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'Get real' PM tells elite

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau used one of Germany's most prestigious black-tie galas to tell business leaders to "get real" about the addressing the anxieties of their workers in an uncertain world.

Trudeau delivered the no-holds-barred message to an audience of 400 politicians, business leaders and other notables at the annual St. Matthew's Banquet in the opulent Hamburg city hall.

The St. Matthew's Banquet is a 700-year-old event in which the elders of the city-states invited foreign guests to celebrate their friendship. It has heard from kings, presidents, mayors and others in what is now Germany's second-largest city.

Last year, former British prime minister David Cameron addressed the gathering and laid out his plan for battling his country's Brexit forces. Cameron failed and Britons voted to leave the European Union, part of a global wave of disruption that culminated with Donald Trump's surprise victory in the November presidential election.

Officials say Trudeau was mindful of the whirlwind global changes that have taken place since, especially in Europe — rising anti-trade resentment and a backlash against immigration — when he accepted the invitation to address the banquet.

Trudeau has spoken repeatedly in Europe this week about the need for politicians to address the "anxieties" of working people, who are fearful of the pace of change, and of being left behind in the globalized world.

And he has spoken of the need for politicians to do a better job explaining the tangible benefits of agreements such as Canada's free trade deal with the European Union — a pact the European Parliament ratified earlier in the week over the objections of a vocal civil society movement.

But the prime minister ramped up the message on Friday night in Hamburg, all but telling the corporate elite seated before him to shape up, and stop profiting at the expense of their employees.

"No more brushing aside the concerns of our workers and our citizens," the prime minister said in prepared remarks. "We have to address the root cause of their worries, and get real about how the changing economy is impacting peoples' lives."



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