Former central banker and Liberal leadership candidate Mark Carney has been under scrutiny by the Conservatives who say he has not been forthcoming regarding his role in his previous firm moving its head office to the United States.
Carney had multiple corporate roles before entering the leadership race in mid-January, including as chair of the board of investment firm Brookfield Asset Management (BAM).
The company announced in an October press release it had moved its head office from Toronto to New York, as part of a larger restructuring effort seeking to position BAM for “broader equity index inclusion, particularly those in the U.S.”
Carney was still serving as BAM chair at the time. He was asked by reporters after the Liberal leadership debate on Feb. 25 whether he had approved of the decision to move the head office and what this suggested about his commitment to growing Canada’s economy.
Carney replied that he had resigned from his corporate and United Nations roles before running for office because he is “all in for Canada, all in for this leadership, all in during this time of crisis to build our great country.”
He added that the formal decision of the board “happened after I ceased to be on the board.”
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Conservatives say Carney has “lied” about his involvement in the move, pointing to the BAM press release and a letter from Carney to shareholders saying the board unanimously agreed in going forward with the corporate restructuring, known as the “arrangement.”
Carney’s letter to shareholders is dated Dec. 1, 2024. It says the board believes BAM can tap the “deepest pools of capital” with the arrangement.
“The most common feedback that we hear from investors encourages us to position BAM for inclusion in some of the most widely followed global large cap stock indices, including in the U.S.,” says the letter, which was obtained by the Tories and posted to social media.
Conservative MP and ethics critic Michael Barrett said in a statement the letter shows “Carney personally voted for and recommended that Brookfield move from Canada to New York City.”
The Tories say the move is questionable in the context of Canada staring down several tariff threats from the United States and Carney saying he wants to build Canada’s economy.
The Carney campaign said the Conservatives are using this issue because they are “scared of running” against Carney.
Carney’s spokesperson Liam Roche told The Epoch Times the corporate changes made by BAM are “technical in nature.”
“And with respect to jobs, Brookfield has clearly stated that Canadian operations were not impacted,” he said. Roche added that BAM remains a top investor in Canada and its parent company Brookfield Corp. remains headquartered in Toronto.
Brookfield Asset Management was contacted for comment but didn’t respond by publication time.
Carney is the frontrunner in the leadership race, having raised significantly more money than his opponents and securing more endorsements from the Liberal cabinet and caucus.
A series of polls have indicated the Liberals are gaining significant ground on the Tories in recent weeks since Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced in early January his intention to resign after his replacement was chosen.
Voting in the Liberal leadership race started on Feb. 26 and the new leader will be announced on March 9.
If Carney wins he would become a rare unelected prime minister and would need to run in a byelection or general election to gain a seat in the House of Commons. Carney has not said whether he intends to immediately dissolve Parliament if he wins.
Parliament returns for prorogation on March 24 and all opposition parties have said they intend to vote non-confidence in the government.
