The Liberals are preparing for a possible early election call, sending out an email inviting those involved in the campaign to take part in a ‘campaign strategy and tools’ session next week
OTTAWA — Liberal leadership candidate Mark Carney signaled Thursday he is willing to go to a general election before returning to Parliament at the end of March, should he win the party’s leadership contest.
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Liberals will pick their new leader on March 9. The five candidates have to clear a final $125,000 fundraising hurdle by next Monday, with two debates set for the end of February.
Speaking to reporters in Vancouver, Carney, the race’s presumed front-runner, says he would not commit himself to deciding now about whether to have Parliament recalled, suggesting he may see a need to ask voters for a mandate.
“It’s a very fluid situation. The discussions with the Americans, the demands of the Americans, at least of the president changed on an almost daily basis, as do the timelines,” Carney said of the tariff threat facing Canadians, adding he believes it is best to evaluate he situation come mid-March.
“If Parliament need to be recalled for certain reasons, it will be,” he said. “If it makes sense to get a strong mandate at that point, that is what will follow.|
Recent public opinion polls that show the Liberals experiencing an upswing have raised expectations among federal parties that a spring election could come sooner than expected.
On Wednesday, the NDP’s national campaign director sent a memo calling on candidates and their campaign staff to prepare for an early election.
“It is becoming more and more likely that Mark Carney will be the next Liberal leader on March 9,” Jennifer Howard wrote in an email, obtained by National Post.
She went on reiterate the NDP’s call for Parliament to be recalled, which Opposition Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has also demanded. NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has said he would be open to working with the Liberals to pass a support package for workers who could be impacted by U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat of 25 per cent tariffs on all Canadian imports.
“Nonetheless, Parliament stands prorogued, and no Liberal leadership candidate — including Mr. Carney — has reached out to any Opposition leaders to discuss emergency legislation coming to Parliament to deal with Donald Trump’s trade war and the impact on Canadians.”
“On that basis, we believe the rumours of Mark Carney calling a snap election are credible. Taking a page from Doug Ford’s playbook, the Liberals believe that they can turn this crisis into a political benefit. For that reason, I am asking all campaigns to be prepared for an election call to come as early as March 10.”
The Liberals themselves are preparing for an election call, sending out an email inviting those involved in the campaign to take part in a session on “campaign strategy and tools,” scheduled for next week.
Carney has spent he past few weeks crossing the country, meeting Liberals and pitching himself as not only the leader that the party needs, but Canadians require in a time of economic uncertainty.
The two-time former central bank governor spoke to a crowd in Kelowna, B.C. on Wednesday where he laid out more of his economic vision.
That included a timeline for when a possible Carney-led Liberal government would seek to balance the federal budget.
“We need a government that spends less, but gets the country to invest more,” Carney told the crowd.
“So my government will balance the spending budget within the first three years,” adding he would also offer a “middle class tax cut.”
The federal government is looking at a $62-billion deficit, according to the fall economic statement unveiled at the end of last year.
That was considerably higher than the $40-billion projected deficit former finance minister Chrystia Freeland presented in last spring’s budget.
Carney’s campaign has not yet responded to queries about how it would approach balancing the budget.
Poilievre, who would be Carney’s main rival should he win the Liberal leadership, has not yet offered a timeline for when he would bring the government’s finances into balance. A response from his office was not been returned. One of his main points of attack against the Liberals has been on government spending.
Carney also pledged on Wednesday that he would take steps to try and wean Canada off its reliance on the U.S., as one way to guard itself against a hostile American administration.
One way premiers and other political leaders have suggested doing so is through bolstering Canada’s energy infrastructure, such as build more pipelines.
“Something my government’s going to do is use all the powers of the federal government, including the emergency powers of the federal government to accelerate the major projects that we need.”
Carney’s campaign has not yet responded to questions about additional details.
National Post
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