Just back from a whirlwind international tour taking selfies with adoring fans, dining with Queen Elizabeth II and vowing strong action on climate change, Canada’s new prime minister now faces big challenges at home, including a sluggish economy.
Justin Trudeau was cheered at summits in Paris, Turkey, Malta and the Philippines for his youthful good looks, rock star energy and bold statements on the need to slash greenhouse gas emissions and help Syrian refugees.
Trudeau, 43, has promised deeper cuts to carbon emissions than his Tory predecessor, Stephen Harper.
He has also said he will withdraw Canadian fighter jets from the US-led coalition fighting the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria, and has urged Canadians to open their homes to 25,000 Syrian refugees.
Now he must negotiate a national CO2 target with Canada’s regions, which share responsibility for the environment with Ottawa, and show allies he is still committed to the fight against the IS group.
Already, Trudeau has backpedalled on his promise to resettle 25,000 Syrian refugees by year’s end, citing logistical problems. Most will now arrive early next year.
As well, the new prime minister faces a hostile Senate and economic setbacks.
The challenge for the new government, as some political analysts have pointed out, is that the Liberals made a lot of promises and the ground seems to be shifting beneath them.
The economy exited a mild recession - triggered by a plunge in oil prices - in the third quarter ending September 30. But growth will remain weak through 2016, according to the government statistical agency.
Meanwhile, tens of thousands of oil sector workers are still unemployed.
Tory opposition leader Rona Ambrose has accused Trudeau’s Liberal party of already racking up deficits and spending recklessly after the parliamentary budget office rejected the new government’s fiscal outlook, saying it was too optimistic.
Ambrose is also critical of Trudeau’s decision to withdraw six fighter jets from the anti-IS coalition, saying Canada is “leaving our allies to do the heavy lifting”.
Publicly, allies have said they understood that Trudeau must fulfil his electoral commitment to withdraw the CF-18 fighter jets from the Middle East.
But Canada will undoubtedly face pressure to swap in other military capabilities in short order after France, Britain and the US stepped up their offensive against the IS group.
The third party in the House, the New Democratic Party, has been less critical of the Liberals - so far.
“We’re listening carefully when the new government says that it’s going to have a plan in 90 days, an ambitious plan to reduce greenhouse gases in Canada,” says its leader Thomas Mulcair.
He says the New Democrats will support measures to reduce CO2 emissions.
But getting all 13 provinces and territories to agree on a national climate plan will not be easy because their priorities differ and some rely on the oil and gas sector to fuel their economies.