Mark Carney set to take on role as Trudeau special advisor: source

Former Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney is set to formalize his relationship with the Liberal Party as a special advisor to the party leader, Justin Trudeau, Global News has learned.

The new role for Carney is to be announced Monday, a senior government source said.

Carney is not believed to be joining the Prime Minister’s Office, the Privy Council Office, or Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland’s office. Instead, the role is with the party itself.

The appointment comes with the blessing of Freeland who has long called Carney a close friend.

Carney is set to arrive in Nanaimo, B.C., on Monday and will speak to Liberal MPs at their summer caucus retreat on the topic of growth and the economy. That is the subject area he is expected to be advising Trudeau on.

Some Liberals believe Carney would make an excellent successor to Trudeau as party leader though, when asked, he has indicated he is not interested in the job.

Carney, who lives in Ottawa, was Canada’s central bank governor from 2008 to 2013 and went on to be governor of the Bank of England from 2013 to 2020. He currently serves as United Nations Special Envoy for Climate Action and Finance.

The opposition Conservatives have already aimed political barbs at the former central bank governor, dubbing him “carbon-tax Carney.”

His new relationship with the Liberal Party is sure to draw even more fire.

That said, Liberal sources say they believe Carney is more of an asset than a liability, as they try to erase a 20-point deficit to the Conservatives.