Tradition on the eve of the budget: Girard chooses Longueuil rather than Quebec

Breaking with tradition, Minister Eric Girard chose the city of Longueuil instead of Quebec for his customary public outing on the eve of the budget. The Legault government is accused of once again neglecting the National Capital.

The usual taking of images preceding the tabling of the budget was held this year far from the National Assembly. The Minister of Finance instead invited the media to the other end of Highway 20 on Monday. A decision criticized not only by the opposition parties, but also by Mayor Bruno Marchand.

“It’s a distraction that we should have avoided this week based on the simple principle of the law which says that the big moments in Quebec politics must take place in its capital. It cannot become a habit,” said the number one in Quebec City.

Later in the day, in an impromptu press release, Mr. Marchand repeated that “meetings, especially those which are part of important traditions, must be held in Quebec (…) This is an opportunity for us to remind that Quebec is the Capital and that it is the place for official meetings, especially those like this one which have been part of history for 40-45 years.

That said, Bruno Marchand is now waiting to see what the government has in store for the Capitale-Nationale in its budget. “We all understand that the economic context is difficult, but it is precisely at these times that the role of government is most important. It is up to him to identify priorities and make investments accordingly. The needs of Quebec businesses and organizations will have to find answers,” he insisted.

Mayor Marchand, however, had to admit that his budgetary hopes are rather low. “Our hopes cannot help but be low. They (the members of the CAQ government) lowered hopes everywhere. Not just in Quebec. They lowered hopes everywhere.”

At the Parti Québécois, we also believe that the event should have been held in Quebec.

“Is the government so embarrassed by its record in the National Capital that it is trying to avoid the parliamentary press by organizing the taking of images before the budget speech in Longueuil rather than in Quebec? Quebec is not a “second metropolis”, it is the capital of Quebec. Official events must be held there, period. Every time the government does the opposite, it is a loss for Quebec,” lamented PQ MP Pascal Paradis.

According to him, this is another signal that the Capitale-Nationale is “neglected”, from a government that has failed to deliver its promises to Quebec since 2018.

The CAQ abandons Quebec

For the interim leader of the Liberal Party, this decision breaking with tradition is additional “proof” of the little importance that François Legault’s CAQ gives to the National Capital.

“This symbolic event should have been held in Quebec. This is indicative of the abandonment of Quebec by the CAQ as we see in all issues, economy, transport, public services and others,” argued Marc Tanguay.

At the office of the minister responsible for the Capitale-Nationale, it was not possible to know if Jonatan Julien made representations to his colleague from Finance so that this formal image taking accompanied by a brief speech from the great financier of the government is held in Quebec, as is customary.

“The budget is tomorrow, and all other activities will take place in Quebec,” we limited ourselves to commenting.

No austerity, assures Girard

While he acknowledged that developing the budget was “difficult,” given current economic conditions, Eric Girard assured Monday that there is no question of imposing “austerity” on Quebecers, as did the Liberal government of Philippe Couillard in the past.

At the time, spending growth was limited to 1%, which the CAQ Minister of Finance considers austerity. “There will not be that in this budget,” he clarified.

Flanked by Minister Bernard Drainville, Mr. Girard affirmed that priority will be given to health and education. He took the opportunity to announce that two food aid organizations, the Cantine pour tous and the Breakfast Club, will benefit from additional funding totaling $34 million over five years.

With the collaboration of Taïeb Moalla