Chrystia Freeland
Christina Alexandra Freeland PC MP (born August 2, 1968) is a Canadian politician serving as the tenth and current deputy prime minister of Canada since 2019 and the minister of finance since 2020. A member of the Liberal Party, Freeland represents the Toronto riding of University—Rosedale in the House of Commons. She was first appointed to Cabinet following the 2015 federal election.
The Honourable Chrystia Freeland PC MP | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Freeland in 2018 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10th Deputy Prime Minister of Canada | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Assumed office November 20, 2019 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Prime Minister | Justin Trudeau | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Anne McLellan (2006) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Minister of Finance | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Assumed office August 18, 2020 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Prime Minister | Justin Trudeau | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Bill Morneau | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Member of Parliament for University—Rosedale | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Assumed office October 19, 2015 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by | Riding established | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Personal details | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | Christina Alexandra Freeland August 2, 1968 Peace River, Alberta, Canada | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Political party | Liberal | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Spouse | Graham Bowley | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Children | A son and two daughters | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Relatives | Michael Chomiak (maternal grandfather) John-Paul Himka (uncle) Ged Baldwin (great-uncle) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Residence(s) | Summerhill, Toronto, Ontario | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Alma mater | Harvard University (BA) St Antony's College, Oxford (MSt) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Occupation |
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| Awards | Rhodes Scholarship (1993) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born in Peace River, Alberta, Freeland completed a bachelor's degree at Harvard University, studying Russian history and literature before earning a master's degree in Slavonic studies from the University of Oxford. She worked as a journalist in Ukraine and eventually held editorial positions at the Financial Times, The Globe and Mail and Reuters, becoming managing director of the latter. She also authored Sale of the Century: Russia's Wild Ride from Communism to Capitalism (2000) and Plutocrats: The Rise of the New Global Super Rich and the Fall of Everyone Else (2012).
Freeland became a member of Parliament (MP) following a 2013 by-election for Toronto Centre. After the 2015 federal election, Justin Trudeau formed his first government and she was named minister of international trade. Under her tenure, Canada negotiated the Canada–United States–Mexico Agreement and the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) with the European Union, earning her a promotion to minister of foreign affairs in 2017. She became deputy prime minister following the 2019 election, where she also became minister of intergovernmental affairs. In 2020, she was appointed as finance minister, becoming the first woman to hold the post. She presented her first federal budget in 2021, which introduced a national child care program, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2022, she was part of the federal response to the Canada convoy protest, which led to the first ever invocation of the Emergencies Act. She has played a critical role in the Canadian response to the Russo-Ukrainian War, including the implementation of sanctions on Russia and sending aid to Ukraine after the invasion in 2022.
Political commentators have given Freeland the informal title of "Minister of Everything", an honorific previously used for powerful 20th-century Liberal cabinet minister C. D. Howe. Freeland was described in 2019 as one of the most influential Cabinet ministers of Trudeau's premiership.