On several occasions in recent years, the Conservative leader, Éric Duhaime, has failed to pay his due to the tax authorities.
Owner of five buildings in the capital, Mr. Duhaime was in default of payment of his municipal and school taxes, to the City of Quebec and to the School services center of the capital, information confirmed Monday by his entourage.
The City of Quebec claimed $12,363 from him in unpaid property taxes for a building located on Moncton Street, in the Montcalm district, then $1,849 for another building located on Joffre Street, namely his personal residence in the Saint- Sacrament, information first published by the Quebec newspaper last Friday.
When the news broke, Mr. Duhaime defended himself by saying that he had an agreement with his tenant on Moncton Street, who was to pay the municipal taxes in his place, an unusual practice since the tax bill is sent to the owner. He exposed himself to having the property seized and he finally paid off his debt.
In addition, we learned Monday that the leader of the Conservative Party of Quebec (PCQ) owed $2,411 in unpaid school taxes, from 2018 to 2021, for the building on Moncton Street. The School Services Center had to appeal to the courts and send a bailiff to Mr. Duhaime to obtain his due.
Monday morning, in a press briefing, Mr. Duhaime seemed annoyed by the questions on the subject of his report to the tax authorities. “I’ve been asked about this for four days. I will tell you that the case is closed. I answered all the questions, ”he said, in response to a reporter who invited him to make public all his documents, including the agreement concluded with his tenant.
“This is information of a confidential nature that will remain confidential,” he said.
The leader of the Liberal Party of Quebec (PLQ), Dominique Anglade, reacted by suggesting that the fiscal behavior of the Conservative leader could be such as to disqualify him from becoming Premier of Quebec. It’s “pretty disqualifying”, she commented, when asked the question. She said she expects all party leaders to “follow the law and pay their taxes.”
The leader of the Coalition avenir Québec (CAQ), François Legault, wondered whether this was a political gesture on the part of the Conservative leader. “You would have to ask him,” he said.
The leader of the Parti Québécois (PQ), Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, estimated that when citizens have to evaluate politicians, it is appropriate to “listen to ideas, but we can also look at what kind of citizen each politician was before and during politics”.