(Ottawa) Quebec will finally be able to obtain the approximately $2.7 billion earmarked for it under the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program (ICIP) and which risked remaining in Ottawa’s coffers if not were not spent before March 31.
Negotiations over the past few weeks have found common ground between the Legault government and the Trudeau government, according to information obtained by The Press.
A large part of the sum of $2.7 billion will be used for “structuring” projects in Quebec, namely the extension of the blue line of the Montreal metro and the project to build a tramway in Quebec.
It is from the PIIC that Ottawa has already contributed to the financing of these two public transit projects as well as the extension of Autoroute 19 between Autoroutes 440 in Laval and 640 in Bois-des-Filion.
In the case of the extension of the blue line of the subway, the funds from Ottawa will make it possible to absorb part of the increase in the costs of this project, now estimated at some 6.4 billion dollars.
Other less costly projects will also be included in the list agreed upon by Ottawa and Quebec following talks held between the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, Dominic LeBlanc, and the Minister responsible for Infrastructure, Jonatan Julien.
PHOTO ADRIAN WYLD, THE CANADIAN PRESS ARCHIVES
Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc
“The lion’s share of the funds will be used to finance two major projects, the blue metro line in Montreal and the tramway. There will be other small projects that will also be funded elsewhere in Quebec. The list will be announced shortly,” said a government source familiar with the matter, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Minister LeBlanc and his colleague from Quebec confirmed the conclusion of this agreement on Twitter on Monday.
“Good news – we have reached an agreement in principle with the Government of Quebec to renew the Integrated Bilateral Agreement on Infrastructure Funding. Dozens of communities across Quebec will benefit from this collaboration,” said Minister LeBlanc on his Twitter account.
“Minister Dominic LeBlanc and I have reached an agreement for Quebec to use the residual sums of $2.7 billion. The flexibility obtained from the federal government is great progress for future agreements. Thank you Dominic for your openness,” commented Minister Julien.
In all, the CIIP had a budget of $33.5 billion and was due to end on March 31, 2025. But Ottawa notified all provinces last year that it was advancing the deadline to March 31. 2023 and that the sums which would not have been spent on projects in the provinces would remain in its coffers.
Quebec therefore risked losing approximately $2.7 billion that was still in its envelope, or the equivalent of 37% of the amounts promised by the federal government.
An agreement on the eve of the federal budget
The announcement of this agreement between Quebec and Ottawa came on the eve of the tabling of the federal budget by the Minister of Finance, Chrystia Freeland.
Mme Freeland telegraphed the main lines of his third budget while delivering a speech in Oshawa, Ont., and another in Quebec City last week.
In Oshawa, the Minister indicated that her budget will include new targeted measures to give a financial boost to those less fortunate who are struggling to make ends meet due to the rising cost of living.
The CBC network reported on Sunday that Mme Freeland will advertise a “grocery discount” for low-income families. This measure alone, which will cost the tax authorities $2.4 billion, will help 11 million Canadian households. This assistance should take the form of a one-off payment and will be distributed as a GST credit. Under this measure, a single person would get $234, a couple with two children would be entitled to $467 and an elderly person would receive $225 in assistance.
The budget will also include an increase in health transfers, as provided for in the offer made to the provinces in February.
The other pillar of the budget will be an investment plan to rival that adopted last year by the Biden administration, which proposes investments of US$370 billion over the next decade to support projects aimed at combating against climate change and to accelerate the energy transition.