OTTAWA, Dec 12: Jean Chretien on Friday stood down as Canada’s prime minister after a decade in office and handed over power to his long-time rival, Paul Martin, who made sweeping changes to the government.

Mr Chretien, a Liberal Party titan who will turn 70 next month, tendered his formal resignation to Governor General Adrienne Clarkson just before a swearing-in ceremony for Mr Martin and his new team of ministers in the same office.

Paul Martin, who was forced out of the key post of finance minister 18 months ago because of his brazen campaigning to become the next leader, unveiled a new deputy prime minister and finance minister.

Former health minister Anne McLellan becomes deputy prime minister and minister of public safety and emergency. Ralph Goodale takes over as finance minister. Bill Graham remains foreign minister, but outgoing industry minister Allan Rock will leave politics to become Canada’s ambassador to the United Nations. David Pratt moves from the party backbenches to become defence minister.

Chretien is one of Canada’s longest-serving prime ministers. During his 10 years in power, he kept Canada united by narrowly defeating a 1995 independence referendum by separatists in francophone Quebec. His government also tackled chronic government budget deficits.

But he has been criticized for ignoring foreign policy and the new prime minister must try to improve relations with the United States, the country’s superpower neighbour and number-one trade partner. Canada refused to join the Iraq war.

One of McLellan’s key responsibilities will be to coordinate security matters with the United States.

As Martin is more conservative than Chretien, there are also doubts about some of the outgoing leader’s policies.

Parliament will reconvene next month with several pieces of key legislation in limbo, including the decriminalisation of possession of small amounts of marijuana and same-sex marriages.—AFP