'He's a tested product': Island MPs in full support of Mark Carney for Liberal leadership

Mark Carney made a stop in Prince Edward Island on Saturday, backed by all four of the province's members of Parliament who have endorsed him to be the next federal Liberal leader. 

Carney, who's one of six candidates to replace Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, made two campaign stops in Charlottetown.

"There's an energy in the air, obviously there's a great turnout for Mark today," said Malpeque Liberal MP Heath MacDonald during one of Carney's stops. "I think there's wind of change in all of this.

"He's only been a candidate for two weeks and he already has a comprehensive policy put together on carbon pricing." 

The former Bank of Canada governor used his remarks to reiterate a key plank in his platform that he announced during a visit to Halifax on Friday —  eliminating his party's consumer carbon tax and replacing the policy with an incentive program that rewards Canadians for making green choices.

Carney has said that he is abandoning the carbon tax he once supported. He said that's not because it's ineffective, but because it's become too divisive for Canadians — something that he blamed on Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre.

Cardigan MP Lawrence MacAulay said he endorsed Carney because of his experience shepherding Canada through the 2008-09 economic recession. Carney was later picked to serve as the Bank of England governor during a tumultuous time for the U.K. as it navigated Brexit and the resulting economic fallout.  

"He's a tested product," MacAulay said. "He's a man that's served in North America and England…. They want a steady hand on the purse and on the economy, and that's him.

"He will help us navigate … many of the issues that are on the table, including the tariffs." 

During his stops in Charlottetown, Carney also addressed the looming tariffs on Canadian exports to the U.S. proposed by President Donald Trump. 

Carney told the crowd he would put in place "prudent but forceful" dollar-for-dollar retaliation tariffs in place on American imports. 

P.E.I.'s two other Liberal MPs, Egmont's Bobby Morrissey and Sean Casey in Charlottetown, are also backing Carney. 

Casey, who was one of the few members of the Liberal caucus to publicly call for Trudeau to resign, said what he's heard from constituents has changed "night and day" from a few months ago. 

"A year ago people were telling me that they were afraid of Pierre Poilievre and what he would do to the country, but they had grown completely tired of Justin Trudeau," Casey said. 

"The message now is, 'I think we can win, I think Carney's the guy.'"