High-profile figure reportedly stepping away from federal politics in further blow to Trudeau government
Federal housing minister Sean Fraser is expected to resign from cabinet today and rule himself out of running in the next election in a blow to the governing Liberal Party and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
A government official speaking on condition of anonymity told CBC that 40-year-old Fraser, widely viewed as a rising star in the Trudeau administration, will make the announcement on Monday and become the latest in a host of cabinet departures in recent months.
Trudeau had already been widely expected to shuffle his cabinet with the Liberals doing little to make up ground over the Conservative Party in recent polls – but Fraser, who took over the housing portfolio last year, would be one of the most noteworthy exits from cabinet.
The move arrives as the government reportedly steps up its bid to add Mark Carney, former governor of the Bank of Canada and Bank of England, to a high-profile role.
Fraser inherited the housing file amid an affordability crisis and skyrocketing home prices in major markets including Toronto and Vancouver, as well as an acute shortage of available inventory.
Recent measures introduced by Fraser include the launch of a $1 billion direct delivery stream through the Canada Housing Infrastructure Fund (CHIF), and a $50 million investment in regional construction through the Regional Homebuilding Innovation Initiative (RHII).
But the housing crisis is viewed as one of the central reasons for the Liberals’ plunge in the polls, which has seen Trudeau fall well behind Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre with an election looming in 2025.
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