OTTAWA – Former Prime Minister Jean Chrétien says he is concerned about the future of the Canadian economy, with inflation at an almost 20-year high, saying Canada is “going down a dark lane.”
In an interview with Evan Solomon, CTV’s question period host, Chrétien said that while he believes the federal government “had no choice” when it came to deepening the deficit to respond with the COVID-19 crisis, there “will be difficult circumstances ahead.”
“We print money like crazy,” he said. When asked if he was worried about it, he said “yes”.
“We are entering a dark alley, but we will have to go all the way to the end of the alley.”
Speaking of concerns about inflation – the annual rate hit 4.4% last month – Chrétien reflected on his own experience dealing with economic challenges as prime minister.
With the economy and the rising cost of living at the top of the list for many Canadians, Chrétien said Canada “will have to deal with it.”
“With the pandemic… it was so unusual that they did something unusual,” he said. “Reality will strike and we will face it, but they had no other choice.”
In the high-profile interview, Chrétien spoke about his new book, “My Stories, My Time, Volume 2,” which he describes as providing readers with a “behind-the-curtain” glimpse into his life, but also weighed in on the news.
ON EQUALIZATION
Speaking of Alberta Premier Jason Kenney’s referendum question on federal equalization payments, Chrétien called it “quite a waste of time.”
“Because you need a change in the Constitution, and in order to do that, you need seven provinces to come to an agreement. Good luck, ”he said.
Chrétien said Premiers must deal with “complaining” provinces, as part of the nature of the federation.
“If you are a mayor and you have a problem, what do you do? You blame the provincial government. If you are a provincial government and you have a problem, what do you do? You blame the federal government. We can’t blame the Queen and every once in a while we blame the Americans. You know, if you can return the ball, it’s not bad, ”he said.
ABOUT CHINA
Speaking on the state of Canada-China relations, he said the federal government has to face the reality that China is a superpower like the Americans, and that the Canadian government shouldn’t think it could tell them what to do.
In Chrétien’s view, the government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has treated the issue of former Canadians Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor differently than it would have done, claiming that they “were the victim of the US government.”
“The United States forced us and the government decided to follow them because they thought they had no choice. I thought they had a choice, ”he said, referring to the prisoner exchange proposal, which the government said would have rewarded hostage diplomacy.
ON RECONCILIATION
Chrétien, who was Minister of Indian Affairs under former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, was asked if he was assuming some responsibility in light of the continued unearthed finds of anonymous graves at the sites of former residential schools.
“They were there for a long time, and you know the last one was closed by me when I was prime minister. We had to deal with the problem at that point, ”he said.
When asked if he would apologize for his role in the legacy of residential schools – which included the proposal for a highly controversial and ultimately withdrawn ‘white paper’ that was viewed by Indigenous peoples as assimilationist, because he proposed, among other things, to eliminate “Indian status” – Chretien said his goal was to look to the future.
He also declined to be a “Monday morning quarterback” on Trudeau’s trip and subsequent apologies for spending the first National Truth and Reconciliation Day in Tofino.
ON CANADA’S “GOOD RECIPE”
Chrétien was asked what his greatest concern about Canada was at the moment, and offered an optimistic response.
“I think we’re still in the best position of anyone else, you know. Why? This is because we have a good system of governance… We have changed governments here peacefully… we have a country where there is a lot of understanding… We do not have a very high level of discrimination. There are, without a doubt, we try to fight all the time to make sure there isn’t, ”he said.
“When you are 38 million people, there are always problems. But… We are prosperous, we have a lot of resources, we have probably one of the best educated populations in the world, we have the advantage of having two official languages, we have citizens who come from all over the world, we don’t pay much attention to skin color, religion, language. We tell everyone to be comfortable with who you are.
“I think we have a good recipe, and if this recipe were to apply all over the world, the world would be a better place,” he continued.
Chrétien also said that while “of course” he still enjoys being involved in politics, “I don’t want to practice it anymore.”
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