In his first speech to the Quebec Chamber of Commerce, Bruno Marchand warned the business community against complacency, calling on the capital’s economic elite to play a greater role in defending the most disadvantaged and the environment.
By promising to do politics differently, “you have created expectations,” warned the president of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Quebec (CCIQ), Steeve Lavoie, in the preamble to the event.
During the 45 minutes that followed, the mayor of Quebec made it known that he, too, had feelings for the business community.
“I think the time has come,” said Mayor Marchand, “to lay the foundations for a quarter century of development in line with our new challenges. »
The struggles against social inequalities and climate change are at the top of the list, according to him.
“The IPCC told us and told us again this week: global warming is real and is already affecting us,” said Mr. Marchand. Young people expect us to rise to the climate challenge; I expect the same from you. »
Under the chandeliers of the grand ballroom of the Château Frontenac, the mayor of Québec has also asked business people to increase their role in the fight against poverty.
“We can no longer talk about economic development without talking about social inequalities”, launched the elected official, arguing, supported by an IMF study, that a fairer redistribution of wealth had the happy effect of to create.
The mayor observes that gentrification is now nurturing “pockets of poverty” in neighborhoods like Sainte-Foy, the traditional kingdom of Quebec’s wealthy middle class. “Poverty is no longer just people sleeping on the steps of L’Auberivière,” said the former CEO of Centraide in the Quebec region. There is another less publicized one, but which hurts us all. It worries me and we all have a role to play. »
Mr. Marchand also pleaded for more women, immigrants and young people to reach spheres of power. “We have taken steps in the right direction. It’s not enough,” he said.
City Hall is considering analyzing the projects that will be submitted to it in the light of new inclusion criteria. “What a city can do is impose criteria that take into account diversity on boards of directors, for example,” he told reporters after his speech.
The president of the CCIQ says he agrees with these measures. “We are in 2022,” summed up Steeve Lavoie, paraphrasing, perhaps unknowingly, the formula launched by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in 2015 to explain his desire for parity.
Labor shortage
Quebec City’s economy has been sailing under full sail since the turn of the millennium. Its prosperity has long been the greatest east of Toronto and its unemployment rate remains the lowest in Canada for more than 15 years.
Despite the good economic health of the capital, the mayor says he is aware of the challenges facing the business community. Lack of manpower, dragging on pandemic: City Hall will remain at the bedside of the hotel, restaurant and cultural industries, promises Mr. Marchand, listing the sectors most affected by the shortage of personnel and health restrictions.
“Nine out of ten employers have difficulty finding workers to support their development,” recalls the mayor, who swears that “there is not a stone that cannot be turned over” to relieve the lack of personnel.
The City also intends to attract students to the tourism sector this summer, by offering them the opportunity to occupy vacant rooms in Quebec hotels free of charge.
“It will not solve the shortage of manpower, admitted the elected But each small measure will be used to build a solution. »
The mayor left his notes to deliver a plea in favor of the tram, a 4 billion dollar project “which needs a business community that supports it”.
“There are still a lot of things to correct and improve,” said Mr. Marchand. It’s true, there are people who will never take the tram. It’s true, the tram doesn’t go everywhere. Maybe there are other projects on the side, but it’s the only one that’s ready to go and that’s already funded,” he added, stressing that no other city would balk at the billions. promised by the provincial and federal governments.