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“I am not leaving to spend more time with my family or because the burden of elected office is too heavy to bear,” she said of her impending departure as transport minister in Carney’s government.

Instead, she described politics as a “privilege not a sacrifice” for her and her family.

Freeland said she makes the move with “tremendous gratitude and a “little sadness” but made clear that after 12 years in federal politics she is ready to move on.

Three Liberal sources told the Star her decision was not one sought by Carney, who has few strong women in his trusted inner governing circle. Rather, they said, it was a personal decision that Freeland first approached Carney about around a month ago, seeking the right timing. 

She will not immediately step down as MP for University-Rosedale until her riding association is ready, said sources. But Freeland said she is leaving Canadian politics.

“A great strength of democracy is that no one holds political office in perpetuity. After 12 fulfilling years in public life, I know that now is the right time for me to make way for others and to seek fresh challenges for myself.”

Freeland’s exit, first reported by the Globe and Mail — her former journalistic home — was not entirely unexpected, unlike her fiery departure from Justin Trudeau’s cabinet last December that set in motion the resignation of the former prime minister.

Rumours have circulated in Ottawa she would be taking up a diplomatic post to open a safe seat for Carney to fill. However, sources disputed that characterization. In Ottawa, speculation continues that other former Trudeau-era ministers Bill Blair and Jonathon Wilkinson will take up diplomatic postings in London and the European Union, respectively.

In a statement posted on X in response to Freeland’s, Carney — who is godfather to Freeland’s son — commended Freeland for her “extraordinary service.” He also confirmed what two sources had told the Star — that she will not take up a formal diplomatic appointment but he has asked her to “serve as Canada’s new special representative for the reconstruction of Ukraine.”

“Thank you, Chrystia, for your dedication, many contributions to Canada, friendship, and continued partnership.

“Chrystia’s versatility, raw intelligence, and principled leadership have served Canadians with distinction through extraordinary challenges and changes,” Carney wrote. 

“Her leadership has helped to secure historic trade negotiations, to guide the response to a global pandemic, to complete early learning and child care agreements across Canada, and most recently to remove all federal barriers to internal trade.”

Freeland will work directly with Carney in her new political role but she will not receive a separate salary increase as special envoy, and will have no budget or staff in the new capacity.

Liberal sources — who spoke on condition they not be named — said Freeland, the former journalist, intends to do more writing, and is expected to take up teaching, as well as stay engaged in discussions on international security policy, multilateralism and democracy. 

First elected in 2013, Freeland was an immediate star in Trudeau’s government when the Liberals returned to power in 2015 with a majority mandate. In the years since, she served as international trade minister and at foreign affairs, where she was instrumental in the renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement. 

During the COVID-19 pandemic, when the government cranked up spending to provide tens of billions of dollars in income supports to businesses and people who lost work, Freeland was appointed finance minister — the first woman in Canadian history to fill the role. 

Freeland ran a losing campaign for the Liberal leadership earlier this year, in a resounding defeat to Carney. The race came just weeks after her decision to resign from Trudeau’s cabinet, the same day she was set to present a fall fiscal update. The move helped push Trudeau out as prime minister, and set the stage for Carney’s rise to power.