Carney Sidesteps Questions about Political Ambitions

NANAIMO - Former Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney is sidestepping questions about his political ambitions while saying he is honoured to be asked to advise the Liberal Party on economic policy ahead of the next federal election.

"I have a couple simple rules. One, if a prime minister of Canada asks me to do something, I will do it. I will serve, to the best of my abilities," Carney told reporters after speaking to Liberal MPs at the party's caucus retreat in Nanaimo, British Columbia. "Secondly, I have some experience in these issues and I'm interested in helping our country to grow. I'm interested in doing something, not being something."

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the Liberal Party announced Monday that Carney will chair a task force on economic growth and provide the Liberal leader and the party's platform committee with recommendations after consulting with business, labour and Indigenous leaders.

But questions about whether Carney might run for the Liberal leadership dominated his brief media availability. Carney addressed a Liberal Party convention in 2021 and speculation about his political future - including a possible leadership run - has circulated for years. His name tops any list of possible successors to Trudeau who is under growing pressure to resign because of dismal polling.

Carney also evaded a question about a possible difference of opinion between himself and the federal government on the issue of carbon pricing. Last year, he criticized the Trudeau government's decision to exempt home heating oil from the federal carbon tax. Carney is a passionate adherent of the climate change hoax.
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