Justin Trudeau has said he will step downas Canada’s prime minister after his party has finds a new leader, a decision that in effect brings an end to nearly a decade in power.
Here’s a recap of today’s developments:
Trudeau said he will stay on as prime minister until a new leader of the ruling Liberal party is chosen through a “robust, nationwide” process.
Trudeau said Canadians “deserve a clear choice in the next election”, adding that party infighting had made it impossible for him to face off against his political rivals.
Parliament had been due to resume on 27 January and opposition parties had vowed to bring down the government as soon as they could. Trudeau has announced that parliament will be now prorogued until 24 March.
The Liberal party president, Sachit Mehra, said he will convene a meeting of the National Board this week to select a new leader of the party.
Trudeau’s announcement throws open the doors to a fierce political battle to be Canada’s next leader. Polls show the Liberals losing badly to the opposition Conservatives in an election that must be held by late October.
Potential successors to Trudeau as the Liberal leader responded to his resignation. Mark Carney, previously head of both the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England, thanked Trudeau for his leadership. Christy Clark, a former premier of British Columbia, also thanked him for his service.
Pierre Poilievre, leader of the official opposition Conservative party, said “nothing has changed” following the announcement. In his resignation speech, Trudeau warned that Poilievre’s vision for Canada “is not the right one for Canadians.”
Other Canadian opposition party leaders also responded to the news. Jagmeet Singh, leader of the New Democratic party, said the Liberals “do not deserve another chance, no matter who is the leader.” Yves-François Blanche, leader of the Bloc Quebecois, called for a general election to be held as soon as possible.
US president-elect Donald Trump suggested Canada should become America’s “51st state”, writing on Truth Social that if Canada merged with the US that taxes would decrease and that there would be no tariffs. Canadian officials increasingly fear US tariffs will devastate the Canadian economy and a prorogued parliament is unlikely to ease these fears.
Jagmeet Singh, the leader of the New Democratic party whose support helped to keep Justin Trudeau in office, has been speaking to reporters.
Trudeau and the Liberal party have “let down Canadians”, Singh said.
It doesn’t matter who the next Liberal leader is. They have let you down. They do not deserve another chance.
He added that “as soon as there is a confidence vote, we will be voting against the government.”
As we reported earlier, Singh has issued a statement urging voters to back his party and warning that Canadians will “pay the price of [Conservative leader Pierre] Poilievre’s cuts.”
Trump says Canada should become America's '51st state'
President-elect Donald Trump has reacted to Justin Trudeau’s announcement by suggesting that Canada should become the US’s “51st state”.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump claimed Trudeau resigned because Canada relies on subsidies from the US to stay afloat. He wrote:
If Canada merged with the U.S., there would be no Tariffs, taxes would go way down, and they would be TOTALLY SECURE from the threat of the Russian and Chinese Ships that are constantly surrounding them. Together, what a great Nation it would be!!!
Process of selecting Trudeau's successor to begin this week
Sachit Mehra, the president of the Liberal party, said its national board will meet this week to begin the process of selecting a new party leader to succeed Justin Trudeau.
In a statement on X, Mehra said Liberals across the country are “immensely grateful” to Trudeau for more than a decade of leadership.
Trudeau “rebuilt our Party, making it the most open and inclusive moment in Canadian politics,” he wrote, adding:
We thank him for his service to Canada, and we look forward to his continued leadership until a new leader is chosen.
Yves-François Blanchet, the leader of the Bloc Québécois, has called for a general election to be held directly after the Liberals pick a successor to Justin Trudeau.
Blanchet, in a press conference after Trudeau’s announcement, said:
There is no viable reason for this government to stay in power any longer than the minimum necessary to designate a new leader. I don’t see any other scenarios.
He praised Trudeau for stepping down and said he hoped the prime minister will have “many years of happiness and serenity”.
Analysis: Trudeau promised ‘sunny ways’ but could not fulfil his lofty ambitions
He swept into parliament at the helm of surprise majority, promising change, hope and “sunny ways” as he charmed Canadians and much of the world with a brand that sought to embrace feminism, welcome refugees and reset Canada’s relationship with Indigenous peoples.
Nearly 10 years later, however, Justin Trudeau’s political career has come to a halt, with the 53-year-old on Monday announcing his decision to step down.
In the end, Trudeau’s boyish charisma was not enough to reassure Canadians facing enormous jumps in housing prices, rocketing groceries inflation and the prospect of huge tariffs imposed by the country’s main trading partner, the US.
The decision capped off a stunning, years-long turn of fortune for Trudeau, a former high school teacher and the eldest son of Pierre Trudeau, one of Canada’s best-known prime ministers. For months he had fended off calls to resign, insisting he would stay on even as a swelling chorus of his own party members urged him to go and after Chrystia Freeland, one of his most powerful and loyal ministers, delivered a scathing blow as she announced her own resignation.
The swirling questions over Trudeau’s resignation sharpened after Jagmeet Singh, the leader of the New Democratic party (NDP), recently vowed to present a parliamentary motion to topple Trudeau’s government.
