A weakened Prime Minister Justin Trudeau set out Tuesday to secure the support of smaller parties he will need to form a government after winning <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/canada-election-pm-justin-trudeau-returns-to-power-says-voters-rejected-negativity-257453">Canada's nail-biter general</a> election but falling short of a majority.

Trudeau's Liberals took 157 seats in the 338-member House of Commons, down from a comfortable majority of 177 in the last one, official results showed.

Trudeau will thus have to seek some kind of accommodation with the Bloc Quebecois or the New Democratic Party.

Before launching talks with these parties Trudeau greeted people at a subway station in Montreal and posed smiling for selfies.

Trudeau received congratulations Monday evening from US President Donald Trump and on Tuesday from European Council president Donald Tusk.

"From coast to coast to coast, tonight Canadians rejected division and negativity," Trudeau said in his victory speech Monday night. "And they rejected cuts and austerity and voted in favor of a progressive agenda and strong action on climate change."

Even though he came out weakened, Trudeau did better than expected. Up until election day polls had him neck and neck with Conservative Party leader Andrew Scheer.

The Conservatives won 121 seats but beat the Liberals in the popular vote, taking 34.4 percent to their 33.1 percent. Scheer issued a warning to Trudeau.

"Canadians have passed judgement on (Trudeau's) Liberal government," noting that the Liberals shed more than 20 seats.

"We have put him on notice, his leadership is damaged and his government will end soon and when that time comes, the Conservatives will be ready and we will win!"

The first test of Trudeau’s future government will follow in the coming weeks with a speech to parliament outlining his legislative priorities and a confidence vote.

For now he faces the tough task of forming a government, for which he will have to take into account the demands of minority parties.

Yves-Francois Blanchet, head of the Bloc Quebecois, a down and out party that scored a big comeback on Monday, said he can work with the new government if the interests of French-speaking Quebec are preserved.

- 'Open minds' - 
"If what is proposed is good for Quebec, you can count on us," said Blanchet, whose party will have 32 seats in the next legislature.

Jagmeet Singh, the leader of the New Democratic party, promised to be constructive.

The leftist former criminal defense lawyer is the first non-white leader of a federal political party in Canada, and is now a kingmaker.

"In the days ahead, I’ll be meeting with my new caucus, to talk about how we will deliver for people," Singh said in a statement.&nbsp;

"We’ll approach building the new parliament with open minds and open hearts," he added.

He added: "The real winner of this election is not a party or a leader. Canadians sent a clear message: they want a government that works for them, and they are not satisfied with the old ways of doing politics."

Trudeau, a 47-year-old former school teacher, dominated Canadian politics over the four years of his first term, but faced a grilling during the 40-day election campaign, which he described as one of the "dirtiest and nastiest" in Canadian history.

Trudeau and Scheer exchanged barbs as attack ads and misinformation multiplied.&nbsp;

Trudeau evoked the bogeymen of past and current Tory parties fostering "politics of fear and division" while Scheer called the prime minister a "compulsive liar," "a phony and a fraud."

Going into the election Trudeau's golden boy image had already been damaged by ethics lapses in the handling of the bribery prosecution of engineering giant SNC-Lavalin. His popularity took a further hit with the emergence during the campaign of old photographs of him in blackface makeup.

Some 27.4 million Canadians were eligible to vote in the election, and the turnout was reported to have been large, at almost 65 percent.

A record 97 women were elected to parliament, including Canada's first indigenous attorney general, Jody Wilson-Raybould, who ran as an independent candidate after Trudeau kicked her out of his caucus.

A weakened Prime Minister Justin Trudeau set out Tuesday to secure the support of smaller parties he will need to form a government after winning Canada's nail-biter general election but falling short of a majority.

A weakened Prime Minister Justin Trudeau set out Tuesday to secure the support of smaller parties he will need to form a government after winning Canada's nail-biter general election but falling short of a majority. Trudeau's Liberals took 157 seats in the 338-member House of Commons, down from a comfortable majority of 177 in the last one, official results showed. Trudeau will thus have to seek some kind of accommodation with the Bloc Quebecois or the New Democratic Party. Before launching talks with these parties Trudeau greeted people at a subway station in Montreal and posed smiling for selfies. Trudeau received congratulations Monday evening from US President Donald Trump and on Tuesday from European Council president Donald Tusk. "From coast to coast to coast, tonight Canadians rejected division and negativity," Trudeau said in his victory speech Monday night. "And they rejected cuts and austerity and voted in favor of a progressive agenda and strong action on climate change." Even though he came out weakened, Trudeau did better than expected. Up until election day polls had him neck and neck with Conservative Party leader Andrew Scheer. The Conservatives won 121 seats but beat the Liberals in the popular vote, taking 34.4 percent to their 33.1 percent. Scheer issued a warning to Trudeau. "Canadians have passed judgement on (Trudeau's) Liberal government," noting that the Liberals shed more than 20 seats. "We have put him on notice, his leadership is damaged and his government will end soon and when that time comes, the Conservatives will be ready and we will win!" The first test of Trudeau’s future government will follow in the coming weeks with a speech to parliament outlining his legislative priorities and a confidence vote. For now he faces the tough task of forming a government, for which he will have to take into account the demands of minority parties. Yves-Francois Blanchet, head of the Bloc Quebecois, a down and out party that scored a big comeback on Monday, said he can work with the new government if the interests of French-speaking Quebec are preserved. - 'Open minds' - "If what is proposed is good for Quebec, you can count on us," said Blanchet, whose party will have 32 seats in the next legislature. Jagmeet Singh, the leader of the New Democratic party, promised to be constructive. The leftist former criminal defense lawyer is the first non-white leader of a federal political party in Canada, and is now a kingmaker. "In the days ahead, I’ll be meeting with my new caucus, to talk about how we will deliver for people," Singh said in a statement. "We’ll approach building the new parliament with open minds and open hearts," he added. He added: "The real winner of this election is not a party or a leader. Canadians sent a clear message: they want a government that works for them, and they are not satisfied with the old ways of doing politics." Trudeau, a 47-year-old former school teacher, dominated Canadian politics over the four years of his first term, but faced a grilling during the 40-day election campaign, which he described as one of the "dirtiest and nastiest" in Canadian history. Trudeau and Scheer exchanged barbs as attack ads and misinformation multiplied. Trudeau evoked the bogeymen of past and current Tory parties fostering "politics of fear and division" while Scheer called the prime minister a "compulsive liar," "a phony and a fraud." Going into the election Trudeau's golden boy image had already been damaged by ethics lapses in the handling of the bribery prosecution of engineering giant SNC-Lavalin. His popularity took a further hit with the emergence during the campaign of old photographs of him in blackface makeup. Some 27.4 million Canadians were eligible to vote in the election, and the turnout was reported to have been large, at almost 65 percent. A record 97 women were elected to parliament, including Canada's first indigenous attorney general, Jody Wilson-Raybould, who ran as an independent candidate after Trudeau kicked her out of his caucus.

