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I know his wife is British, and I know there are some ties there

On Sunday, opening up a little more on the topic, Mr. Flaherty said the two men have known each other for a long time.

“We went to international meetings together, we travelled together, we know each other. I know his family, of course and I know his wife is British, and I know there are some ties there,” Mr. Flaherty said.

“We had some discussions and when he decided to do it he came and saw me here in my office. We had a private conversation about it.”

In picking a new governor, Mr. Flaherty said continuity, while important, is not the only factor to consider in the process.

“Continuity matters, but what really matters is to have a person who will maintain a solid monetary policy and control inflation. Inflation is very dangerous,” Mr. Flaherty said.

“Americans are printing a lot of money and so are others around the world, so we have to watch that we never go back to the ’70s and ’80s where inflation got out of control in Canada, which really, really hurts middle class people.”

The bank’s current goal is to keep inflation near 2%.

As he sat next to Mr. Carney at a news conference last month, Mr. Flaherty appeared weary and searched for words as he characterized the loss of his central banker as “bittersweet, positive news for Canadians.”

Postmedia News