Quebec Conservative platform heavy on tax cuts, healthcare -- but leaves several issues out
Voters interested in the Conservative Party of Quebec (PCQ) may be disappointed by its platform, announced Sunday in Drummondville, as it is silent on many issues and vague on many others.
Not a word on the party's immigration commitments. Not a word on the promotion of the French language. Complete silence on culture. Nothing on agriculture, Quebec-Ottawa relations, access to justice, minority and Indigenous rights, the fight against domestic violence, or services for children in youth protection.
"We chose to make a platform based on the five themes we intend to hammer during the election campaign," explained party leader Eric Duhaime in a press scrum. He said the other issues are addressed under the "programme" tab on the party's website.
The PCQ's platform contains about sixty pages focusing on a few issues: health, the economy, childcare, tax cuts, transportation and the environment. Some of the commitments were already known to the public.
A fierce defender of individual freedoms, Éric Duhaime wants first and foremost to "give back more freedom" to Quebec citizens, under the slogan "Libres chez nous" and his platform entitled "Liberté 22."
The platform was presented to a hundred candidates in a community center who received pre-election training on Saturday.
On the issue of climate change, the party remained vague. It said it wants to focus on "realistic" ambitions and has not set any targets for reducing greenhouse gases.
Duhaime justified this decision by explaining that governments have "continually" missed these targets in the past.
He also reaffirmed his opposition to Bill 96 on the French language, calling himself a "nationalist." But there is "no question of us touching fundamental freedoms," he said.
On the issue of transportation, the party focused its commitments on Quebec City only, without mention of Montreal and the rest of Quebec.
It reaffirmed its opposition to the tramway project, promising free bus transportation in the capital. The Conservatives are in favour of the construction of a third link, but against the government's plan for a Quebec-Lévis tunnel. The PCQ would rather see a bridge in the east, near Île d'Orléans.
In the realm of health, the word to remember is: competition. The contribution of the private sector would be central. The party would change the way hospitals are financed: some would be managed directly by private companies, and doctors would be encouraged to engage in mixed practice. Private supplementary insurance would be available for health care services already covered by Medicare. The party also intends to train more physicians.
For child care services, the party is advocating a gradual withdrawal from the financing of the network, relying instead on direct assistance to parents through a voucher of $200 per week, per child. Here again, the PCQ wants to encourage competition, including in service costs, with the deregulation of the $8.70 daily rate. The party did not set a target for the creation of additional daycare spaces, even though the waiting list contains 52,000 names.
"We believe the market will solve the problem," Duhaime said.
On the tax front, the PCQ is banking on reducing the taxpayer burden, with a promise of a $2,000 tax cut for those with an annual income of $80,000, for example. It also wants to suspend gasoline taxes and abolish the tax on used goods, and progressively reduce the payroll tax.
Additionally, a Quebec Conservative government would want to better exploit natural resources and would greenlight the LNG-Québec project.
In his speech, Duhaime said his party has grown exponentially in a short period of time, from 500 members to 60,000.
Duhaime also had a message for Quebec's anglophones: they are not hostages of the Quebec Liberal Party (QLP).
This report was first published in French by The Canadian Press on Aug. 14, 2022.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Serial sexual offender linked to unsolved 1970s homicides of four Calgary girls, women
An investigation into unsolved historical homicides from the 1970s has linked the deaths of two girls and two young women in and around Calgary to a now-deceased serial offender.
Woman with liver failure rejected for a transplant after medical review highlights alcohol use
For nearly three months, Amanda Huska has been in an Ontario hospital, part of it on life support, because of severe liver failure. Her history of alcohol use is getting in the way of her only potential treatment: a liver transplant.
BREAKING Craig Berube named as next head coach of Toronto Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs have named Craig Berube as their new head coach.
A look back at Alberta's record-breaking wildfire season
By the end of the 2023 wildfire season in Alberta, 1,088 wildfires had burned more than 2.2 million hectares of land, and this year, the wildfire season is already in full swing.
Person charged in random assault on actor Steve Buscemi in New York
A person wanted in connection with the random assault on actor Steve Buscemi on a New York City street earlier this month was taken into custody Friday, police said.
B.C. man 'attacked suddenly' by adult grizzly near Alberta boundary: RCMP
A B.C. man is recovering from multiple injuries after he was "attacked suddenly" by an adult grizzly bear near Elkford Thursday afternoon.
Australia's richest woman seeks removal of her portrait from exhibition
Art is subjective. And while many artists long to share their work with the world, there's no guarantee that the audience will understand it, or even like it.
Video appears to show Sean 'Diddy' Combs beating singer Cassie in hotel hallway in 2016
Security video aired by CNN appears to show Sean 'Diddy' Combs physically assaulting singer Cassie in a Los Angeles hotel hallway in 2016.
Anglers reel in 3.5-metre-long tiger shark off coast of Florida: 'She found my bait'
A group of fishers said it took roughly 20 minutes to reel in this 3.5-metre-long tiger shark off the coast of Florida.