Canadians voted for progressive agenda and strong action on climate change: Trudeau

The multiple attempts to woo members of the Indian community during Canada's elections are part of a larger pattern.

On WION Edit, we examine the role of the Indian diaspora in global politics.

Let's start with some numbers.

According to data from the United Nations, the Indian diaspora is the largest in the world, estimated at 17.5 million people.

And the bulk of the diaspora comprises second-generation immigrants.

They now play a crucial role in influencing the political and economic policies of their respective home countries.

The economic impact of their role is already showing. India is the highest recipient of remittances, the bulk of them coming from the Gulf countries.

Besides, they are a crucial vote bank in several countries like Canada and the United Kingdom. They already hold prominent political positions.

Previous Indian governments did not always harness the strength of the Indian diaspora.

But the current government has made it a priority to highlight the soft power of the Indian diaspora. Events like the recently held 'Howdy Modi' in Houston exemplify this conscious stance.

Let's look at the numbers. According to the United States Census, the Indian diaspora outpaces all other ethnic groups in terms of socio-economic status.

They account for over 6 per cent of physicians, are educated and have a high household income.

In fact, the Indian diaspora is often seen as a 'model minority' not just in the US, but in other parts of the world as well. They own several businesses in these countries. And their political representation is also ever-increasing.

A strong engagement between the government and Indian diaspora also helps in another way -- it forces foreign governments to look at the Indian diaspora as not just a vote bank, but a crucial part of the decision-making process.

And that, in turn, would lend strength to the government on crucial issues. In a complex geopolitical scenario, this will be handy for India.

But there is an important distinction to make.

As we saw in the Canada elections and as we often see in the United Kingdom, several parties pretend to appease exclusionary and extremist tendencies among sections of the diaspora to win votes.

These efforts could be harmful in the future.

The only way - the government can stay clear of this attempted intervention is by ensuring constructive engagement with the diaspora -- at a larger level.

India is going to be a major growth engine in this century. And the might of New Delhi can be enhanced if links are established with other countries at a micro-level.

That can only happen through the all-important Indian diaspora.

They are a vital cog in the wheel for India's engagement with the world. Put simply - the Indian diaspora is a force to contend with in several countries and that is 'Advantage India'. 
 
(Disclaimer: WION Edit is the channel's take on the big events of the world)

The multiple attempts to woo members of the Indian community during Canada's elections are part of a larger pattern. On WION Edit, we examine the role of the Indian diaspora in global politics.

The multiple attempts to woo members of the Indian community during Canada's elections are part of a larger pattern. On WION Edit, we examine the role of the Indian diaspora in global politics. Let's start with some numbers. According to data from the United Nations, the Indian diaspora is the largest in the world, estimated at 17.5 million people. And the bulk of the diaspora comprises second-generation immigrants. They now play a crucial role in influencing the political and economic policies of their respective home countries. The economic impact of their role is already showing. India is the highest recipient of remittances, the bulk of them coming from the Gulf countries. Besides, they are a crucial vote bank in several countries like Canada and the United Kingdom. They already hold prominent political positions. Previous Indian governments did not always harness the strength of the Indian diaspora. But the current government has made it a priority to highlight the soft power of the Indian diaspora. Events like the recently held 'Howdy Modi' in Houston exemplify this conscious stance. Let's look at the numbers. According to the United States Census, the Indian diaspora outpaces all other ethnic groups in terms of socio-economic status. They account for over 6 per cent of physicians, are educated and have a high household income. In fact, the Indian diaspora is often seen as a 'model minority' not just in the US, but in other parts of the world as well. They own several businesses in these countries. And their political representation is also ever-increasing. A strong engagement between the government and Indian diaspora also helps in another way -- it forces foreign governments to look at the Indian diaspora as not just a vote bank, but a crucial part of the decision-making process. And that, in turn, would lend strength to the government on crucial issues. In a complex geopolitical scenario, this will be handy for India. But there is an important distinction to make. As we saw in the Canada elections and as we often see in the United Kingdom, several parties pretend to appease exclusionary and extremist tendencies among sections of the diaspora to win votes. These efforts could be harmful in the future. The only way - the government can stay clear of this attempted intervention is by ensuring constructive engagement with the diaspora -- at a larger level. India is going to be a major growth engine in this century. And the might of New Delhi can be enhanced if links are established with other countries at a micro-level. That can only happen through the all-important Indian diaspora. They are a vital cog in the wheel for India's engagement with the world. Put simply - the Indian diaspora is a force to contend with in several countries and that is 'Advantage India'. (Disclaimer: WION Edit is the channel's take on the big events of the world)

WION Edit: Indian diaspora a vital cog in wheel for India's engagement with world

Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated his<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/canada-election-pm-justin-trudeau-returns-to-power-says-voters-rejected-negativity-257453"> Canadian counterpart Justin Trudeau</a> on Tuesday over his victory in the federal parliamentary elections.

PM Modi took to Twitter to extend his wishes and also posted a picture of himself with Trudeau and&nbsp;his family.

"Congratulations @JustinTrudeau! India and Canada are connected by shared values and a strong commitment to democracy as well as plurality. Looking forward to working together to further strengthen bilateral relations, " the tweet read.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Congratulations <a href="https://twitter.com/JustinTrudeau?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JustinTrudeau</a>! 
 
India and Canada are connected by shared values and a strong commitment to democracy as well as plurality. 
 
