Canadian PM Justin Trudeau voices support for Finance Minister despite controversy

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on August 11 reportedly backed his Finance Minister Bill Morneau and quashed the speculation of a growing rift between the two. A PMO spokesperson, in a reported statement, said that Trudeau has ‘full confidence’ in Morneau and any reports to the contrary are false. The recent statement by Trudeau’s office comes in a bid to refute allegations that the two men and their staff have clashed on issued of policy and communication. 

According to a Canadian media outlet, the PM and Finance Minister clashed over economic measure taken to counter the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. However, the PMO spokesperson reportedly said that Trudeau, Morneau and the entire team of Cabinet ministers will keep doing the work that Canadians rely on to get them through this unprecedented pandemic. 

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Meanwhile, the speculations of the rift between the two also come after the Canadian PM turned to the former governor of Bank of Canada and Bank of England to help craft a plan to pull the nation out of a deep recession sparked by the pandemic. Mark Carney’s involvement in the economic aspect fueled discussion that Morneau shunted outside the PM’s inner circle and could even leave the government. It was believed that Carney was a potential replacement to the Canadian Finance Minister. 

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Morneau worked ‘relentlessly’ with Trudeau 

In recent weeks, questions over Morneau’s future also escalated as Trudeau and the latter have been embroiled in the scandal over a nearly billion-dollar contract given to a charity with close links to them. According to international media reports, in the Finance Minister’s case, the charity employs one of his daughters and had paid travel expenses for his family trips of Kenya and Ecuador. The PM and the Finance Minister are facing investigations by Canada’s Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner in the aforementioned context, while also being probed by Parliamentary panels.

However, the statement by the PMO praised Morneau and even said that the has worked ‘relentlessly’ and ‘closely’ with Trudeau to build a strong and resilient Canadian economy. As per reports, the statement further also said that the Morneau is continuing the important work of listing measures amid the crisis.

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