It will be necessary to pay off the “climate debt” and that “towards our elders” before settling the financial debt of Quebec, pleads Quebec solidaire (QS). On Tuesday, his co-spokesperson, Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois, reiterated that a united government would suspend payments to the Generations Fund to use them for other purposes.
Established in 2006, the purpose of the Generations Fund is to repay the long-term debt of the Quebec government. On average, it swells by three to four billion dollars each year. It will stand at just over 19 billion next year.
However, for Québec solidaire, the approximately $21 billion that must be paid into the Fund by the end of the 2026-2027 fiscal year would be better used elsewhere.
“Right now, there are two generations who are afraid for their future,” said Mr. Nadeau-Dubois on the sidelines of a press briefing on the cost of living in Montreal. Young people are afraid of the climate crisis and wonder what kind of future we are creating for them. And the other generation is the one approaching aging and saying to itself: I don’t want to grow old in a CHSLD, I’m afraid to go there. »
Tuesday, through its candidate in Saint-Jérôme, Youri Chassin, the Coalition avenir Québec (CAQ) strongly denounced the QS proposal. “Changing eras is getting into debt? We did it in the 1980s and 1990s already…”, tweeted the outgoing deputy.
The CAQ would still finance its tax cuts from the Generations Fund, by reducing the size of the payments during the next mandate. This position earned him criticism from the Liberal Party, the Conservative Party and the organization Force Jeunesse.
“All Generations”
Without detailing its proposals – announcements will come later during the election campaign – QS assures that the additional sums planned will be used both in the fight against climate change and in care for the elderly. “We will use the Generations Fund to help, for real, all generations in Quebec,” said “GND”.
In 2018, the solidarity electoral program planned to redirect all payments to the Fund towards climate measures. This is the first time that the party has raised the idea of using it to finance care for the elderly. QS will detail its financial framework by the first leaders’ debate.
If he opens the door to reviewing the operation of the Generations Fund, Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois excludes the idea of going to dip into the sums accumulated in recent years.
Further details will follow.