Looking forward to working together to further strengthen bilateral relations. <a href="https://t.co/8zYvyuixCw">pic.twitter.com/8zYvyuixCw</a>
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) <a href="https://twitter.com/narendramodi/status/1186633609748238336?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 22, 2019</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">×</a></div>

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will remain in power but with a minority government that will require the support of a smaller left-leaning party after a hard-fought election in which he was dogged by scandals.

Trudeau's Liberal party were leading in 156 out of 338 seats in Monday's (October 21) vote, according to Elections Canada. The party still falls short of the required 170 seats needed for a second straight majority government.

Trudeau, who took power in 2015 as a charismatic figure promising "sunny ways," saw his popularity drop over old photos of him in blackface and his handling of a corporate corruption case.&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated his Canadian counterpart Justin Trudeau on Tuesday over his victory in the federal parliamentary elections. PM Modi took to Twitter to extend his wishes and also posted a picture of himself with Trudeau and his family.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated his Canadian counterpart Justin Trudeau on Tuesday over his victory in the federal parliamentary elections. PM Modi took to Twitter to extend his wishes and also posted a picture of himself with Trudeau and his family. "Congratulations @JustinTrudeau! India and Canada are connected by shared values and a strong commitment to democracy as well as plurality. Looking forward to working together to further strengthen bilateral relations, " the tweet read. Congratulations @JustinTrudeau! India and Canada are connected by shared values and a strong commitment to democracy as well as plurality. Looking forward to working together to further strengthen bilateral relations. pic.twitter.com/8zYvyuixCw — Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) October 22, 2019 × Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will remain in power but with a minority government that will require the support of a smaller left-leaning party after a hard-fought election in which he was dogged by scandals. Trudeau's Liberal party were leading in 156 out of 338 seats in Monday's (October 21) vote, according to Elections Canada. The party still falls short of the required 170 seats needed for a second straight majority government. Trudeau, who took power in 2015 as a charismatic figure promising "sunny ways," saw his popularity drop over old photos of him in blackface and his handling of a corporate corruption case.

PM Modi congratulates Justin Trudeau over election victory

By Jeremy Wildeman

Canada’s federal election campaign highlighted a struggle that caught the world by surprise. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was on the ropes throughout the campaign, just four years after his meteoric rise to power and global fandom, even though he ultimately managed to win a minority government.

His struggles did not come as much of a surprise for Canadian progressives, however, who first helped propel him to those heights four years ago.

Trudeau came to power with incredible fanfare after an election victory in October 2015 that saw Stephen Harper’s Conservatives voted out.

Trudeau returned his party to power with a majority government by appealing to an electorate that was more than weary of almost a decade of right-wing Conservative rule.

The world sat up and took notice, in part because Trudeau’s famous father, Pierre, had been swept to power in a similar fashion in 1968 amid a wave of what was known as Trudeaumania.

Pierre Elliott Trudeau also had a progressive platform and, for a time, enjoyed a rock star-like popularity among Canadians.

That victory more than 50 years ago laid the foundation for 16 years of nearly uninterrupted Liberal rule under Pierre Trudeau, who was the architect of multiculturalism in Canada and further committed the country to peace-building and a rules-based international system.

It’s a vision many Canadians came to embrace, but one that Harper’s Conservatives, in power from 2006 to 2015, seemed determined to systematically replace. In this way, the election of Justin Trudeau seemed for many to be a repudiation of the Harper agenda and a return to the normalcy of Canada’s past.

Canada is back

At first, Trudeau seemed unable to disappoint. He could not have appeared a starker contrast from Harper, regarded by many Canadians as cold and uncharismatic. Youthful, charming and handsome, Trudeau’s progressive messaging immediately stood apart from Harper’s. His policies appeared to do so, too.

This included immediately opening Canada up to tens of thousands of Syrian refugees, which Harper had initially appeared reluctant to do. Trudeau even went to Toronto’s airport to welcome some of the first refugees, saying: “You are home.”

Trudeau’s Liberals emphasised a multicultural Canada that would be open to refugees. This diversity would be represented in their government, too. In contrast to some Conservative leadership candidates’ embrace of Islamophobia and a “barbaric cultural practices tip line,” Trudeau’s government included a record number of Muslim MPs. Trudeau also became the first Canadian prime minister to march in a Pride parade.

Trudeau ran in 2015 on a message of environmental protection, support for Indigenous nations in Canada and global feminism. This included instituting a feminist foreign policy agenda and a reorientation of Canada’s development aid programming on a Feminist International Assistance Policy. When asked why he established gender parity for his first cabinet, he famously retorted: “Because it’s 2015.”

His government legalized cannabis sales and reversed Harper’s anti-science restrictions on research. It increased immigration quotas and reasserted Canadian support for multilateral institutions and international law. This seemed like a return to form for Canada on the international stage and Trudeau emphasized this by saying: “Canada is back.”

Canadians largely seemed happy with his leadership and his government rode high in the polls. His popularity only seemed to skyrocket at home and abroad with the election of Donald Trump as president of the United States in 2016.

For liberals around the world, Trudeau seemed to represent everything the new president was not. Before long, Trudeau became a global symbol in the worldwide struggle against the rise of authoritarianism, populism and white nationalism.

Foreign policy questions

So what happened? Why did Trudeau have to fight for his political life this election against the Conservatives, the New Democratic Party and a resurgent Bloc Québécois, a separatist party that only runs candidates in Québec?

As often happens in Canada, questions about Trudeau’s progressive credentials arose in the Middle East.

Being progressive in Canada often includes support for Palestinian rights. This was in part a result of Harper’s very partisan pro-Israel approach to governance, which included a crackdown on Canadian advocates for Palestinian rights.

Though Trudeau’s Liberals did reinvest funds that Harper’s Conservatives cut from Palestinian refugees, progressives quickly noticed how Trudeau and his government would go out of their way to attack Canadians who advocated for Palestinian rights. This was accompanied by robust diplomatic support for the policies of the right-wing Benjamin Netanyahu in Israel, who was the antithesis of everything Trudeau was supposed to represent.

In region after region, Liberal foreign policy appeared to come out of the Harper playbook. This included Canada’s participation in a campaign to force regime change in oil-rich Venezuela and approving record weapons sales to a notorious human rights violator, Saudi Arabia, as it wages a brutal war in Yemen.

