The federal Conservatives made good on their promise to push for former Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney to testify before MPs, sparking a heated political debate in Ottawa on Tuesday.
Conservative members of the House finance committee want to invite Carney, whom they repeatedly called the “Carney of the carbon tax”, to testify, under the presumption that he has “clear” intentions to run for leader of the Liberal Party.
House Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer said the motion is about “accountability,” but the debate quickly devolved into partisan jabs and extensive exchanges over the merits of the federal government’s carbon pricing program. .
“(Carney) has no problem talking to liberal pundits at invitation-only events, where he gives insight into his political agenda, his extreme political agenda,” Scheer said. “If Mark Carney wants to replace Justin Trudeau as prime minister and leader of the Liberal Party, then he should have the courage to be held accountable.”
“Canadians have a right to know what direction this country would take,” he also said.
For Carney to become prime minister, current Prime Minister Justin Trudeau would have to resign as Liberal leader, and Carney would need to win a subsequent leadership race before the next federal election, currently scheduled for October 2025.
Carney, who now works as head of transition investments for Brookfield Asset Management and as the United Nations special envoy for climate action and finance, is not a parliamentarian. He has also not confirmed his intention to run for the federal Liberals, despite numerous rumors about the possibility among political observers.
While Trudeau has repeatedly said he plans to run for leader in the next federal election, a pair of public appearances by Carney last week, made shortly after the federal government released its latest budget, have reignited rumors about the race. for leadership.
In a statement emailed to CTVNews.ca on Tuesday, Carney said the Conservatives’ decision to issue a press release last Friday, indicating their intention to push this particular motion, before extending any invitation to him, “betrays the performative nature of the request.” “
“I am not interested in playing around with issues so important to Canada’s economic future,” he wrote. “Canadians rightly expect our elected parliamentarians to produce solutions to Canada’s challenges, rather than engage in political stunts or stupidly repeat simplistic slogans.”
Refuting the conservatives’ argument, liberal committee members in turn accused their opposition colleagues of “delaying tactics” and using the issue to distract from the committee’s work on Bill C-59, the 2023 Fall Economic Statement Implementation Law.
“It’s just interesting to me that the Conservatives are bringing this motion forward now at this time, just before we go into the clause-by-clause analysis,” said Liberal MP Ryan Turnbull.
Others accused conservatives of wasting committee time.
“By proposing this motion today, the federal Conservatives are disingenuous,” said Liberal MP Julie Dzerowicz. “It is not the finance committee’s job to interview potential future politicians.”
After accusing the Conservatives of “wasting time” and “delaying” other committee business, NDP MP Don Davies proposed adjourning debate on the motion to invite Carney, and MPs resumed clause-by-clause consideration. of Bill C-59.
The Conservatives then responded in a press release, stating that “the NDP blocked Mark Carney’s testimony to protect Trudeau” and “the Liberal-NDP coalition has become desperate”, referring to the confidence and supply agreement between the two parties. . .
It is not yet clear if or when the committee will resume deliberations on the motion for Carney, who also served as governor of the Bank of England, to testify, although it is scheduled to appear before the Senate Banking, Commerce and Economy Committee on another matter, on May 8.