Two Atlantic premiers resign amid Canada's economic turmoil

HALIFAX, NS, Feb. 26, 2025 – Two Atlantic premiers have stepped down from their positions ahead of the imposition of new U.S. tariffs and a federal election.

Last week, Progressive Conservative Dennis King resigned as premier of Prince Edward Island, and on Tuesday, Liberal Andrew Furey announced that he was calling it quits as premier of Newfoundland and Labrador.

While King and Furey are leaving in the middle of economic upheaval, they both stressed how long the battle will be between Canada and the U.S., noted Don Desserud, a P.E.I. political analyst. Four years of U.S. President Donald Trump combined with a new federal government on the horizon are significant changes that seem to have prompted the premiers to say “it’s time for someone to take this on,” Desserud said.

At King’s resignation press conference, he said “there is no perfect time” to step down, but the dynamics at play with the U.S. are “not simple issues” that will be fixed in a matter of days or weeks. A choked-up King described the challenges his family has faced during his tenure as premier, and while answering questions from reporters, highlighted his mental health challenges. 

Furey, who is leaving politics to go back to his previous career as a surgeon, made similar comments focusing on Trump. He told reporters, “I wish I could tell you this is a short-term concern … Unfortunately, it's the reality of not just the next four weeks or four months, but four years. But we have survived much worse."

Earlier this month, Furey and King joined the other Atlantic premiers to meet with top U.S. officials and discuss looming tariffs. Furey’s surprise resignation today indicates their reception wasn’t what he hoped for, said Desserud.

And while Furey’s recent Churchill Falls power station deal between Quebec and N.L. could be seen as building momentum for the former premier, Desserud said Furey’s sentiment seems to be more along the lines of: “I got that done.”

Following the deal, Desserud said Furey is thinking, “But what's act two? And act two is going to be more misery,” referring to four years of a Trump presidency. 

“They are looking ahead at the next four years and ... thinking that now it's time to think of what matters to them in terms of family and what kind of life they want to lead,” Desserud said.

“... It's an alarming situation where very capable politicians are realizing that this is not what they want to do, and that's rather foreboding.”

Desserud found King’s comments about his approach to government particularly revealing. King said his collaborative style was “perfect for the time, but I think politics is changing … and I think some of that change of approach might be easier for the party without me at the front of it.”

“I think that is the actual, real key to all of this,” Desserud said, noting King’s warming to Doug Ford, Ontario’s Progressive Conservative premier, who he had distanced himself from in the past.

“I think he really admires the way in which Doug has taken on the United States. And he thinks that the next premier of P.E.I. needs to be someone who's capable of doing that, and he doesn’t think that’s going to be him,” said Desserud. 

King said his government could lose $250 million in annual revenue if the U.S. goes through with its 25 per cent tariff on all Canadian imports. That amount of money is significant in a province with a population just shy of 180,000, which exports significant amounts from the fisheries, agriculture, pharmaceutical, bioscience and aerospace industries to the U.S.

Meanwhile, more than a third of Newfoundland and Labrador exports go to the U.S., and Furey said the tariffs could slash over 10,000 jobs from the province, which has a population of about 545,00 people.

Climate Policy in P.E.I

King leaves his position as premier with a complex climate legacy. P.E.I stands out as a province with lofty climate goals: it has vowed to hit net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2040, a decade earlier than the federally mandated date, and is a notable producer of wind energy. King, out of step with other Conservative premiers, called climate change "the seminal issue of our time."

However, King rallied against federal climate policy during his term. The province joined a unified campaign with its Atlantic counterparts against the carbon tax. The group launched a campaign called Fight the Federal Gas Hike, urging voters to visit its website and send a letter to their MP. The campaign also targeted federal clean fuel regulations, which require companies to gradually reduce the carbon content of their fuels.

Still, King stood out from the other Atlantic premiers at the time, such as then-New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs, a former Irving Oil executive. Meanwhile, Furey continued to push for his plan to double offshore oil production in N.L. by the end of the decade.

In P.E.I., longtime Progressive Conservative Rob Lantz has taken over as premier. Desserud said the party will likely take their time to pick a new leader, and expects a leadership race won’t kick off for at least a year. How Lantz will fare on the climate file compared to King remains to be seen, but will become clearer following his speech from the throne, though Desserud said he is “concerned” climate will fall low on the priority list after healthcare, housing and tariffs.

And while Lantz hasn’t spoken on the climate crisis like King, Sarah Outram, executive director of the P.E.I Coalition for Women's Leadership, notes that he is unlikely to unfurl existing climate policy. Ford did so when he came into office by cancelling 750 clean energy contracts expected to cost the province $231 million.

Outram, who has an environmental science background, notes that Lantz “had no issues acknowledging the impacts of climate” while on Charlottetown city council.

“There's some judgment and preconceived notions that come often with conservative leadership. But P.E.I. is an example that that's not a guarantee,” Outram said.

“Often, it depends on the individuals that are in there. We are a case where … they're certainly not ignoring it, which is excellent. They are speaking very rationally with evidence-based approaches toward it.”

Cloe Logan is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter in Halifax with Canada’s National Observer. Title image: Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Andrew Furey holds a news conference as his wife Allison looks on in St.John's, Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Paul Daly.