Even Trudeau’s feminist foreign policy seemed hollow.

What good did it do for Yemeni women whose communities are being destroyed with Canadian weapons, Palestinian women shot for protesting the blockade on Gaza or Venezuelan women impoverished by a Canadian-backed economic blockade?

The death of a brand

From his rapid retreat from a campaign pledge for proportional electoral representation to his odd fascination with fancy dress and concerns about the sincerity of his progressive credentials, cumulative questions arose about Trudeau domestically.

Two particular events, though, were critical to undoing his progressive brand.

First was his government’s $4.5 billion purchase of the Trans Mountain pipeline from U.S.-based corporation Kinder Morgan. This was highly unpopular with environmentalists and the First Nations communities it would run through. This raised serious questions about Trudeau’s commitment to fighting climate change and helping Indigenous Peoples, too.

Second was his government’s attempt to halt criminal proceedings into Québec-based engineering firm SNC-Lavalin for overseas corruption. This led to the resignation from cabinet of Jody Wilson-Raybould, Canada’s first Indigenous minister of justice.

She complained she was pressured into considering a deferred prosecution agreement for SNC-Lavalin, and was joined in solidarity in her departure from cabinet by another of Trudeau’s most prominent female ministers, Jane Philpott.

Both were then pushed out of the Liberal caucus, topping off a scandal that raised questions about Trudeau’s commitment to corporate good governance, women’s empowerment and Indigenous leadership.

The campaign trail emergence of images of a younger Trudeau in blackface was also shocking to progressive voters. The photos decidedly tarnished his image, both at home and abroad.

Progressives looking elsewhere

Canada is a diverse country with a diverse electorate. Many Canadian voters, and the core Liberal constituency, still supported Trudeau. This kept him relevant in the 2019 election campaign. A late campaign endorsement by former US&nbsp;President Barack Obama also served as a reminder of what Trudeau still symbolizes to many liberals around the world.

Though Trudeau’s struggles may seem surprising, the inability of his government to truly address deep structural inequalities and income insecurity in Canada fits a pattern of the fracturing of the political landscape of nearly every other liberal democracy. This plagued Obama’s administration as well.

Having a family name and background that symbolizes privilege, in a world where wealth inequality and nepotism have become such divisive topics, hasn’t helped Trudeau.

Dissatisfied with Trudeau, some of Canada’s large progressive electorate, as well as Québec voters, began to look elsewhere —to the New Democrats and the Greens, and in Québec, to the resurgent Bloc Québécois, which took particular advantage of Trudeau’s missteps on the environment.

Trudeau had problems this election because he lost part of the progressive base that put him over the top in 2015, and because the Bloc turned out to be a bigger force in vote-rich Québec than expected.

 
(Jeremy Wildeman is Research Associate in International Development, University of Bath)

(This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/justin-trudeaus-political-setback-a-surprise-to-the-world-but-not-to-canada-125422">original article</a>)

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL) &nbsp;

 
&nbsp;

By Jeremy Wildeman Canada’s federal election campaign highlighted a struggle that caught the world by surprise. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was on the ropes throughout the campaign, just four years after his meteoric rise to power and global fandom, even though he ultimately managed to win a minority government.

