For more than a decade, the prime minister’s residence at 24 Sussex Drive in Ottawa has sat as an empty shell, awaiting a decision on what the government will do with the property. There can be no more fitting monument to government indecision and how that holds our country back than this dilapidated property.
Built by an Ottawa lumber baron in the 1860s, Gorffwysfa — Welsh for “place of rest” — has been the home of Canada’s prime ministers since 1951. The federal government expropriated the home in 1943, and eventually converted the property to Canada’s equivalent of 10 Downing St. or 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. 24 Sussex has been renovated several times over the years, but now sits empty and adrift on a sea of government indecision. The last prime minister to live there was Stephen Harper. When Justin Trudeau was elected in 2015, he decided not to live in the home, citing its many security and building issues.
In the ensuing 11 years since, optics, more than anything else, have prevented action from the venerable home. A National Capital Commission report in 2022 pegged the renovation cost at close to $40 million. This is a deal compared to some of the other government spending we have seen.
This is nothing new in Canada, though. Following his win in 1993, Prime Minister Jean Chrétien cancelled the purchase of 50 EH101 helicopters for maritime patrol and search and rescue uses. They cost too much and the deals were not what the new government thought was in the country’s best interest. Five years later, the government bought 15 EH101s at a much higher price point, strictly for search and rescue use. Canada also bought replacement helicopters for the Sea Kings, decades after they should have been replaced. The cost of the EH101 order, compared to what was eventually ordered — including cancellation payments — came out to almost even. But, we received seven fewer helicopters out of it, and it took decades longer for equipment to arrive.
Canada’s CF-18 fighter jets are ready for retirement. Twice the military has planned to purchase F-35s, and twice now that is up in the air. It is agreeable that any American military tech should be treated with suspicion right now, but Canada’s fighter jets should be replaced before they become flying museum pieces.
These are military examples. There are many others, such as resource pipelines, natural resource extraction, city infrastructure projects, and more that fit this pattern. Canadian leaders dither, even when they look like they are not. It makes sense to put Gorffwysfa as a monument to Canadian dithering, but it could also be the start of something else — action.
Right now, Carney has green-lit new development across the country as part of his Major Projects Office. Promising less red tape and more action, that office is promoting major resource, transmission, and infrastructure projects. Of course, it is early days and this could just flounder like other government initiatives. It is okay to be hopeful. Gorffwysfa could just be the ticket to showing that projects can be done.
Not having an actual “home” for the leader of the country is embarrassing. That the work has not taken place because of perceived optics is even more embarrassing. Yes, countries like Ireland also do not have a formal residence for the government leader (Taoiseach). Canada has eight to nine times the population of Ireland.
Not fixing your leader’s government residence because you are afraid of political fallout is weak leadership. Carney should add 24 Sussex to the major projects list and get that home rebuilt. It can then be a symbol of pride and an example of picking something and running with it. Canadian leaders made a decision, stuck with it, and look at the finished project. What else can be accomplished? We should find out?
This column was first published in the May 13, 2026 print edition of the Morrisburg Leader.
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