End of parliamentary session | “Expect me to stay a long time,” says Legault

On this day of end-of-parliamentary session assessments, Friday, François Legault warns his troops: “It could be a hot autumn”. In full renewal of the collective agreements, the Prime Minister expects strikes in the public sector. And to those who wonder if he thinks of his succession, in this second term in government, the Prime Minister extinguishes the rumors. He wants to stay a long time. On the opposition side, he is accused of lacking vision.

CAQ — “We are here for a long time”

François Legault is not worried about the wear and tear of power. “We are here for a long time,” he assures us, seeing his caucus of 90 deputies as the best “focus group” for measuring public opinion. At the end of the parliamentary session on Friday, the Prime Minister defended his record of the start of his second term. He assures that the cancellation of the third link between Quebec and Lévis, which caused discontent in his caucus, is behind him. The project will be reviewed every five years. The salary increase for elected officials, which made the headlines, was justified, he reiterated. Faced with climate crises that threaten the integrity of the territory – forest fires, overflowing rivers, ice storms, derecho, tornadoes, etc. — Mr. Legault assures us that his green plan is exemplary. If he recognizes that it will have to be improved, there is no question for him of granting the cities the sums they are asking for to adapt. The latter, he said, must review their expenses, while they pay its employees more generously than those who work for the Quebec government. While we often talk to him about who will succeed him at the head of the Coalition avenir Québec (CAQ), “expect me to stay for a long time,” he said. François Legault left the capital on Friday, warning his troops: “it could be a hot autumn”. He perceives that public sector unions, which renew their collective agreements, could avail themselves of their right to strike.

PLQ — Rekindling the federalist flame

After Dominique Anglade’s attempt at a nationalist turn, the liberal troops want to rekindle the federalist flame at the next school year. “The Quebec Liberal Party must regain its ability to move Canada forward. The Quebec Liberal Party must regain its ability to verbalize, repeat [les demandes du Québec] “assumes interim chief Marc Tanguay. The formation seeks to regain its place on the political spectrum after the historic defeat of the fall and polls at the lowest, especially among Francophones. The Liberals are still leaderless and a relaunch committee has been set up to define their raison d’être. A tour of the regions is planned for the summer. “We must give time to time, the revival of the party is necessary, the revival of the party, it is beginning”, pleaded Mr. Tanguay, himself in reflection to seek the leadership. MNAs André Fortin, Monsef Derraji and Serge Beauchemin are also. The interim leader does not fear internal wars in the months to come. “It has no effect on what we do,” he assured. Leadership contest rules could be unveiled this fall.

QS — Nadeau-Dubois throws flowers and a pot to Legault

Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois has thrown flowers at François Legault for his management of the forest fires, but criticizes the Prime Minister for his lack of long-term vision. “When populations are in distress, François Legault has this good habit of traveling and seeing the world. Sometimes he invites the opposition parties to do so. That is its role in times of crisis. He fulfills it well, ”launched the parliamentary leader of Québec solidaire. However, he deplores the timidity of the CAQ government’s measures on adaptation to climate change. Discussions on this topic between QS and the CAQ were numerous during this session with the extreme weather events. Mr. Nadeau-Dubois says that François Legault has “evolved” on this issue, and he now favors collaboration rather than parliamentary blockage, as he had already proposed in 2018. “It is above all the citizens who have mobilized, but I think that we also contributed to developing François Legault. We are able to work together,” said Mr. Nadeau-Dubois. He proposes parliamentary work on this issue in the fall.

PQ — Report of the budget for year one?

After having made the commitment to present the budget of the year one of a sovereign Quebec in June, the PQ leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon is still not able to circle a date on the calendar. The leader of the Parti Québécois explains that he is waiting for “the green light” from independent economists “who check each of the figures”. He must also deal with family considerations as his spouse is about to give birth to their third child. He also mentioned the holiday period for journalists. “We juggle with a number of variables that I have no control over. But […] the year one budget is coming,” he pleaded. Initially, the PQ was to present the document on the national holiday of 2022. The project of Quebec independence will also be at the center of the party’s political action in the fall. The PQ leader sees in the rise in support for sovereignty in the polls an effect of the work of their caucus of three deputies. “In the history of the Parti Québécois, it is not insignificant that we are succeeding in this at the moment. It is by fully assuming who we are,” declared Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon.