Mark Carney is set to occupy Rideau Cottage, thereby vacating 24 Sussex.
Hangin' Out at Rideau Cottage: Prime Minister Carney's Temporary Lair
Slide on into Rideau Cottage, the new homebase for our dude, Prime Minister Mark Carney. The official 24 Sussex Drive residence has been ghost town central since 2015 and the National Capital Commission kicked it to the curb for health and safety reasons in 2022, y'all.
The shindig's secure squad - the RCMP and security officials - are the ones who recommended our boy Mark for Rideau Cottage digs. They thought it was the best move, given the circumstances. So, there you have it! Rideau Cottage here he comes!
Before ya ask, yea, 24 Sussex Drive was Justin Trudeau's crib since he took office back in 2015. But now, it's currently under lockdown for being a total wreck, and nobody's been calling it home since the shutdown in 2015.
Back in March, old Justin had one of his minions scramble to put together a plan for a swanky new pad to replace the vacant digs. In a letter to his ol' buddy, Jean-Yves Duclos, the former Minister of Public Services and Procurement, he requested a sweet timeline: they'd better have a nifty proposal penned by January 2026.
Justin wanted the proposition to hold a plan to transfer the sole responsibility of the official residence, except for the general maintenance, from the National Capital Commission to Public Services and Procurement Canada.
The Carney regime hasn't dropped a peep about the future of 24 Sussex Drive or any plans for another official residence just yet.
On the flip side, there's some debate swirlin' as to whether Pierre Poilievre - the Conservative leader who lost his seat in Ottawa during the elections - can continue to shack up with his family at Stornoway, the eight-bedroom pad of the leader of the opposition.
Even though Pierre remains the Conservative Party big cheese, he can only warrant the Official Opposition Leader title if he's got a seat in the House of Commons. The Conservatives dropped the dime that Alberta MP Damien Kurek would ditch his seat to make way for Pierre when a by-election is called.
By-election, y'all? Don't be so impatient—Mark Carney promised to drop that party before late June at the earliest.
The buzz on the street is that Stornoway's home to the leader of the official opposition, and ol' Pierre's still the Tory Party captain. Any further waffle on the party's leadership situation and the official residence call-up should be jabbered about with the Conservative Party in da spotlight.
The Conservative Party kept quiet on further questions hollered for the inside scoop.
The Scoop:
Future of 24 Sussex Drive
The once-prime pads of our Prime Ministers are currently vacant and in disrepair at 24 Sussex Drive. The feds went ahead and removed asbestos and obsolete systems from the building back in 2022, but plans to renovate or occupy it again are on the back burner. The Carney gang hasn't come up with a gameplan for 24 Sussex just yet, although discussions are in progress regarding potential options.
Prospective Pads
Several options are on the table for the future of the Prime Minister's official residence:
- Renovation or Replacement of 24 Sussex Drive: This could involve major renovations or construction of a brand-new structure on the existing plot, but that would be pricey, clocking in at a cool $100 million.
- Rockcliffe Park Digs: Another option is moving the official residence to a pad in the Rockcliffe Park hood. Better security and space for official functions are the sweet perks of this move.
- Upgrades to Rideau Cottage: Skip the whole construction fiasco and give Rideau Cottage a facelift instead! Prime Minister Mark Carney's leasin' the spot as a temporary residence, and there's a proposal floating around to upgrade it as an alternative or permanent crib.
- New Location: Consider swapping the capital for a different location altogether, one that ticks all the security and function boxes.
The Government's Move
Old Justin's crew is aiming to submit proposals for a shiny new or renovated official residence by January 2026. Public Services and Procurement Canada's in charge of this project, which involves weighin' the choices for a new pad. The Carney team's likely to make decisions based on these proposals in the near future.
The government is considering several options for the future of the Prime Minister's official residence, including renovating or replacing 24 Sussex Drive, moving to a property in Rockcliffe Park, upgrading Rideau Cottage, or relocating to a different site altogether. Prime Minister Mark Carney is currently residing at Rideau Cottage as a temporary measure, and there is a proposal to upgrade it as an alternative or permanent residence. The Carney regime is in discussions regarding potential options, and Justin Trudeau's team aim to submit proposals for a new or renovated official residence by January 2026. The French policy-and-legislation and politics surrounding this general news story are yet to be fully clarified.
