Eric Girard found the controversy raised by his grant to the Los Angeles Kings very difficult.
As Minister of Finance, he had until then, as best he could, managed to avoid major outcry.
Photo Agence QMI, JOEL LEMAY
Earthquake
The Kings affair, on the contrary, was an earthquake, followed by several aftershocks.
The latest: when, at the end of February, we learned that Salt Lake City would host the Kings without any public money being spent.
This fall, Mr. Girard had tried to put things into perspective and defend himself, but each time he broached the subject, he got stuck. Since certain criticisms came from the CAQ caucus, it has practically refused to return to the subject.
The affair sticks to him despite everything. During all negotiations between the government and the unions, the latter brandished symbols of the Los Angeles team. The message: they too were entitled to royal treatment.
- Listen to the political meeting between Antoine Robitaille and Benoît Dutrizac via QUB :
Abandoned traditions
Yesterday, Eric Girard took the lead by unveiling an element of the budget, namely the announcement of subsidies totaling $34 million over five years to two food aid organizations, the Breakfast Club and the Cantine pour tous.
For the minister, this is an obvious attempt to atone for the sin of the famous grant to the Kings. Since the announcement in mid-November, opposition parties have taken pleasure in contrasting the famous “royal” subsidy of $5 to $7 million with the difficulties of food banks.
This was part of the abandonment of a well-established tradition: the purchase, by the Minister of Finance presenting his budget, of new shoes. Eric Girard now prefers donations, from his discretionary budget, to a community organization. Exit the monarchical attitude.
Capital tradition
Another tradition was abandoned on Monday: it was in Longueuil – and not in the national capital – that the minister presented his pre-budget image capture.
Mayor Bruno Marchand was annoyed: “It cannot become a habit,” he declared, recalling that the National Capital Act requires that major events in Quebec politics must be held there. The PQ member for Jean-Talon, Pascal Paradis, was happy to see in Girard’s decision “another bad signal” with regard to the national capital, where the CAQ did not deliver results “on its flagship promises.
This all brings us back to the Kings. By taking out the checkbook for them this fall, the CAQ wanted, after the loss of Jean-Talon, to show that it had Quebec at heart. What better way to do this than a subtle resurrection of the dream of the return of the Nordics? The announcement followed a reconversion: that of Legault in favor of the third motorway link.
But the strategy has so far created an incredible series of problems for the CAQ, not only in Quebec, but throughout the nation. Since then, she has struggled to escape this downward spiral.
It would be surprising if today’s budget helped, because it will be forced to recycle the old liberal distinctions between “rigor” and “austerity.”