By Jeremy Wildeman Canada’s federal election campaign highlighted a struggle that caught the world by surprise. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was on the ropes throughout the campaign, just four years after his meteoric rise to power and global fandom, even though he ultimately managed to win a minority government. His struggles did not come as much of a surprise for Canadian progressives, however, who first helped propel him to those heights four years ago. Trudeau came to power with incredible fanfare after an election victory in October 2015 that saw Stephen Harper’s Conservatives voted out. Trudeau returned his party to power with a majority government by appealing to an electorate that was more than weary of almost a decade of right-wing Conservative rule. The world sat up and took notice, in part because Trudeau’s famous father, Pierre, had been swept to power in a similar fashion in 1968 amid a wave of what was known as Trudeaumania. Pierre Elliott Trudeau also had a progressive platform and, for a time, enjoyed a rock star-like popularity among Canadians. That victory more than 50 years ago laid the foundation for 16 years of nearly uninterrupted Liberal rule under Pierre Trudeau, who was the architect of multiculturalism in Canada and further committed the country to peace-building and a rules-based international system. It’s a vision many Canadians came to embrace, but one that Harper’s Conservatives, in power from 2006 to 2015, seemed determined to systematically replace. In this way, the election of Justin Trudeau seemed for many to be a repudiation of the Harper agenda and a return to the normalcy of Canada’s past. Canada is back At first, Trudeau seemed unable to disappoint. He could not have appeared a starker contrast from Harper, regarded by many Canadians as cold and uncharismatic. Youthful, charming and handsome, Trudeau’s progressive messaging immediately stood apart from Harper’s. His policies appeared to do so, too. This included immediately opening Canada up to tens of thousands of Syrian refugees, which Harper had initially appeared reluctant to do. Trudeau even went to Toronto’s airport to welcome some of the first refugees, saying: “You are home.” Trudeau’s Liberals emphasised a multicultural Canada that would be open to refugees. This diversity would be represented in their government, too. In contrast to some Conservative leadership candidates’ embrace of Islamophobia and a “barbaric cultural practices tip line,” Trudeau’s government included a record number of Muslim MPs. Trudeau also became the first Canadian prime minister to march in a Pride parade. Trudeau ran in 2015 on a message of environmental protection, support for Indigenous nations in Canada and global feminism. This included instituting a feminist foreign policy agenda and a reorientation of Canada’s development aid programming on a Feminist International Assistance Policy. When asked why he established gender parity for his first cabinet, he famously retorted: “Because it’s 2015.” His government legalized cannabis sales and reversed Harper’s anti-science restrictions on research. It increased immigration quotas and reasserted Canadian support for multilateral institutions and international law. This seemed like a return to form for Canada on the international stage and Trudeau emphasized this by saying: “Canada is back.” Canadians largely seemed happy with his leadership and his government rode high in the polls. His popularity only seemed to skyrocket at home and abroad with the election of Donald Trump as president of the United States in 2016. For liberals around the world, Trudeau seemed to represent everything the new president was not. Before long, Trudeau became a global symbol in the worldwide struggle against the rise of authoritarianism, populism and white nationalism. Foreign policy questions So what happened? Why did Trudeau have to fight for his political life this election against the Conservatives, the New Democratic Party and a resurgent Bloc Québécois, a separatist party that only runs candidates in Québec? As often happens in Canada, questions about Trudeau’s progressive credentials arose in the Middle East. Being progressive in Canada often includes support for Palestinian rights. This was in part a result of Harper’s very partisan pro-Israel approach to governance, which included a crackdown on Canadian advocates for Palestinian rights. Though Trudeau’s Liberals did reinvest funds that Harper’s Conservatives cut from Palestinian refugees, progressives quickly noticed how Trudeau and his government would go out of their way to attack Canadians who advocated for Palestinian rights. This was accompanied by robust diplomatic support for the policies of the right-wing Benjamin Netanyahu in Israel, who was the antithesis of everything Trudeau was supposed to represent. In region after region, Liberal foreign policy appeared to come out of the Harper playbook. This included Canada’s participation in a campaign to force regime change in oil-rich Venezuela and approving record weapons sales to a notorious human rights violator, Saudi Arabia, as it wages a brutal war in Yemen. Even Trudeau’s feminist foreign policy seemed hollow. What good did it do for Yemeni women whose communities are being destroyed with Canadian weapons, Palestinian women shot for protesting the blockade on Gaza or Venezuelan women impoverished by a Canadian-backed economic blockade? The death of a brand From his rapid retreat from a campaign pledge for proportional electoral representation to his odd fascination with fancy dress and concerns about the sincerity of his progressive credentials, cumulative questions arose about Trudeau domestically. Two particular events, though, were critical to undoing his progressive brand. First was his government’s $4.5 billion purchase of the Trans Mountain pipeline from U.S.-based corporation Kinder Morgan. This was highly unpopular with environmentalists and the First Nations communities it would run through. This raised serious questions about Trudeau’s commitment to fighting climate change and helping Indigenous Peoples, too. Second was his government’s attempt to halt criminal proceedings into Québec-based engineering firm SNC-Lavalin for overseas corruption. This led to the resignation from cabinet of Jody Wilson-Raybould, Canada’s first Indigenous minister of justice. She complained she was pressured into considering a deferred prosecution agreement for SNC-Lavalin, and was joined in solidarity in her departure from cabinet by another of Trudeau’s most prominent female ministers, Jane Philpott. Both were then pushed out of the Liberal caucus, topping off a scandal that raised questions about Trudeau’s commitment to corporate good governance, women’s empowerment and Indigenous leadership. The campaign trail emergence of images of a younger Trudeau in blackface was also shocking to progressive voters. The photos decidedly tarnished his image, both at home and abroad. Progressives looking elsewhere Canada is a diverse country with a diverse electorate. Many Canadian voters, and the core Liberal constituency, still supported Trudeau. This kept him relevant in the 2019 election campaign. A late campaign endorsement by former US President Barack Obama also served as a reminder of what Trudeau still symbolizes to many liberals around the world. Though Trudeau’s struggles may seem surprising, the inability of his government to truly address deep structural inequalities and income insecurity in Canada fits a pattern of the fracturing of the political landscape of nearly every other liberal democracy. This plagued Obama’s administration as well. Having a family name and background that symbolizes privilege, in a world where wealth inequality and nepotism have become such divisive topics, hasn’t helped Trudeau. Dissatisfied with Trudeau, some of Canada’s large progressive electorate, as well as Québec voters, began to look elsewhere —to the New Democrats and the Greens, and in Québec, to the resurgent Bloc Québécois, which took particular advantage of Trudeau’s missteps on the environment. Trudeau had problems this election because he lost part of the progressive base that put him over the top in 2015, and because the Bloc turned out to be a bigger force in vote-rich Québec than expected. (Jeremy Wildeman is Research Associate in International Development, University of Bath) (This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article) (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Justin Trudeau’s political setback: A surprise to the world, but not to Canada

Canadians began voting on Monday to determine whether Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who swept into office four years ago as a charismatic figure promising "sunny ways," will remain in power after two major scandals.

Canadians began voting on Monday to determine whether Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who swept into office four years ago as a charismatic figure promising "sunny ways," will remain in power after two major scandals. Polls opened in the Atlantic province of Newfoundland, with voting set to end in the Pacific Coast province of British Columbia at 7pm (0200 GMT on Tuesday). Trudeau, 47, the Liberal Party leader, was endorsed by former Democratic US President Barack Obama in the final stretch of the campaign and is viewed as one of the last remaining progressive leaders among the world's major democracies. But he was shaken during the campaign by a blackface scandal and has been dogged by criticism of his handling of a corruption case involving a major Canadian construction company. Trudeau, the son of former Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, has also had to overcome a sense of fatigue with his government. Trudeau, accompanied by his wife and three children, voted in Montreal on Monday after a marathon sprint campaigning across the country in the past four days. His Liberals and the main opposition Conservatives led by Andrew Scheer are in a neck-and-neck race, according to opinion polls. "The truth is it's a coin toss right now," said Ipsos pollster Darrell Bricker. A year ago, no one would have predicted that Trudeau risked being the first prime minister since the 1930s to secure a parliamentary majority and then fail to win a second term. The latest opinion polls suggest he may narrowly avert that result and could return to office with a minority in the 338-seat House of Commons. That would still leave Trudeau in a weakened position and needing the support of left-leaning opposition parties to push through key pieces of legislation. The Canadian dollar was trading at a new three-month high on Monday, where "domestic attention is squarely on the 43rd federal election today," said Shaun Osborne, chief market strategist at Scotiabank in Toronto. "After some noise around the vote, we think FX players will refocus attention on the Bank of Canada policy outlook, the Fed and international backdrop pretty quickly," he said. Despite Scheer's dimpled smile, Trudeau's main rival has proven to be a determined opponent. "He can't even remember how many times he put blackface on, because the fact of the matter is he's always wearing a mask," Scheer said during a debate. "Mr. Trudeau, you are a phony and you are a fraud and you do not deserve to govern this country." In his bid to unseat Trudeau, Scheer is also promising to balance the federal budget and eliminate a "carbon tax" on fossil fuels. Scheer, 40, is running his first campaign as party leader after winning a bitter Conservative leadership fight in 2017. Bumpy campaign ride The six-week official campaign period has been a rough and meandering ride with dirty tactics on both sides. The liberal image of Trudeau, who has championed diversity as prime minister and whose father opened up the country to mass immigration, took a severe blow when pictures emerged early in the campaign of him wearing blackface in the early 1990s and in 2001. Trudeau had already been wrestling with the fallout from accusations he pressured his justice minister to help shield engineering firm SNC-Lavalin Group Inc <SNC.TO> from corruption charges. In August, a top watchdog said Trudeau breached ethics rules. Given the fact that neither of the front-runners could come away with a parliamentary majority, it is the smaller left-leaning New Democratic Party (NDP) or the separatist Bloc Quebecois that could end up holding the balance of power. "I am a lifelong Liberal voter and I am stumped on this one, mostly because I am really concerned about a Conservative win and just trying to figure out how to vote strategically," said Kristin Street, 33, a strategy manager at a computer games company, in Port Moody, British Columbia. EKOS Research pollster Frank Graves said Liberals needed turnout to be similar to four years ago or otherwise the Conservatives may have an edge. "We may well be waiting until the final vote tallies in British Columbia to see who will win on Monday," Graves said.

