It's only been 2025 for a couple of weeks and it already feels overwhelming. Northerners are still struggling with the cost of groceries, heating bills and a lack of housing and healthcare. Our corner of the Arctic is getting more interest from countries that don't like us very much.
Unfortunately, that list includes a defiant Donald Trump, intent on undermining our historic friendship with America if Canada doesn't bend the knee. Sure, we have a reprieve from the threat of devastating tariffs until Feb. 1, but the danger of an unpredictable U.S. president is very real. Canada is not for sale, and we need to keep it that way.
Clearly, Canadians have a lot on their minds and now we have a very important decision to make. We need to choose a new prime minister. Someone with the smarts, nerve and vision to lead Canada into an uncertain future and keep us safe from bullies and dictators the world over.
For me the choice is clear: Chrystia Freeland.
With over a decade of real experience understanding how government works, Chrystia can renew the policies of the federal government with a familiar face on the national and international scene.
She has an impressive track record delivering results for Canadians. As Foreign Affairs Minister, she led Canada's efforts against Vladmir Putin's illegal war in Ukraine and stood up to Trump's first administration. She even got a better deal for Canada in the process. As Finance Minister, she delivered game-changers like the Canada Child Benefit, $10-a-day childcare, the Canadian Dental Plan and Canada's National School Food Program.
In the North, she supported record levels of infrastructure investment, increases to the Northern Residents Deduction and gave millions in housing funding directly to Indigenous governments.
For 10 years, Chrystia has been a key part of the most progressive government in Canadian history. As prime minister, she will build on that progress and continue to deliver real results for Canadians who want to keep moving forward with real change.
None of us is without fault, and of course Chrystia isn't either. As much as she has an envious track record of delivering good policies for Northern families, she also has to wear the stuff Canadians didn't like about the Trudeau government. But here's the thing: she wasn't in the top job and clearly her views on some issues have changed. She also resigned from cabinet after disagreeing with Trudeau's management of the economy.
As Chrystia says, "We should be managing Canada's money the way Canadians manage their own." It's this common sense approach that distinguishes her from the soon-to-be former prime minister.
Working people are tired of feeling left out of the economy. Canada's strong GDP growth compared to other G7 countries doesn't make the price of milk go down. We have the kind of economy a central banker knows how to build, but we need a new economic vision to make a difference to Canadians today. Chrystia understand this.
As a journalist, she covered consumer issues and warned about the emerging billionaire class. Her book, "Plutocrats: The Rise of the New Global Super-Rich and the Fall of Everyone Else" is as timely today as it was 12 years ago when it was first published.
Chrystia has a plan for bread-and-butter economic issues that matter to everyday people. For example, she's committed to scrap the consumer carbon tax, which will be a huge relief for everyone in the NWT who have been unfairly penalized by carbon pricing.
The NWT needs a prime minister who understands Canada's place in the world and will fight to keep the true north strong and free. Chrystia Freeland has proven she can be this prime minister and has the scars to show for it. She will keep investing in our infrastructure, support our families, build new homes and protect the arctic equally from hostile foreign powers and a changing climate.
I hope you'll join me in supporting Chrystia as our next prime minister.
SA国际影视传媒擪ieron Testart is the MLA for Range Lake and a former president of the NWT Liberal Association from 2012-2014.
