All about Dominic LeBlanc, Justin Trudeau’s choice for Canada’s new finance minister

Ottawa:

Shortly after Chrystia Freeland’s sudden resignation, her cabinet colleague Dominic LeBlanc was sworn in as Canada’s new finance minister. Mr. LeBlanc, a longtime ally of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, served as public safety minister in his cabinet. The move comes at a time when Canada is grappling with a deficit of 62 billion Canadian dollars due to “unexpected spending” – about 22 billion Canadian dollars more than initially forecast.

In his new role, LeBlanc, 57, will be at the forefront of addressing ongoing economic challenges, including addressing the looming threat of U.S. tariffs. The USA is Canada’s most important trading partner, with 75 percent of its exports going to its southern neighbor every year.

About Dominic LeBlanc

The prime minister moved quickly to fill the position vacated by Ms. Freeland, having Mr. LeBlanc sworn in as finance minister at a ceremony at Rideau Hall late on Monday.

Since the Liberal Party’s victory in 2015, Mr. LeBlanc has held several key cabinet positions and recently contributed significantly to the creation of Canada’s multi-billion dollar border program as the government’s head of public safety and senior cabinet minister. The strategy was designed to address U.S. concerns about migration and drugs.

Dominic LeBlanc, seen as a top fixer in Mr. Trudeau’s Cabinet, accompanied the Canadian prime minister to Florida last month to meet with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, underscoring his prominent role in international negotiations. He will also chair the Canada-U.S. Cabinet Committee, previously held by Ms. Freeland.

“We understand that the cost of living is a very important issue for a large number of Canadians and they look to their government to focus on issues of affordability,” Mr. LeBlanc said after the ceremony.

Chrystia Freeland’s resignation

The sudden resignation of Canadian Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland on Monday sparked political chaos and raised questions about the future of Prime Minister Trudeau’s leadership. Ms. Freeland, who clashed with Mr. Trudeau over how to handle possible U.S. tariffs, among other issues, said she was stepping down because the prime minister asked her to take a lower post after the two argued for weeks over spending.

The resignation of Ms. Freeland, 56, who also served as deputy prime minister, was one of the biggest crises Mr. Trudeau has faced since coming to power in November 2015. This also leaves him without an important ally if he is on track to lose the next election to the Conservatives’ official opposition.

She quit just hours before she was due to deliver an autumn economic update to Parliament. The document showed the minority Liberal government had run a budget deficit of C$61.9 billion in 2023-24, much higher than predicted.

Mr. Trudeau can be ousted if opposition parties unite in a vote of no confidence in him, although that may not happen until next year. The potential threat to his future became clear when a top member of the opposition New Democrats, who have helped keep the Liberals in power, said the party would vote to oust Trudeau next year if he does not quit.

“If we do a direct no-confidence motion at the end of February, beginning of March, that’s one of the tools we have at our disposal,” Peter Julian, leader of the House of Commons for the NDP, told the Canadian Broadcasting Corp.

Party leader Jagmeet Singh had previously been less ambiguous when asked about the ouster of Trudeau, whom he called for to resign.