As rumours swirl that Mark Carney is gearing up to replace Justin Trudeau as Liberal leader, Conservative MPs want to call him before the parliamentary finance committee.
The Conservatives announced Friday that he owes Canadians some answers.
“Canadians deserve to know how much Carney will increase Trudeau’s carbon tax, how much more debt he will add, and whether he would destroy Canada’s energy sector,” said the Conservatives in a statement.
According to the Conservatives, Carney has a history of investing in oil and gas dictatorships while simultaneously trying to destroy Canada’s energy industry.
The Conservatives said that even long-term Liberals want Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to resign.
“This was made clear after Mark Carney delivered two major speeches on economic and fiscal policy, where he criticized Trudeau’s economic chaos, even though he supports the inflationary spending and taxes that caused it,” read the release.
Because Carney is trying to get as much media attention as possible to position for Trudeau’s job, according to the Conservatives, he should welcome appearing before the committee. Carney previously declined an invitation from the finance committee to testify on the Fall Economic Statement.
Carney is a former governor of the Bank of Canada and Bank of England.
In Carney’s speech at Canada’s economic lookahead dinner in Toronto on Monday, he criticized Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and generally applauded the Liberals’ 2024 federal budget.
“It’s a huge start, but we have to keep that momentum up in order to build the millions of affordable, resilient, and low-carbon homes that Canadians need with an urgency not seen since the Second World War,” said Carney.
Carney’s words about the budget weren’t all positive, however.
“Governments that spend too much and invest too little will eventually pay a heavy price,” he said.
“But countries that nurture, welcome, and celebrate risk-takers will thrive.”
Entrepreneurs and doctors have raised concerns about the capital gains tax hike in the budget and what it will mean for Canadian industry.
Carney accused Poilievre of having no climate plan beyond getting rid of the carbon tax.
“And remember when he shouts ‘Axe the tax,’ he’s really whispering: ‘Can the plan,’ and leaving us with nothing,” Carney said.
The Parliamentary Budget Officer showed that $204.5 billion, 35.5% of the $576 billion spent during the pandemic, had nothing to do with Covid.
The Conservatives said it doesn’t matter whether Carney or Trudeau governs the Liberal party.
“They will continue to make life more unaffordable for Canadians with their inflationary taxes and spending,” their statement said.
The Conservatives on the finance committee will need the NDP’s support to bring Carney as a witness.
“The NDP will be faced with a decision to either cover for Justin Trudeau by stopping his successor from testifying or to vote for the Conservative motion forcing Mark Carney’s appearance before committee,” said the party.
True North reached out to Carney for comment but received no response.