Targeted by the taxman again | The PLQ asks Coderre to settle his scores before aspiring to become leader

(Gatineau) Denis Coderre must settle his accounts with the tax authorities, who registered a second legal mortgage on a property in Montreal North that belongs to him, if he wants to be on the starting line of the race for the leadership of the Quebec Liberal Party (PLQ) which begins next January, the party reminded us on Wednesday.

Last August, we learned in the media that the tax authorities were demanding $66,373 from him under the Tax law for the years 2021 and 2022. A second legal mortgage worth $68,000 has since been filed for amounts due in 2023, Cogeco and Quebecor media report. In total, the former mayor of Montreal ultimately owes $134,000 to Revenu Québec.

Questioned by The PressMr. Coderre once again reiterated on Wednesday that his dispute with the tax authorities “concerns confidential information relating to family life” and that “this entire matter is under control and will be resolved shortly.”

For the president of the Liberal Party, “everyone must pay their taxes in Quebec,” he said on the sidelines of the pre-sessional caucus in Outaouais.

Interim leader Marc Tanguay also added that he expects Coderre to resolve the situation quickly. He also reiterated that the career politician will have to show the party his credentials before he is officially entered in the race, which begins in January.

For MP Désirée McGraw, who officially supports federal Transport Minister Pablo Rodriguez, if he decides to run, “someone who doesn’t pay their taxes, for me, that disqualifies them as a candidate,” she said.

Current MP Frédéric Beauchemin, who is also due to enter the race in the coming weeks, added that Mr. Coderre could not be officially declared a candidate until his situation was resolved.

“A politician must set an example. We must show our credentials. This is the one and only way to ensure that trust returns,” he said.

“It is important that we have a debate of ideas and debates of ideas come with people who do not have this kind of situation,” he added.