Canada votes as Trudeau, his 'sunny ways' dimmed by scandals, seeks to retain power

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/canadian-pm-trudeau-dissolves-parliament-launches-campaign-for-october-21-election-249077">election campaign</a> team were on the way to the airport in Nova Scotia on Sept. 18 when Time magazine journalists called with alarming news.

Within hours, the magazine would publish a picture that could doom his bid to win another four years in power. The 2001 image showed a 29-year-old Trudeau at an Arabian Nights party, his face covered in dark makeup, evoking racial stereotypes that seemed contrary to everything he stood for.

Parked on the Halifax airport tarmac that Wednesday, as campaign planners pushed for a timely departure to Winnipeg, Trudeau’s closest aides nixed the idea of spending the next four hours in the air. Then and there, they would scramble to get ahead of the explosive story.

The election was a month away.

While some aides prepared a contrite message for Trudeau to deliver to the media, the 47-year-old prime minister began calling&nbsp;as many Liberal legislators and cabinet ministers from ethnic minorities as he could, hoping to beat the news on Twitter. One was Omar Alghabra, a Liberal parliamentarian of Syrian descent, who said that Trudeau's heads-up came with profuse apologies.

Still, in the plane, Trudeau&nbsp;called a nationally televised media conference at which he not only <a href="https://www.wionews.com/opinions/justin-trudeaus-blackface-apology-rings-hollow-and-highlights-anti-arab-stereotypes-251432">apologized repeatedly</a> but also admitted to another incident of donning dark make-up.

Interviews with that confidant and five other aides and strategists&nbsp;show how a hastily but carefully choreographed strategy over the ensuing week aimed to quickly rehabilitate the prime minister’s image before the damage gelled. None of the six who spoke to Reuters agreed to be named, citing the sensitivity of the situation. No one connected to the campaign would speak on the record.

"You can't dodge, you can't spin. You just have to put him out there and let people shout at him if they want to," said one Liberal aide who helped craft the strategy.

Whether the strategy to quickly apologize was the right one remains to be seen: Polls showed Trudeau’s popularity dipping in the immediate aftermath of the revelations before recovering. Since then, however, surveys of public opinion show the Liberals will be lucky to eke out even a weak minority government and could lose to the official opposition Conservatives led by Andrew Scheer.&nbsp;

"We won't know the effect of the pictures until election day," said a senior Trudeau adviser. "People might decide that however much they support us, they can't vote Liberal because of this."

Liberal officials say lower voter turnout among Trudeau's supporters is a major risk.

In response to questions for this article, Conservative campaign spokesman Daniel Schow said the Liberal’s campaign strategy hasn’t worked.

“Justin Trudeau has spent the last four years lecturing Canadians about social and diversity issues with a holier-than-thou attitude. There’s no way to spin hypocrisy. Canadians now realize that Justin Trudeau is not as advertised."

Scheer, the Conservative leader, said at a news conference on Sept 19 that Trudeau had not been sincere in his apology or fully truthful about his past. He cited a video in which Trudeau was captured dancing in blackface. Trudeau told reporters he had not remembered the 1990s incident.

“I think Canadians might have accepted Justin Trudeau’s apology if he hadn’t lied about it," Sheer said at the news conference. “I think he has lost the moral authority to govern.”

Inside the Trudeau camp, three people took charge of damage control: Former journalist Ben Chin, who had been chief of staff to the finance minister and was now in charge of messaging; Cyrus Reporter,&nbsp;a long-time Trudeau ally and former chief of staff when Trudeau was in opposition; and current chief of staff Katie Telford, one of his closest confidants.

Working with Ottawa-based officials, the trio were crucial in devising the response in the hours and days to come,&nbsp;the sources told Reuters. Chin and Reporter, brought on a few months earlier, both were experienced in crisis management.

The&nbsp;approach: Be open, remorseful and solicitous of questions from the public and the media. Take a break from campaigning-as-usual. And draw the air out of the issue as early as possible ahead of the Oct 21 election.

Scott Reid, chief spokesman for former Liberal prime minister Paul Martin, said the quick apology was the right track: “Waiting to compose your thoughts and seeing how the dust settles is evidence of people who are perhaps not thoroughly motivated by the right instincts.”

Cabinet ministers – including those from ethnic minorities – expressed disappointment with the revelations but pledged loyalty to Trudeau. Aides dismissed the idea that he was racist, noting he had been the driving force behind a decision to welcome around 40,000 Syrian refugees since taking power in November 2015.

But the crisis meant the Liberals had to temporarily toss their general-election playbook to the side. It had called for an aggressive campaign that painted the Conservative Party of Canada as a haven for racist, anti-gay and anti-abortion candidates while stressing measures to make life more affordable for Canadians.

That approach, the aides who spoke to Reuters said, had been intended to help the Liberals get around another obstacle: voter distrust after Canada's ethics watchdog formally reprimanded Trudeau and his top officials in August for inappropriately interfering in a corporate corruption case.

