(Quebec) The Government of Quebec has honored the memory of Claude Castonguay by naming the building that houses the head office of the Régie de l’Assurance maladie du Québec, as part of a national commemoration to salute the contribution of this “great builder” of modern Quebec.
Posted at 7:39 p.m.
“Claude Castonguay was one of the great architects of modern Quebec. He inspired generations of Quebecers, and I include myself in that. I am convinced that he will continue to inspire other Quebecers to always aim higher for Quebec. […] Mr. Castonguay, Quebec would like to thank you enormously. Goodbye, Mr. Castonguay”, launched the Premier of Quebec François Legault Monday at the end of the day during the ceremony which was held at the National Assembly of Quebec.
Mr. Castonguay died in December 2020 at the age of 91, but the tributes were delayed due to health measures related to the coronavirus pandemic.
An actuary by training, Mr. Castonguay was Minister of Social Affairs from 1970 to 1973 for the Bourassa government. He is considered the father of the Quebec health insurance plan. This “pillar of the Quiet Revolution” allowed “the less well-off Quebecers to have access to quality health services,” said Mr. Legault.
Photo André Pichette, La Presse archives
Claude Castonguay in 2018
But Mr. Castonguay never stopped contributing to Quebec society as a business leader, academic and intellectual.
He notably held the positions of Chancellor of the University of Montreal and CEO of Laurentian. Mr. Legault praised the contribution of this “avant-garde” who gave at least 50 years of his life “in the service of the common good”. Mr. Legault himself consulted him when he was a PQ minister, then when he founded the Coalition avenir Québec.
The sacred fire
His son, Philippe Castonguay, believes that his father was in constant pursuit of progress. “He is a man who worked until late in his life, even at the age of 90, to ask himself the question, how we can move forward, how we can have more social progress, more social justice “, he testified during a scrum.
François Cardinal, the assistant editor and vice-president of Information of The Press, who hosted the ceremony, emphasized that Mr. Castonguay had a “constant desire to develop the nation” and to participate in its intellectual development. The statesman, who “kept the sacred fire until the end”, contributed to the public debate by publishing a hundred texts in The Pressadded Mr. Cardinal.
The Claude-Castonguay building is located at 1125, Grande Allée Ouest, in Quebec City, and houses the head office of the Régie de l’Assurance Maladie du Québec.