The long, drawn-out end was a sharp contrast to his meteoric rise; in 2015, after catapulting his party from third in the polls to a first-place finish, he became the country’s prime minister, making headlines around the world as he ushered in the country’s first gender-balanced cabinet with the pithy line: “Because it’s 2015.”
Chrystia Freeland, whose dramatic resignation as Justin Trudeau’s deputy prime minister and minister of finance last month thrust the party into tumult, has posted on X after Trudeau’s press conference. Freeland wrote:
I thank Justin Trudeau for his years of service to Canada and Canadians. I wish him and his family the very best.
Former Minister of Finance and Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland at a press conference in Ottawa, Ontario, 19 November, 2024. Photograph: Patrick Doyle/AP
Jean-Yves Duclos, minister of public services and procurement, said Justin Trudeau will leave a “lasting positive legacy” for Canadians.
In a statement posted on X, Duclos thanked the prime minister for his service and for “everything he has done to improve the quality of life of Canadians and make our country a better place to live.”
He says under Trudeau’s leadership, Canada has “moved forward on reconciliation, fighting climate change, tackling the housing crisis and building a brighter future”.
Jagmeet Singh, the leader of the New Democratic party, said Justin Trudeau has let Canadians down, “over and over”.
Trudeau “let you down on the cost of housing and groceries” and “on fixing health care,” Singh said in a statement posted on X.
It doesn’t matter who leads the Liberals. They don’t deserve another chance.
He says the Conservative party is “jumping at the opportunity to take from you and give more to CEOs”, adding that Canadians will “pay the price of [Conservative leader Pierre] Poilievre’s cuts.”
If you oppose callous Conservative cuts; if you oppose the rich getting richer while everyone else falls further behind – stand with the NDP this time.
You can have a government that works for you for a change.
Canada's New Democratic Party leader Jagmeet Singh in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada 15 October 2024. Photograph: Blair Gable/Reuters
Opposition leader Pierre Poilievre says 'nothing has changed'
Pierre Poilievre, the leader of the Conservative party, said “nothing has changed” after Justin Trudeau’s announcement that he plans to step down as leader of the Liberal party.
Every Liberal MP and Leadership contender supported EVERYTHING Trudeau did for 9 years, and now they want to trick voters by swapping in another Liberal face to keep ripping off Canadians for another 4 years, just like Justin.
He says the only way to “fix what Liberals broke” is a carbon tax election to elect Conservatives “who will bring home Canada’s promise”.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre at a news conference in Ottawa on 20 December 2024. Photograph: Canadian Press/REX/Shutterstock
Chrystia Freeland, the former deputy prime minister of Canada, in November 2024. Photograph: Patrick Doyle/AP
After a lifetime of public service Justin Trudeau has stepped aside as both Leader of the Liberal Party and Prime Minister of Canada. I want to thank him as a Canadian for his service to the country that he so clearly loves. I wish him and his family well.
As a lifelong Liberal I look forward to joining tens of thousands of Canadians to choose our next Leader. This is the biggest opportunity in over a decade that we’ve had to grow our Party and welcome new Liberals - including Canadians concerned about the future of our country - let’s seize it!
Clark, who served as premier from 2011-17, has previously suggested she would be interested in running for Liberal leader if Trudeau stepped down.
Mark Carney, the former governor of the Bank of Canada, has posted to X thanking Justin Trudeau for his leadership. He wrote:
Thank you Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for your leadership, for your many contributions to Canada, and for the sacrifices you and your family have made for public service.
Wishing you the best for your next chapters.
Carney is reportedly considering running in the Liberal party leadership race.
He served as the governor of the Bank of Canada from 2008 to 2013 and the governor of the Bank of England from 2013 to 2020.
Asked why he is not calling an election, Trudeau says parliament has been “seized by obstruction, filibustering and a total lack of productivity” for the past several months.
“It’s time for a reset,” he says.
It’s time for the temperature to come down, for the people to have a fresh start in parliament, to be able to navigate through these complex times.
He says that reset comes in two parts – the first is the prorogation of parliament, the other is recognising that removing him as the Liberal leader should “decrease the level of polarisation” in the House and in Canadian politics.
Trudeau: Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre's vision 'not the right one for Canadians'
Trudeau says the Conservative leader, Pierre Poilievre, is not the right vision for Canadians.
“Stopping the fight against climate change doesn’t make sense,” he tells reporters, adding that “attacking journalists” is “not what Canadians need in this moment”. He says:
We need an ambitious, optimistic view of the future, and Pierre Poilievre is not offering that.
Trudeau says he looks forward to the fight as progressives “stand up” for a vision for a better country “despite the tremendous pressures around the world to think smaller”.
Trudeau says that his former deputy prime minister and finance minister, Chrystia Freeland, had been at his side for nearly 10 years and has been an “incredible” political partner.
He says he had hoped that Freeland would have continued in her roles “but she chose otherwise”. Trudeau adds:
In regards to what actually happened, I am not someone who’s in the habit of sharing private conversations.
Freeland stepped down in December after clashing with Trudeau on issues including how to handle possible US tariffs.