Trudeau’s plane took off for Winnipeg later that Wednesday, and according to one observer,&nbsp;he remained locked in conversation with Cyrus Reporter for much of the flight. Upon arrival, the prime minister and his team decamped to a different hotel than the traveling press corps and, unusually, had no communication with accompanying media for 12 hours.

For much of that time, Trudeau was in a room calling more Liberal parliamentarians and community leaders, said a Liberal aide familiar with the matter.

The aides decided to cancel a planned announcement on education that had been scheduled for the next day. Trudeau told aides he did not want to immediately pivot to a campaign announcement.&nbsp;“I don't want (speech) lines that say, 'I am very sorry for what happened, but here's something even more important,'" one person who helped draw up Trudeau's strategy recalled the prime minister saying.

His campaign news conferences usually run for 15 to 20 minutes, but that first day in Winnipeg, Trudeau overruled advisers, opting to speak at length in the middle of a public square "where we had no way of controlling who was present," according to one aide.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

For nearly an hour, reporters aggressively quizzed Trudeau on his thinking when he wore blackface, on whether there were other similar incidents and if he planned to resign.

Standing in front of hundreds of spectators, Trudeau again apologized for his "massive blind spot" and appealed for forgiveness.

Back on the campaign plane, he headed&nbsp;to the western city of Saskatoon, a planned nighttime rally of Liberal supporters was canceled and replaced by a town hall where anyone could ask whatever they wanted.

"We couldn't do a triumphant rally that night. We didn't know how people felt," said one campaign team member.

"A rally would have been highly inappropriate – he was in the penalty box,' said another Liberal directly involved with the campaign, referring to the temporary punishment meted out to ice hockey players.

After two days of apologies, however, Trudeau was ready to go&nbsp;back on the offensive. He rattled off four major policies in just three days, including an announcement Sept. 20 on gun control in Toronto.

The next day, the front page of the Globe and Mail national newspaper led on the guns measure rather than the black-face images.&nbsp;

Nanos Research pollster Nik Nanos, who describes himself as unaffiliated with any political party, said the Liberals were lucky that there was still time for their poll numbers to rise.

"If this had happened in the last week of the campaign, we'd be saying Prime Minister Andrew Scheer,” Nanos said.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his election campaign team were on the way to the airport in Nova Scotia on Sept. 18 when Time magazine journalists called with alarming news.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his election campaign team were on the way to the airport in Nova Scotia on Sept. 18 when Time magazine journalists called with alarming news. Within hours, the magazine would publish a picture that could doom his bid to win another four years in power. The 2001 image showed a 29-year-old Trudeau at an Arabian Nights party, his face covered in dark makeup, evoking racial stereotypes that seemed contrary to everything he stood for. Parked on the Halifax airport tarmac that Wednesday, as campaign planners pushed for a timely departure to Winnipeg, Trudeau’s closest aides nixed the idea of spending the next four hours in the air. Then and there, they would scramble to get ahead of the explosive story. The election was a month away. While some aides prepared a contrite message for Trudeau to deliver to the media, the 47-year-old prime minister began calling as many Liberal legislators and cabinet ministers from ethnic minorities as he could, hoping to beat the news on Twitter. One was Omar Alghabra, a Liberal parliamentarian of Syrian descent, who said that Trudeau's heads-up came with profuse apologies. Still, in the plane, Trudeau called a nationally televised media conference at which he not only apologized repeatedly but also admitted to another incident of donning dark make-up. Interviews with that confidant and five other aides and strategists show how a hastily but carefully choreographed strategy over the ensuing week aimed to quickly rehabilitate the prime minister’s image before the damage gelled. None of the six who spoke to Reuters agreed to be named, citing the sensitivity of the situation. No one connected to the campaign would speak on the record. "You can't dodge, you can't spin. You just have to put him out there and let people shout at him if they want to," said one Liberal aide who helped craft the strategy. Whether the strategy to quickly apologize was the right one remains to be seen: Polls showed Trudeau’s popularity dipping in the immediate aftermath of the revelations before recovering. Since then, however, surveys of public opinion show the Liberals will be lucky to eke out even a weak minority government and could lose to the official opposition Conservatives led by Andrew Scheer. "We won't know the effect of the pictures until election day," said a senior Trudeau adviser. "People might decide that however much they support us, they can't vote Liberal because of this." Liberal officials say lower voter turnout among Trudeau's supporters is a major risk. In response to questions for this article, Conservative campaign spokesman Daniel Schow said the Liberal’s campaign strategy hasn’t worked. “Justin Trudeau has spent the last four years lecturing Canadians about social and diversity issues with a holier-than-thou attitude. There’s no way to spin hypocrisy. Canadians now realize that Justin Trudeau is not as advertised." Scheer, the Conservative leader, said at a news conference on Sept 19 that Trudeau had not been sincere in his apology or fully truthful about his past. He cited a video in which Trudeau was captured dancing in blackface. Trudeau told reporters he had not remembered the 1990s incident. “I think Canadians might have accepted Justin Trudeau’s apology if he hadn’t lied about it," Sheer said at the news conference. “I think he has lost the moral authority to govern.” Inside the Trudeau camp, three people took charge of damage control: Former journalist Ben Chin, who had been chief of staff to the finance minister and was now in charge of messaging; Cyrus Reporter, a long-time Trudeau ally and former chief of staff when Trudeau was in opposition; and current chief of staff Katie Telford, one of his closest confidants. Working with Ottawa-based officials, the trio were crucial in devising the response in the hours and days to come, the sources told Reuters. Chin and Reporter, brought on a few months earlier, both were experienced in crisis management. The approach: Be open, remorseful and solicitous of questions from the public and the media. Take a break from campaigning-as-usual. And draw the air out of the issue as early as possible ahead of the Oct 21 election. Scott Reid, chief spokesman for former Liberal prime minister Paul Martin, said the quick apology was the right track: “Waiting to compose your thoughts and seeing how the dust settles is evidence of people who are perhaps not thoroughly motivated by the right instincts.” Cabinet ministers – including those from ethnic minorities – expressed disappointment with the revelations but pledged loyalty to Trudeau. Aides dismissed the idea that he was racist, noting he had been the driving force behind a decision to welcome around 40,000 Syrian refugees since taking power in November 2015. But the crisis meant the Liberals had to temporarily toss their general-election playbook to the side. It had called for an aggressive campaign that painted the Conservative Party of Canada as a haven for racist, anti-gay and anti-abortion candidates while stressing measures to make life more affordable for Canadians. That approach, the aides who spoke to Reuters said, had been intended to help the Liberals get around another obstacle: voter distrust after Canada's ethics watchdog formally reprimanded Trudeau and his top officials in August for inappropriately interfering in a corporate corruption case. Trudeau’s plane took off for Winnipeg later that Wednesday, and according to one observer, he remained locked in conversation with Cyrus Reporter for much of the flight. Upon arrival, the prime minister and his team decamped to a different hotel than the traveling press corps and, unusually, had no communication with accompanying media for 12 hours. For much of that time, Trudeau was in a room calling more Liberal parliamentarians and community leaders, said a Liberal aide familiar with the matter. The aides decided to cancel a planned announcement on education that had been scheduled for the next day. Trudeau told aides he did not want to immediately pivot to a campaign announcement. “I don't want (speech) lines that say, 'I am very sorry for what happened, but here's something even more important,'" one person who helped draw up Trudeau's strategy recalled the prime minister saying. His campaign news conferences usually run for 15 to 20 minutes, but that first day in Winnipeg, Trudeau overruled advisers, opting to speak at length in the middle of a public square "where we had no way of controlling who was present," according to one aide. For nearly an hour, reporters aggressively quizzed Trudeau on his thinking when he wore blackface, on whether there were other similar incidents and if he planned to resign. Standing in front of hundreds of spectators, Trudeau again apologized for his "massive blind spot" and appealed for forgiveness. Back on the campaign plane, he headed to the western city of Saskatoon, a planned nighttime rally of Liberal supporters was canceled and replaced by a town hall where anyone could ask whatever they wanted. "We couldn't do a triumphant rally that night. We didn't know how people felt," said one campaign team member. "A rally would have been highly inappropriate – he was in the penalty box,' said another Liberal directly involved with the campaign, referring to the temporary punishment meted out to ice hockey players. After two days of apologies, however, Trudeau was ready to go back on the offensive. He rattled off four major policies in just three days, including an announcement Sept. 20 on gun control in Toronto. The next day, the front page of the Globe and Mail national newspaper led on the guns measure rather than the black-face images. Nanos Research pollster Nik Nanos, who describes himself as unaffiliated with any political party, said the Liberals were lucky that there was still time for their poll numbers to rise. "If this had happened in the last week of the campaign, we'd be saying Prime Minister Andrew Scheer,” Nanos said.

