CANADIAN Prime Minister Justin Trudeau resigned today as head of the governing Liberal Party. He will remain prime minister until the party picks a new leader.

His government has been rocked by internal rows, which saw his finance minister Chrystia Freeland resign last month over divisions on how to deal with threats from incoming US president Donald Trump, which include potential 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian imports and even a possibly tongue-in-cheek proposal to annex Canada to the United States. 

Mr Trudeau’s November 30 trip to Mr Trump’s Mar-a-Lago palace to plead for Canada to be spared a trade war was portrayed as humiliating in national media.

Mr Trudeau said he “cannot be the leader during the next elections due to internal battles,” and that parliament’s winter recess would be extended beyond January 27 to March 24, to allow for a Liberal Party leadership race.

The three biggest opposition parties say they intend to topple the government in a no-confidence vote when parliament returns.