(Quebec) The Parti Québécois (PQ) invites Prime Minister François Legault to “get his act together” by reshuffling his council of ministers.
The PQ deputy in Matane-Matapédia, Pascal Bérubé, made this suggestion on Wednesday, the day after Mr. Legault’s surprising decision to resurrect the idea of a third Quebec-Lévis highway link.
Mr. Bérubé sees this as an example of “erratic” management of state files. “When we look at what is happening […] in daily decisions, we don’t know where this government is going, it’s erratic,” he declared at a press briefing.
A ministerial reshuffle would have the advantage of identifying problems and providing solutions, he argued, while refraining from clearly stating which minister should lose his portfolio.
“When we talk about pulling ourselves together, that’s part of it, looking at your team and saying to yourself: ‘Do we have the best people in the best places to ensure we get results for Quebecers?’ ”
“We talked a lot about the places where it was problematic. So, on purpose, I will not give a name, but I tell him we are at the point of having a ministerial reshuffle which allows us to better target priorities.
“It’s about how we decide daily priorities. We are really worried,” added the PQ representative.
The decision to dismantle the third link project follows the scathing defeat, Monday evening, of the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) at the hands of the PQ in the riding of Jean-Talon, in Quebec.
The PQ candidate, Pascal Paradis, collected 44% of the votes against 21% for his rival, the CAQ Marie-Anik Shoiry.
Legault-PSPP clash
Wednesday, during a tough exchange at the Salon Bleu with PQ leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, Mr. Legault went on the attack, accusing the PQ of having avoided promoting article 1 of its campaign program in Jean-Talon.
“Everyone has noted that in the last month, he has not talked about Quebec sovereignty, especially not in Jean-Talon. He also postponed the submission of the finances of a sovereign Quebec,” he accused.
The presentation of the PQ’s “Budget for Year One” has been postponed until October 23. However, Mr. Legault did not wait to express doubts about the PQ’s ability to compensate for the 13 billion that Quebec receives annually in equalization.
“Did he talk about that, the leader of the Parti Québécois, in Jean-Talon? Not at all,” he said, after declaring that Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon was “poorly placed” to talk about “strategy.”
“We remember the leadership race, he said: “I’m going to talk about sovereignty every day”. We haven’t heard it once in Jean-Talon,” mocked Mr. Legault, who also criticizes the PQ’s position on the Quebec City tram project.
“One day, maybe it wasn’t, it costs too much, we don’t know. And yesterday he told us no, no, no, I never questioned the tramway,” he stressed.