(Quebec) Quebecers looking for “paying jobs” must prepare to move to the regions in the coming years to take advantage of the “industrial renaissance” that will take place there, predicts François Legault.
“I have a lot of ambition for the regions of Quebec. We have an opportunity to have an industrial renaissance in the regions of Quebec, to attract families to the regions of Quebec,” said the Prime Minister Thursday during a speech to municipal elected officials gathered at the congress of the Fédération québécoise des municipalities, in Quebec.
This “industrial renaissance” will be fueled by the $150 billion invested by Hydro-Québec to double its size, and the decarbonization of steel and aluminum production, in particular.
We set ourselves the objective of doubling Hydro-Québec’s capacity. That’s 150 billion in investments, especially in the regions of Quebec. This means increasing the capacity of power plants like La Grande or the Côte-Nord power plants. It will create a lot of paying jobs in certain regions.
François Legault, Premier of Quebec
And the erection of wind turbine fields could benefit Gaspésie and Bas-Saint-Laurent, he added.
“There are going to be high-paying jobs, extraordinary opportunities,” he said.
Commuting
The challenge, however, will be to avoid the phenomenon of commuting, where workers do not stay in the regions where they work. “It’s a real challenge. […] I don’t like it either fly in fly out. This is not the right way to create a feeling of belonging in a region,” said Mr. Legault.
This “challenge”, he explained, will be “to convince people to move to the regions”. He sent a message to the Minister of Housing, France-Élaine Duranceau, “housing will be needed in all regions,” he said. “we are doing it, we will continue to do it”.
This summer, the Popular Action Front in Urban Redevelopment (FRAPRU) reported that the housing crisis was hitting all regions, from Granby (0.3%) to Trois-Rivières (0.4%) via Rimouski (0.6%).