Quebec government to present budget on March 12

Quebec Finance Minister Eric Girard reads his budget speech, Tuesday, March 21, 2023 at the legislature in Quebec City. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jacques Boissinot

The Quebec government says it will present its provincial budget on March 12.

Finance Minister Éric Girard made the announcement on Thursday at the National Assembly, saying its priorities will be health and education.

"What you will see is that we have less revenue because the economy has slowed down over the past year," he explained, adding Quebec has had to deal with "exceptional circumstances that are difficult" but "definitely manageable."

This comes days after Premier François Legault warned that the next budget would be "largely in deficit" following turbulent collective agreement negotiations with the province's teachers.

"I'll tell you right away, we find ourselves with a budget that is significantly in deficit," he claimed. "Much more in deficit than it was before these negotiations."

He added these "financial consequences" are due to the government making "massive" investments in education to improve working conditions for teachers.

In addition, the Quebec government is blaming the growing number of asylum seekers for stresses on the education and social services networks.

The Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) is asking the federal government to fully reimburse the province for what it says is $1 billion in spent in the past three years to welcome refugee claimants.

"Our capacity has reached its limits, and we're at breaking point," argued Quebec Immigration Minister Christine Fréchette. "In recent years, Quebec has done more to welcome asylum seekers than all the provinces combined."

The federal government's recent announcement to set aside $150 million for Quebec's 2023 expenditures is "not enough, and is disrespectful to Quebec's efforts to support the various networks that provide services to asylum seekers," the CAQ notes.

Fréchette notes that for 2023 alone, the cost of welcoming asylum seekers amounted to $576.9 million, in addition to the $470 million already declared for public services provided in 2021 and 2022.

As of Dec. 31, 2023, the Quebec government says 46,555 adult asylum seekers are receiving social assistance, representing 29 per cent of the program's beneficiaries.

Legault has stressed in the past that this will not be an austerity budget and will not include service cuts or tax increases.