Economy, ties with India among key focus areas for Canada’s PM-elect Mark Carney

During the federal election campaign in August 2021, outgoing Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau said he didn’t think about monetary policy. In fact, his campaign platform attacked Trudeau’s policies, saying, “Too many Canadians, particularly younger Canadians, have been knocked back by the pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis — setbacks made worse by the surge in immigration and the shortfall in affordable housing.” New Delhi will be listening to what he says and figuring out whether Carney will offer an opportunity to repair a relationship that was beyond salvaging during Trudeau’s tenure. Responding to questions from the media in the Alberta city, Carney said, “What Canada will be looking to do is to diversify our trading relationships with like-minded countries and there are opportunities to rebuild the relationship with India.” “There needs to be a shared sense of values around that commercial relationship and if I’m Prime Minister, I look forward to the opportunity to build that,” he added. Carney’s statement was welcomed by Ritesh Malik, chair of the Canada-India Foundation, who felt that given Carney’s “global perspective and recognition of strategic geopolitical importance” of India, “it’s plausible that his leadership could introduce a fresh approach to Canada-India relations, potentially fostering stronger economic and strategic ties between the two nations”. However, Bisaria said, “Any new Prime Minister of Canada will have a natural opportunity to get off ramp from the current political deadlock with India: stabilise the relationship, exchange High Commissioners and finalise a trade agreement, given the broader geopolitical problems that Canada now has with the US and with China.” “We shouldn’t assume an automatic reset, it will still require work,” Vina Nadjibulla, vice-president of research and strategy at the Asia-Pacific Foundation of Canada, warned.