(Quebec) The fact that Quebec is subsidizing the arrival of the Los Angeles Kings, while Salt Lake City will not have to do so, is “clownish”, believes Éric Duhaime.
The leader of the Conservative Party of Quebec (PCQ) reacted Monday to the article in The Press which reveals that the Kings will play a preparatory game in Salt Lake City, without help from the State or the City.
Remember that last fall, the Minister of Finance, Eric Girard, agreed to pay 5 to 7 million in public money for the Kings to come and play two preparatory matches in Quebec.
“There is something completely clownish about it. We come across as ti-counes,” said Mr. Duhaime at a press briefing in Quebec. Minister Girard must present, on March 12, a “largely deficit” budget, he stressed.
“(He) is going to tell us in two weeks that he doesn’t have a penny, that we’re in a bad situation. […] This is even more unacceptable in the current economic context,” complained Mr. Duhaime.
For the parliamentary leader of Québec solidaire (QS), Alexandre Leduc, there is no doubt that the Coalition Avenir Québec “negotiates poorly” and “fails to obtain what is best for Quebec.”
“This government must take responsibility for its bad financial decisions and stop putting the burden on the workers who carry our public services at arm’s length,” argued Mr. Leduc in a written statement sent to the media.