Canada will have a new prime minister on Friday as Liberal Leader Mark Carney is set to be sworn in.
Carney, a former Bank of Canada and Bank of England governor, will officially take over from outgoing Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as Canada’s 24th prime minister at a swearing-in ceremony at 11 a.m. eastern at Rideau Hall in Ottawa.
Gov. Gen. Mary Simon will preside over the ceremony, which will also see Carney reveal his cabinet, which sources have told Global News is expected to be a much smaller group than Trudeau’s cabinet.
Current ministers primarily dealing with the U.S. are expected to keep their roles.
Carney, who is not a member of Parliament, will then be expected to seek a seat in the House of Commons in short order, and speculation is high that he could trigger a snap election quickly.
Trudeau announced his resignation in January after more than nine years in power and asked to prorogue the Parliament until March 24.
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On his last day in office, Trudeau shared a video message on his social media, saying: “I’m proud to have served a country full of people who stand up for what’s right, rise to every occasion and always have each other’s backs when it matters most.”
The change in leadership comes at a time of trade uncertainty with Canada’s closest ally as U.S. President Donald Trump has slapped tariffs on Ottawa and threatened more to come.
Carney has said he’ll keep Canada’s counter-tariffs in place until “the Americans show us respect and make credible, reliable commitments to free and fair trade.”
Carney’s Liberal leadership campaign has outlined plans to build a stronger and united economy that would remove interprovincial trade barriers.
He has also vowed to diversify and expand Canada’s trading relationships with “reliable” partners and beef up security at the borders.
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