Chrystia Freeland, serving as deputy prime minister to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, announced that she would step down as the country’s finance minister after being offered “another position” in the cabinet.
In a Dec. 16 X post, Freeland said she had resigned from her position as finance minister after being offered another position in government by the Canadian Prime Minister. According to Freeland, she and Trudeau had “found [them]selves at odds” with policies, citing potential tariffs that United States President-elect Donald Trump has threatened to impose on Canada.
“We need to take that threat extremely seriously,” said Freeland, referring to Trump’s proposed tariffs, adding:
“That means eschewing political gimmicks, which we can ill afford and which make Canadians doubt that we recognize the gravity of the moment.”
Canadian finance minister’s letter to PM Justin Trudeau. Source: Chrystia Freeland
Freeland served as Trudeau’s deputy prime minister since 2019 and finance minister since 2020. She defended the government’s handling of freezing crypto and fiat donations to Canadian truckers who, in 2022, blocked the streets of Ottawa in an apparent protest of the nation’s COVID-19 restrictions.
This is a developing story, and further information will be added as it becomes available.