Dominic LeBlanc, Minister of Finance, Public Safety and Intergovernmental Affairs, participates in a news conference after a swearing in ceremony at Rideau Hall in Ottawa, on Dec. 16.Justin Tang/The Canadian Press
Business leaders say Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s appointment of family friend Dominic LeBlanc as Finance Minister is a sign of a leader who has come to value loyalty over financial experience and independence.
Mr. Trudeau named Mr. LeBlanc, a Harvard University-educated lawyer, to the key finance portfolio on Monday, following predecessor Chrystia Freeland’s abrupt resignation. The New Brunswick politician with two generations of ties to the Trudeau family is expected to play a key role building a relationship with U.S. president-elect Donald Trump.
“There’s just an incredible amount of history and trust between him and the Prime Minister. And I think that’s why he has been appointed to that critical role,” said Matthew Holmes, chief of public policy at the Canadian Chamber of Commerce. He said Mr. LeBlanc’s appointment ”speaks more to the ever-smaller circle around Trudeau.”
On Bay Street, money managers question Mr. LeBlanc’s lack of financial acumen.
“Here is a guy that’s never been in business and never been in finance,” said fund manager John Ruffolo, founder and managing partner of Maverix Private Equity. “Are we getting someone who really understands the position or are we getting a trusted lieutenant of Trudeau?”
Ms. Freeland’s exit, with a resignation letter condemning Mr. Trudeau’s economic policies, reignited calls for the Prime Minister to step down and for the opposition parties to force an early election.
“I think [Mr. LeBlanc] is a placeholder” ahead of the next election, said Edward Sonshine, founder and chair of RioCan REIT, one of the country’s largest property companies. A former U.S. shopping-mall owner, Mr. Sonshine said the chaos surrounding Mr. LeBlanc’s appointment, ahead of Mr. Trump’s inauguration next month, gives American negotiators an advantage in potential trade negotiations. He said Mr. Trump and his team “are going to make chopped liver out of us.”
Mr. LeBlanc took over as Finance Minister the same day the department announced it missed its deficit target of $40.1-billion by more than $20-billion, with $61.9-billion of red ink for the fiscal year of 2023-2024.
“The fact that we have another person who doesn’t have a lot of finance experience is not the greatest thing,” said Greg Taylor, chief investment officer at Purpose Investments. “There is definitely, within the finance community, a desire to see more fiscal discipline out of Ottawa than this person can bring.”
Mr. LeBlanc has represented New Brunswick’s rural Beauséjour riding since 2000, after losing the 1997 election to the NDP candidate. Prior to running for office, he worked for prime minister Jean Chrétien. His father, Roméo LeBlanc, served as then-prime minister Pierre Trudeau’s press secretary before becoming the member of Parliament in the same riding, and he was later named Governor-General by Mr. Chrétien.
There’s a saying in political circles – you measure the value of a finance minister by their ability to stand up to the Prime Minister. Paul Martin, for example, earned his spurs by convincing Mr. Chrétien to cut deficits by embracing austerity. On this measure, business leaders question Mr. LeBlanc’s ability to push back against Mr. Trudeau, a close friend.
“The fundamental question will be ‘Is the Prime Minister prepared to let LeBlanc run his department?’” said Perrin Beatty, former CEO of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce and a former federal Progressive Conservative cabinet minister.
“The problem consistently has been that this government has run out of the Prime Minister’s Office, and the Prime Minister’s views on economic issues are in favour of big government and are often anti-business,” he said.
While Mr. LeBlanc has limited business experience, he has won praise from friends with roots in both politics and commerce. ‘’Dominic LeBlanc is the government’s best communicator and one of the best politicians I have ever seen,” said Frank McKenna, deputy chair of TD Securities and former premier of New Brunswick.
“He is highly respected and liked across partisan lines,” said Mr. McKenna. “His charm is his superpower.”
Mr. LeBlanc joined Mr. Trudeau for a dinner with Mr. Trump at the Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida late last month. Mr. Beatty said the face-to-face session and Mr. LeBlanc’s work as Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs will serve him well in potential negotiations with the Trump administration.
“He’s demonstrated in his intergovernmental relations role a capacity to get along with people who are not soulmates of the current government,” Mr. Beatty said. “Plus, he carries no baggage. It’s not the sort of animus that Trump has for other members of the Canadian government.”
“I see him as a pragmatist. He’s not one of the ideologues,” Mr. Beatty said. “That’s the issue with this government. The ideologues have been setting policy and have done things that are anti-business.”
Mr. LeBlanc ran for leadership of the federal Liberal Party in 2008, losing to Michael Ignatieff.
Investment banker Thomas Caldwell, chairman of Caldwell Investment Management Ltd., described Mr. LeBlanc’s decision to accept the finance portfolio “as a career option, just on the off chance that he might be considered as a leader when Trudeau’s time has come. It is just a stepping stone as far as I’m concerned.”
With files from Mark Rendell, Jameson Berkow, Tim Kiladze, James Bradshaw and Sean Silcoff
