Liberal Party of Canada

Jean-Yves Duclos backs Mark Carney for federal Liberal leader

Peter Black, Local Journalism Initiative reporter

peterblack@qctonline.com

Federal Liberal leadership hopeful Mark Carney has landed the support of Jean-Yves Duclos, a key Quebec minister in the government of departing prime minister Justin Trudeau.

Duclos declared his support for Carney on Feb. 7 and hosted him for a series of events in Quebec City, including a meeting with Bonhomme Carnaval. Carney also met with Quebec City Mayor Bruno Marchand. Duclos, the minister of public services and procurement and MP for Québec, offered his support via an open letter, the same forum he used two weeks ago to invite all candidates to submit platforms.

Duclos applauded Carney’s response to his letter, and noted his experience in dealing with financial crises “has clearly demonstrated your leadership and partnership capabilities.”

The minister also praised Carney’s “commitment to the protection of the French lan- guage, the arts and culture, and promoting a strong voice for Quebec [which] will help strengthen our country in these turbulent times.”

Duclos also noted that both he and Carney “are economists, not politicians.”

As of this writing, five candidates remain in the leadership race: Carney, former finance minister and deputy prime minister Chrystia Freeland, for- mer minister and House leader Karina Gould, former Montreal MP Frank Baylis and former Toronto-area MP Ruby Dhalla.

The Liberal Party of Canada has set the dates for candidate debates, on Feb. 24 in French and Feb. 25 in English, both to take place in Montreal. Carney, Duclos and Louis-Hébert MP Joël Lightbound – who was one of Carney’s earliest caucus supporters – met with local Liberals at a pub in Place Ste-Foy on Friday evening. Innovation and Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne, who gave Carney a tour of Shawinigan the week before, was also in attendance.

In a scrum with reporters beforehand, Carney said he had been meeting with local chambers of commerce to learn firsthand about local concerns. He said he supported the city’s tramway project as an example of investing in the future. In local interviews the next day, the former governor of the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England said he found the “third link” project championed by the Quebec government “interesting” but would not commit to a federal contribution without knowing more about the details of the plan or its cost.

Carney said in the face of American threats to Canada’s economy, “what we need to do is work as a team with all levels of government across Canada.

“I am very encouraged by the resolve Canadians are showing. They want to be positive, they want to be united, they want to move forward, they don’t want division. They’ve had enough of insults. And what we’re offering is that positivity, that sense of action.”

Carney said, “We’re in a crisis, but it’s a massive opportunity.” Picking up a slogan from the Quebec Liberals of the 1960s, Carney said Canadians are “masters of their own house.”

The QCT asked Carney to update his comment on Jon Stewart’s The Daily Show on Jan. 13, prior to jumping into the race, that the Liberals “have a chance” of winning the next election.

Carney said, “We have a very good chance. Given the stakes, given the team we have, given the capabilities of the Liberal Party in addressing this crisis, in building our economy and as well, above all, given the values of the Liberal Party and the importance we place on solidarity, in helping the vulnerable in our society, on building a sustainable economy. We not just can win, we must win and we will win.”

The new leader of the Liberal Party is to be chosen on March 9 by a vote of registered members. Whoever wins automatically succeeds Trudeau as prime minister.