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
Indian envoy warns of 'big red line,' days after charges laid in Nijjar case
India's envoy to Canada insists relations between the two countries are positive overall, despite what he describes as 'a lot of noise.'
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
U.S. paused bomb shipment to Israel to signal concerns over Rafah invasion, official says
The U.S. paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel was approaching a decision on launching a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah against the wishes of the U.S.
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
Susan Buckner, who played spirited cheerleader Patty Simcox in 'Grease,' dead at 72
Susan Buckner, best known for playing peppy Rydell High School cheerleader Patty Simcox in the 1978 classic movie musical 'Grease,' has died. She was 72.
Jeremy Skibicki has 'uphill battle' to prove he's not criminally responsible in Winnipeg killings: legal analysts
Accused killer Jeremy Skibicki could have a challenging time convincing a judge that he is not criminally responsible for the deaths of four Indigenous women, a legal analyst says.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
Alcohol believed to be a factor in boating incident after 2 men die: N.S. RCMP
Two Nova Scotia men are dead after a boat they were travelling in sank in the Annapolis River in Granville Centre, N.S., on Monday.