Quebec lacks nothing to become one of the “richest countries on the planet,” according to Paul St-Pierre Plamondon. In its portrait of the finances of a sovereign Quebec, the Parti Québécois (PQ) concludes that independence would be achieved “essentially at zero cost” from year one of a Quebec country.
“Quebec has nothing to envy of the rest of the world,” wrote the PQ leader in the document proforma which he made public Monday morning at a press conference.
As François Legault did in 2005 in the PQ, he praised the potential gains for Quebec if it separated from Canada “from the first year when independence is possible”, in 2027. First and foremost, the approximately 8 .8 billion in money recovered by eliminating “overlaps” with the federal government.
“Quebec’s starting position is very, very comfortable and advantageous,” said Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon, while reiterating his desire to launch a referendum campaign in a first mandate. “I think people understand that we are a pro-independence party and that we are consistent in our actions,” he said.
The day after a winning referendum for the “Yes” option, and by making the same choices as today, Quebec would succeed in collecting nearly 97 billion in federal revenue, estimates the PQ. The Quebec state budget deficit would thus amount to $5.5 billion in 2027-2028.
When submitting his version of the “year one budget” in 2005, François Legault had calculated surpluses of $1.3 billion from 2005-2006, in addition to estimating Quebec’s budget balance over five years at $13.8 billion. The situation is very different today, insisted Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon on Monday.
“There is still a limit to the model [Legault] », Supported the PQ leader in a room at Laval University, during a press briefing which at times resembled an economics lecture. “It is a model which, in my opinion, does not reflect the extent of the federal drift.”
As reported by The duty this weekend, a sovereign Quebec would inherit 17.6% of federal debts, or more than 200 billion dollars. However, it would maintain a “comfortable” debt-to-GDP ratio, second among G7 nations.
“Profitable”
According to the PQ leader, Quebec’s economy would not only be “viable”, but also “profitable” away from Canada. Only the calculation method proforma prevents it from moving away from the current financial model adopted by the Coalition Avenir Québec government.
In the last chapter of his budget, the elected official designates the additional savings that could result from the elimination of five federal ministries in Quebec. These decisions, maintains Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon, would make it possible to raise two billion dollars more in the first year of a Quebec-country.
And that’s without taking into account the possibility for Quebec to “exist internationally”. “This budgetary exercise is not able to assess the positive impacts that will be generated by the independence of Quebec, in particular an economic diplomacy aligned solely with the interests of Quebec, the establishment of more than 200 embassies in the city of Quebec,” lists Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon in his year one budget.
François Legault did not want to react on Monday to the renewed version of his budget. On X, the interim Liberal leader, Marc Tanguay, rather took the lead. “The PQ is cutting corners. It underestimates costs and overestimates revenues,” he wrote.
Québec solidaire, for its part, welcomed the exercise. “It is obvious that Quebec has everything to gain from becoming independent,” said MP Sol Zanetti.
“Blue Book” in preparation
The PQ’s year one budget contains very little information on the decisions the political party would make if it were brought to power. By 2025, PQ members will vote on the content of a white paper — called the “blue book” by the PQ leader — which will outline the borders of a sovereign Quebec.
Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon already showed his colors last week, saying he was in favor of a Quebec currency and army. Asked on Monday about the possibility that he would readjust the approach, he agreed that he would “consult many, many experts, who will perhaps bring us arguments against”. “There is no dogmatism,” he said.