A weeping Justin Trudeau has taken one last swipe at Donald Trump during his final speech as Prime Minister of Canada.
Trudeau, who was forced to resign following a wave of resignations from his cabinet in the final months of 2024, was seen dabbing his eyes with a tissue during a conference to his Liberal party tonight.
The 53-year-old leader will be replaced by former Bank of England boss Mark Carney, who tonight won his party’s leadership race.
Trudeau said: ‘Don’t get me wrong, I’m damn proud of what we’ve done over these past 10 years. But tonight is about our future as a party, as a country.’
Referencing the ongoing threat of massive economic tariffs from US president Donald Trump that could cripple the country’s economy, the outgoing PM said that Canada is ‘a country who will fight when we must, elbows up.’
He added that Canadians are now showing ‘what makes us… by proudly embracing who we are’ amid existential challenged.
Trudeau then told the gathered members of the Liberal Party conference: ‘Your country needs you maybe more than ever. And I have no doubt that you will answer the call, because you’ve done it before. Liberals will meet this moment.’
He describes the current moment of history as a ‘nation-defining moment’, adding: ‘Democracy is not a given, freedom is not a given, even Canada is not a given.’
None of those happened by accident or will continue without effort, Trudeau said, adding: ‘It takes courage, it takes sacrifice, it takes hope and hard work’.
Carney will take over at a tumultuous time in Canada, which is in the midst of a trade war with longtime ally the United States and must hold a general election soon.
A weeping Justin Trudeau (pictured) has taken one last swipe at Donald Trump during his final speech as Prime Minister of Canada
The 53-year-old leader will be replaced by former Bank of England boss Mark Carney (pictured)
Donald Trump (pictured) has lifted some of the tariffs he placed on Canada
Carney, 59, took 86% of votes cast to beat former Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland in a contest in which just under 152,000 party members voted.
The political novice argued that he was best placed to revive the party and to oversee trade negotiations with Trump, who is threatening additional tariffs that could cripple Canada’s export-dependent economy.
Carney was the front-runner, with the most endorsements from party members and the most money raised among the four Liberal candidates.
Carney’s win marks the first time an outsider with no real political background has become Canadian prime minister. He has said his experience as the first person to serve as the governor of two G7 central banks – Canada and England – meant he was the best candidate to deal with Trump.
During the campaign, Carney said he supported dollar-for-dollar retaliatory tariffs against the United States and a coordinated strategy to boost investment. He has repeatedly complained that Canada’s growth under Trudeau was not good enough.
The prospect of a fresh start for the Liberal Party under Carney, combined with Trump’s tariffs and his repeated taunts to annex Canada as the 51st U.S. state, led to a remarkable revival of Liberal fortunes.
At the start of 2025, the party trailed by 20 or more points but is now statistically tied with the official opposition Conservatives led by career politician Pierre Poilievre in several polls.
At a protest outside Canada’s Parliament building in Ottawa on Sunday, dozens of Canadians held up signs protesting Trump with no reference to domestic politics.
Trudeau and Carny were seen embracing each other at the conference tonight
Before appointing his successor, Trudeau announced Canada would begin implementing 25 percent tariffs on $155 billion of American goods, starting with $30 billion worth of products immediately
Trump has repeatedly touted his ambition to annex Canada, referring to Trudeau as ‘Governor Trudeau’ and the nation as America’s ’51st state.’
Justin Trudeau ‘s replacement as Prime Minister of Canada has been chosen amid increasingly hostile relations between the United States and its northern neighbor
‘There is a rallying-around-the-flag moment that we would never have predicted a year ago,’ said University of British Columbia politics professor Richard Johnston. ‘I think it’s probably true as we speak that the Liberals have been saved from oblivion.’
Two Liberal Party sources said Carney would call an election in coming weeks.
Polls though indicate that neither the Liberals nor the Conservatives would be able to form a majority government. An election must be held by October 20.
Carney could legally serve as prime minister without a seat in the House of Commons but tradition dictates that he should seek to win one as soon as possible.
In 1984, John Turner was not a legislator when he became prime minister after winning a Liberal leadership race.
Liberals sought to compare Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre to Trump in a recent advertisement. Poilievre in turn ramped up attacks on Carney on Sunday.
The Liberals ‘are going to pull a sneaky trick tonight,’ Poilievre said at a campaign rally. ‘They’re going to try to get elected for a fourth term by replacing Justin Trudeau with his economic adviser, Mark Carney. … Donald Trump will have a big smile on his face.’
Carney has played down any role in advising Trudeau, noting his many global obligations left him with little time. Carney resigned all commercial posts after he launched his leadership bid in January.
