it does not have to be the finance minister.
Singh calls on Trudeau to resign, says ‘all options are on the table’

Federal NDP leader Jagmeet Singh joined the chorus of opposition leaders saying that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau should resign on Monday.

Singh did not say whether he would vote against the government in a confidence vote, saying instead, “all options are on the table.”
Bloc Québécois leader says Trudeau government ‘is finished’

Bloc Québécois leader Yves-François Blanchet spoke to reporters in Ottawa on Monday and said the government is “completely dysfunctional” and incapable of functioning.

“It’s very, very simple. The government of Justin Trudeau is finished. It’s over,” he said in French on Monday. He also said Trudeau should dissolve parliament and call an election now.
‘It’s chaos right now up in Ottawa’ says Ontario Premier Doug Ford

Ontario Premier Doug Ford, who has had a close relationship with Chrystia Freeland, said he spoke to her on Monday, putting her on speakerphone at the Council of the Federation meeting with the country’s premiers on Monday.

“I just wanted to thank her for her service… I want to wish her all the best,” Ford said.

“But as a country, we have to project strength and unity…. It’s chaos right now up in Ottawa. It’s time to do what we do every single day (as) premiers. We step up and we’ll make sure that we tell the world there is stability here, there is certainty here in Canada.”

Ford also said “there is no greater risk to our economy right now than the threat of U.S. tariffs.”

“We need a full Team Canada approach. That means the federal government needs to do better engaging premiers as it deals with the threat of tariffs, with regular meetings with the Prime Minister and whoever is on his team that takes a role in U.S. relations,” Ford said.
Federal fiscal update still expected today

Journalists are being let back in to view documents under embargo in Ottawa that detail the federal government’s fiscal update, in anticipation of it being tabled in the House of Commons later today.
Pressure rising among Liberal ranks

Mount Royal MP Anthony Housefather writes that he has asked the Liberal Party caucus chair to convene a national caucus meeting within the next 24 hours.
Liberal MP reveals he signed Oct. letter asking Trudeau to quit, repeats his request

Chad Collins, who represents the Ontario riding of Hamilton East–Stoney Creek, revealed today that was among 24 Liberal MPs who signed a letter to Trudeau asking him to step down in October. The letter was presented to the prime minister at a tense caucus meeting on Oct. 23, and while confirmed by media, the names on the letter were unknown at the time.

Collins has now gone public as a signatory and is repeating his demand today.
Freeland resignation ‘the latest in a series of events that add uncertainty in Canadian markets’

One economist says Freeland’s resignation “highlights the increasing uncertainty in the country’s political environment that inevitably impacts its financial outlook.”

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Tu Nguyen, an economist with assurance, tax and consultancy firm RSM Canada, noted in a statement that the Canadian dollar initially slipped on Monday and bond yields inched up following the release of Freeland’s resignation letter.

“Freeland’s resignation is the latest in a series of events that add uncertainty in Canadian markets; shortly before her announcement, Immigration Minister Sean Fraser, another high-visibility minister in the Liberal cabinet, said he would not seek re-election,” Nguyen said.

“Although the impact on the financial markets has been moderate, an event like this could contribute to Canada’s challenge to attract foreign investments in 2025, when a Trump administration comes with trade policy uncertainty with Canada.”
Poilievre suggests government table economic update, allow confidence vote

Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre, speaking at a press conference in Ottawa on Monday, said the Government of Canada is “spiralling out of control.” He suggested that the government should still table the fiscal update that was scheduled for later this afternoon, and treat it as a confidence vote of the Trudeau government.

“Trudeau should introduce the fiscal economic update this afternoon and allow for a vote this evening to allow the House of Commons to determine whether they have confidence in the government or not,” Poilievre said.

“If not, we will have an election so we can restore control of this country.”
Perrin Beatty: ‘Today’s timing couldn’t be worse’

In a post on X, the former president and CEO of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce points out that Freeland ran the Cabinet Committee on Canada-U.S. Relations and led trade negotiations last time. “The chaos in Ottawa will encourage Donald Trump to step up pressure.”
CFIB president reacts to Freeland’s resignation

Dan Kelly, president of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB), said in a statement on X that while they disagreed often, Freeland “was easily the most accessible federal or provincial Finance Minister I’ve worked with in my 30+ years CFIB career.”

“She listened carefully, challenged back and remembered my arguments from conversations months earlier. She also worked to find solutions where she could and was clear when she couldn’t,” Kelly said.

“She gave time to small business owners and participated in regular webinars with CFIB members. Unlike many in her govt, she did not get fussed or cut off access when we publicly and sharply criticized her decisions.”
Poilievre says ‘Trudeau has lost control’

Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre is holding a press conference after the surprise resignation of Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland.

“Justin Trudeau has lost control, but he is hanging on to power,” Poilievre said in French at the press conference.

“All this chaos, all this division, all this weakness is happening as our largest neighbour and closest ally is imposing 25 per cent tariffs.”
NDP leader says Freeland resignation shows government ‘obsessed with infighting’

NDP leader Jagmeet Singh said in a statement released on Monday that Freeland’s resignation “shows just how deeply this Liberal government’s members are obsessed with infighting, and ignoring the urgent challenges everyday Canadians are coping with.”

“While Trudeau obsesses over his own drama, I believe we should be focused on the cost of homes and groceries that are burning up people’s paycheques and dimming hope,” Singh said.