The president and CEO of the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal, Michel Leblanc, remains unclear about his possible candidacy for mayor in 2025. However, he says he senses strong “concerns” from the business community about the state of the metropolis.
“I am not making a political position,” Mr. Leblanc defended himself on Wednesday, after leaving a dinner conference during which he spoke with Mayor Valérie Plante.
In interview with The Press recently, Mr. Leblanc confided that “many business people […] ask me if I’m going to run for town hall.” “I tell them that I’m thinking about it, just as I could also get involved in provincial or federal politics. There are big challenges. After 15 years, it’s normal to take a moment to reflect. I will make a decision in the next year,” he said.
During the interview with the mayor, Michel Leblanc did not fail to shoot several arrows at the mayor, making himself the spokesperson for a “worried business community” in the face of “a pace of construction” slower than elsewhere, but also a flow of traffic that has often become difficult in the city center, through the numerous construction sites.
He also mentioned having received numerous comments on the fact that the city center was “dirty” during the Formula 1 Grand Prix, already marked by the fiasco of the terraces dismantled by the Montreal Fire Department (SIM).
However, for the moment, the boss of the Chamber of Commerce does not respond “in the affirmative”, but also not “in the negative” regarding a leap into politics. “It would be a lie to say that for 15 years, I haven’t had moments. We had a mayor named Applebaum, we had a mayor named Blanchard. There were times when I said to myself that my god, maybe I would do a better job,” he cautiously mentioned.
Last March, a poll carried out for the Projet Montréal party put the name of Michel Leblanc as a potential candidate for mayor of Montreal, as did those of Sophie Brochu and Mélanie Joly.
Plante defends his record
PHOTO ALAIN ROBERGE, THE PRESS
The Mayor of Montreal, Valérie Plante
Mayor Valérie Plante notably defended the Montreal economy by recalling that it is “valued and validated elsewhere in the world, even in Canada”. “I don’t want to minimize the concerns, but I think we should also pat ourselves on the back,” she argued, recalling that the city “is changing, it’s adapting.” but that it evolves positively.
Mme Plante then attacked the impression conveyed by certain observers that Montreal “is terrible, unclean and that we are afraid of being attacked on every street corner.” “That’s not the reality,” she said, instead praising the dynamic nature of the city center.
“That being said, whether it is with orange cones, cleanliness on local commercial arteries or construction sites, yes we will do better,” persisted the mayor, recalling that a lot of money is invested in cleaning squads. . The social crisis of homelessness will, however, need to be the subject of more investment “in the streets”, with the affected clienteles, she added.
As for criticism of the fluidity of travel, the mayor assures that she is not “in a car war”. “It’s not true that in 50 years, the city will be like today. We can’t have more cars. At some point, we have to reverse the paradigm,” she nevertheless concluded.