Mark Carney, Canada’s Prime Minister, is facing serious accusations of plagiarism centred on his doctoral thesis, The Dynamic Advantage of Competition. The thesis, which has come under scrutiny as the federal election approaches, reportedly contains multiple instances where Mr Carney appears to have lifted material without proper attribution.
According to three university academics who reviewed the work, Mr Carney, the former Governor of the Bank of England, used full quotes, paraphrased text, or slightly modified quotes from four previous works without acknowledging the original sources. Canada’s National Post newspaper obtained a copy of the thesis and identified 10 specific examples of these apparent issues. These were shared with Mr Carney’s campaign team, which initially responded with a statement from his doctoral supervisor at Oxford, Margaret Meyer.
Ms Meyer defended the work, dismissing the allegations as a mischaracterisation of Carney’s academic practices.
She argued that the thesis had been thoroughly evaluated and praised by the faculty, and she saw no evidence of plagiarism.
Oxford University’s guidelines clearly state that plagiarism is defined as “presenting work or ideas from another source as your own,” which could apply to sections of Carney’s thesis where material was included without proper citation or quotation marks.
This includes full quotes, paraphrases, or slightly altered text that was not properly attributed to the original authors.
The controversy surrounding the thesis will inevitably raise questions about Mr Carney’s credibility, especially as he leads the Liberal Party into a contentious election on April 28.
While his campaign continues to stand by the thesis, the accusations of plagiarism could become a significant issue as voters evaluate his record and leadership.
US President Donald Trump said Friday that his first call with Mr Carney was “extremely productive.”
Mr Carney described the call as “positive, cordial, and constructive,” with both sides agreeing to meet immediately after Canada’s election to discuss a new economic and security relationship.
However, while Mr Trump avoided discussing the trade war in his public remarks, Mr Carney indicated that the relationship has shifted, with tariffs continuing to drag down Canada’s economy.
Mr Carney said: “The President respected Canada’s sovereignty today both in his private and public comments.”
However, while stressing that while the call was “very, very good,” he warned US remained an unreliable partner due to its ongoing trade actions.
Mr Trump’s imposition of tariffs on Canadian steel, aluminium, and automobiles has deeply affected trade relations, and Mr Carney warned that these pressures, along with threats of further tariffs, have created too much uncertainty.
He added that immediate post-election negotiations would focus on “a new agreement and a new partnership” with the US, a relationship that has been strained under the current administration.
Express.co.uk has contacted Mr Carney via the Liberal Party of Canada for comment about the plagiarism claims.