MARK Carney on Thursday launched his campaign for the Liberal leadership, declaring: “I’m back home in Edmonton, to declare my candidacy for leader of the Liberal Party and Prime Minister of Canada.”
He said: “I’m doing this because Canada is the best country in the world, but it still could be even better.”
Carney said that the prime minister and his team let their attention wander from the economy too often, adding: “I won’t lose focus.”
He said: “If you remember one thing I say today — I am going to be completely focused on getting our economy back on track.”
Carney said: “The system, it’s not working as it should, and it’s not working as it could. People are anxious. No wonder. Too many are falling behind. Too many young people can’t afford a home, too many people can’t find a doctor.”
Carney, who’s been governor of both the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England, said: “If you wonder why I can succeed where others have failed or will fall short, consider this: I’ve helped manage multiple crises and I’ve helped save two economies.”
Carney said: “Now, I know I’m not the usual suspect when it comes to politics, but this is no time for politics as usual. It’s not the time for lifelong politicians such as Pierre Poilievre, politicians with bad ideas, naive and dangerous ideas.”
He said: “If you choose me as your leader, we will offer Canadians a clear choice in the next election: experience versus incompetence, plan versus slogan, calm versus chaos.”
Carney, 59, was born in Fort Smith, Northwest Territories, and raised in Edmonton, Alberta. Both of his parents were teachers. He went to St. Francis Xavier high school, and won a scholarship to study in the United States. He attended Harvard and Oxford universities.
He started his career in finance before joining Canada’s public service.
According to Carney’s website: “As Governor of the Bank of Canada during the 2008 financial crisis, Mark guided Canada through one of the most turbulent economic periods in modern history, protecting jobs and helping ensure that Canada came out stronger.
“In 2013, he was recruited to lead the Bank of England, stewarding the United Kingdom’s economy through Brexit and the economic and political crises that followed. And in 2019, he began serving as the UN Special Envoy for Climate Action and Finance — helping rally the world to build stronger economies as we fight climate change.”
Carney told reporters he has cut ties with Brookfield Asset Management, a major Canadian corporation, and other companies like Bloomberg and financial services firm Stripe.
“I resigned all my roles, cut all my ties. I am all in. I am all in in this fight because it is so fundamentally important,” he said.