After previously admitting that he had no idea what Canadian families pay for groceries, Liberal Leader Mark Carney wasn’t able to answer a question on whether he still purchases U.S. products because as prime minister, somebody else does his groceries for him.
The comments came during a lengthy French-language interview with CBC’s Radio-Canada, where the party leaders spoke in depth about their platforms.
One of the panelists asked Carney whether he agreed with the response from many Canadian residents who boycott the United States by no longer buying American products, booing the national anthem, and cancelling trips down south. Carney said he agreed with the steps but when asked whether he had boycott U.S. goods personally, he said he had an unusual answer to give.
“Being prime minister, I don’t buy strawberries and all that anymore. Someone else does,” said Carney.
Carney said he was still “proud” of the reactions of Canadians.
He previously blamed the inability of Canadians to afford groceries on a lack of “productivity.” The previous comments from Carney came shortly after he was unable to say how much families of four spent on their weekly grocery bills.
Former prime minister Justin Trudeau previously billed Canadians over $150,000 for two years worth of groceries. During the 2022 and 2023 calendar years, the average Canadian spent a combined $29,989 on groceries.
Over that period, Trudeau spent $188,864 on “food and food preparation,” forcing Canadian taxpayers to subsidize $157,642 of it.
While sticking taxpayers with the bill, according to documents obtained by the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, Trudeau simultaneously had an annual salary of $406,200.
Federal Director of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation Franco Terrazzano previously called on future prime ministers not to bill taxpayers for personal groceries and instead pay for the bill themselves.
Conversely, Deputy Conservative leader Melissa Lantsman told True North that Canadians would not be on the hook for the prime minister’s grocery bill if Conservatives formed government.
“Like most Canadians, Pierre Poilievre and his family do not have their groceries paid for by taxpayers,” said Lantsman. “Common Sense Conservatives will treat every tax dollar with the respect it deserves.”
She added that Liberal waste knows no bounds and that things would only worsen under Carney’s rule, considering he doesn’t even know how much groceries cost.
The federal election to determine Canada’s next prime minister will occur on April 28.