Québec solidaire (QS) no longer wants to see gasoline cars circulating on the roads of Québec in 2040. This is one of the key measures of its green plan presented on Sunday.
Estimated at $36 billion in a first term, QS’s climate plan would ban the sale of gas-powered vehicles in 2030 — five years earlier than the Coalition avenir Québec predicts — in addition to outright banning the registration of these cars in 2040. The objective: to put an end to cars with polluting emissions on Quebec territory.
Without quantifying the individual impact of each of its measures, QS ensures that they will reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 55% in 2030 compared to 1990 levels.
“The quality of life of Quebecers is in danger,” hammered Québec solidaire co-spokesperson Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois during a press briefing in Verdun on Sunday. The next mandate of the Government of Quebec is the mandate of the last chance. In 2026, it will be too late. »
In its “Vision 2030” plan, the left-wing party focuses above all on the individual responsibility of Quebecers and major emitters. True to form, he promises a “bonus-malus”.
A united government would tax the purchase of large cars, for “on average 15% of the purchase price between 2023 and 2030”. Families with three or more children or holders of “F plates” – cars used for commercial or professional purposes – would be exempt.
” Revolution “
To offer “choices” to motorists who would find themselves in the water overnight, QS is committed to “revolutionizing transport” by pouring 74 billion dollars by 2030 into public transport infrastructure. “This is the biggest project since the Quiet Revolution. The biggest project since Hydro-Québec, ”supported Mr. Nadeau-Dubois, flanked by his co-spokesperson, Manon Massé, and his candidate in Verdun, Alejandra Zaga Mendez.
On Wednesday, QS already announced its intentions to extend the Quebec tramway and to link Lévis and Quebec with the help of a rapid bus service. It also intends to create an “intercity transport network so that it can reach all the cities of Quebec”, by passenger bus or by train. Other concrete announcements will come later during the election campaign.
In the eyes of Québec solidaire, the era when large emitting companies were sheltered from carbon taxes is over. A Nadeau-Dubois government would introduce a tax on excess CO2 emissions of $100 per ton, which would reach $205 in 2030.
Solidarity co-spokesperson Manon Massé assures that “no one will be left behind”, despite the restrictions imposed on the industry. “It cannot be done on the backs of workers,” she said on Sunday.
Other measures contained in the QS climate plan
- Oblige the government to submit a binding “carbon budget” each year.
- Balance investments in public transit and road transportation 50-50.
- Prohibit the repair of fossil fuel heating equipment in 2024.
Further details will follow.