Amid mounting pressure from fellow party members, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau resigned on Monday. Trudeau said that he intends to step down as the leader of the ruling Liberals and as prime minister after the party selects its next leader.
While addressing a press conference, Trudeau said since assuming power in 2015, he fought for Canada and its people, to strengthen and grow the middle class. "I watched the country rally to support each other during the pandemic and has worked protect free trade on the continent," he said.
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While he took the decision after discussing it with his family, Trudeau said that the country "deserves a real choice in the next election". He also added that because of "internal" battles in the party, he cannot be the leader of the Liberals in the next election.
He expressed concerns on parliament being "paralysed for months". He also added that the parliament would be suspended until March.
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Reportedly, the Liberal Party MPs will be holding a caucus meeting on Wednesday, where they will elect a new leader for the party, who will become the next prime minister.
While talking about the leader of Conservative Party of Canada, Pierre Poilievre, he said his vision is "not the right one for Canadians". "Stopping the fight against climate change doesn't make sense...We need an ambitious, optimistic view of the future...and Pierre Poilievre is not offering that," he said.
Trudeau was under immense pressure from his fellow Liberal legislators to step down amid polls showing the party will be crushed at the next election. The pressure increased since his long-time ally Chrystia Freeland stepped down as finance minister and quit the party last month.
Trudeau has won reelection twice after taking office in November 2015. He is one of the Canada's longest-serving prime ministers. However, his popularity started to dip amid housing shortage, high prices and immigration rules. On multiple platforms Trudeau has agreed that his immigration policy has failed.