How the Trudeau campaign scrambled to sidestep political disaster

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced he will take part in a <a href="https://www.wionews.com/entertainment/thank-you-greta-for-much-needed-punch-in-the-face-priyanka-chopra-252052">climate action march led by Swedish teen activist Greta Thunberg</a> -- as the environment emerges as a key election issue.

His main rival Conservative leader Andrew Scheer will be campaigning in Vancouver, but Friday's rally in Montreal is expected to draw local Tory candidates as well as Trudeau.

Trudeau, who faces elections October 21, paddled up in a canoe Thursday in Sudbury, Ontario to make announce he would be marching in Montreal with thousands of other Canadians to "fight for the environment."

"There has been an extraordinary amount of mobilisation by young people and by Canadians across this country and indeed around the world calling for real action on climate change," he said.

Watch: Greta Thunberg steals the show at UN climate summit

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The Montreal event coincides with similar so-called "climate strikes" around the globe.

Schools, colleges and universities have suspended classes for the day, and the city government has encouraged staff to take the day off.

Thunberg, 16, on Monday accused world leaders in a rousing "How Dare You?" speech at the UN climate summit of betraying her generation.

"You have stolen my dreams and my childhood with your empty words," she thundered, visibly angry and close to tears.

The teen has spurred millions of youths to protest, drawn by her steely determination despite her years.

Organisers said Thunberg also will take aim at airlines' skyrocketing CO2 emissions in a speech outside the UN aviation agency in Montreal, which is holding its annual conference.

The International Civil Aviation Organisation's 193 member states this week are taking stock of the implementation of a climate plan unveiled at its last general assembly in 2016.

Aviation accounts for about two per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions, according to the ICAO.

Under its so-called Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA), participating airlines are expected to stabilise their CO2 emissions by 2020, and buy offsetting credits thereafter if they exceed set limits.

Thunberg sailed across the Atlantic for the UN climate summit in New York specifically to avoid flying.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced he will take part in a climate action march led by Swedish teen activist Greta Thunberg -- as the environment emerges as a key election issue.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced he will take part in a climate action march led by Swedish teen activist Greta Thunberg -- as the environment emerges as a key election issue. His main rival Conservative leader Andrew Scheer will be campaigning in Vancouver, but Friday's rally in Montreal is expected to draw local Tory candidates as well as Trudeau. Trudeau, who faces elections October 21, paddled up in a canoe Thursday in Sudbury, Ontario to make announce he would be marching in Montreal with thousands of other Canadians to "fight for the environment." "There has been an extraordinary amount of mobilisation by young people and by Canadians across this country and indeed around the world calling for real action on climate change," he said. Watch: Greta Thunberg steals the show at UN climate summit × The Montreal event coincides with similar so-called "climate strikes" around the globe. Schools, colleges and universities have suspended classes for the day, and the city government has encouraged staff to take the day off. Thunberg, 16, on Monday accused world leaders in a rousing "How Dare You?" speech at the UN climate summit of betraying her generation. "You have stolen my dreams and my childhood with your empty words," she thundered, visibly angry and close to tears. The teen has spurred millions of youths to protest, drawn by her steely determination despite her years. Organisers said Thunberg also will take aim at airlines' skyrocketing CO2 emissions in a speech outside the UN aviation agency in Montreal, which is holding its annual conference. The International Civil Aviation Organisation's 193 member states this week are taking stock of the implementation of a climate plan unveiled at its last general assembly in 2016. Aviation accounts for about two per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions, according to the ICAO. Under its so-called Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA), participating airlines are expected to stabilise their CO2 emissions by 2020, and buy offsetting credits thereafter if they exceed set limits. Thunberg sailed across the Atlantic for the UN climate summit in New York specifically to avoid flying.

Canada's Trudeau to march with climate activist Greta Thunberg

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