Criticized by the opposition, Finance Minister Eric Girard defended the decision to give a $500 cheque to the vast majority of taxpayers as the best solution to help households cope with soaring inflation.

"When you are the Minister of Finance, you maximize under constraint and uncertainty," Girard said during an address to the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal on Monday. "That is to say, you do the best measure in sub-optimal circumstances."

The government's flagship measure in last week's budget will provide a $500 cheque to taxpayers earning $100,000 or less to help them cope with higher than expected inflation. The measure affects 6.4 million people.

The decision has been criticized by the opposition, which accuses the measure of being "electioneering." Opposition parties have also questioned the appropriateness of providing assistance to taxpayers with incomes of up to $100,000, or even more if one considers the tax deduction for RRSP contributions.

Girard believes that the $500 compensation is not electoral. He points out that Revenu Québec was instructed to pay the $500 from the returns processed on March 23.

"I can't be further from the election than that. I can't give out the $500 until I announce it," he said. 

The measure was "better than anything that was proposed," the minister said. He compared it to proposals to freeze electricity rates or to lower consumption taxes "which should have been raised afterwards."

Desjardins Group Chief Economist Jimmy Jean believes the Legault government should have offered support to a smaller pool of households. "Let's not lose sight of the fact that middle- and high-income households still have a significant savings surplus," he said in a note published Friday. "They have options and do not need government assistance."

"The government is doing more to help lower-income households when you take into account the measures announced last November in the economic update," Girard said in an interview after his speech. In January, another contribution of $400 for a couple or $275 for a person living alone was intended for 3.3 million taxpayers, he said.

With its budget, the government wanted the new measure to be extended to more people. "It's a question of reaching as many people as possible on a basic consumption basket, that is, the first $25,000 of consumption."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on March 28, 2022.