The mayor of Quebec throws the ball back to the Legault government, which he believes must act quickly to counter the housing crisis, following comments by the Prime Minister who believes that the rise in house prices is a necessary evil in order not to “stay poor”.
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Bruno Marchand was reacting to Premier François Legault’s statement that he doesn’t want Quebec to “stay poor” just to keep property values lower than in Ontario and British Columbia.
“We have a problem. […] The government and the cities, we cannot just be satisfied with the rise in prices. We have to be better”, Bruno Marchand.
The mayor, along with his counterparts in other major cities, has been calling for better investments for months, particularly in social housing.
“Intergenerational Inequity”
Mr. Marchand says he agrees with the president and CEO of Desjardins Group, Guy Cormier, who is worried about intergenerational inequity for young people who are struggling to access property.
“When Mr. Cormier tells us that we are close to intergenerational inequity, that seems to me to be a problem that the Prime Minister must take care of, affirmed Bruno Marchand. This seems to me to be a problem for the Government of Quebec. Not alone, but it is up to the Government of Quebec to help us ensure that our young families […] can have access [à la propriété].”
He hopes that the government of Quebec “become fully aware of the crisis and that it gives us the means of our ambitions so that we can resolve this crisis”.
Without qualifying Mr. Legault’s comments, he says that the rise in house prices also has a “hidden side”.
“We can’t just aim for higher prices to say that things are going well if our world, our young families, our young people coming out of university are not able to live in cities because it’s not affordable. . We have a problem. […] The government and the cities, we cannot just be satisfied with the rise in prices. We have to be better.”