Québec solidaire wants to postpone salary increase for elected officials until 2026

Québec solidaire (QS) wants the salary increase for MNAs to come into effect only in 2026, after the next election.

The party is reaching out to other political parties to support its amendment to the bill. The request was made in a letter from QS House Leader Alexandre Leduc.

“If it’s true that the Coalition avenir Québec (CAQ) is doing this to be able to attract the best talent, let it be consistent and let this increase not apply immediately. Let it only apply from the next legislature of 2026,” he explained in a press briefing Wednesday morning.

“No one is fighting on the bus for an increase in MNA’s salaries,” added Leduc in reference to Premier François Legault’s statement on voting reform.

Should the bill pass, the solidarity MPs do not intend to keep the amount of the increase in their pockets.

“At QS, all MNAs already donate to all sorts of organizations in their ridings. So we will substantially increase the donations we will make in the coming months from the increase that will be adopted or not,” said Leduc.

Leduc said in the same breath that his political party still wants the government to give up raising the salaries of MPs.

PQ in favour of the amendment

The Parti Québécois (PQ) says it is in favour of the QS amendment.

“The idea that it could apply to the next legislature is very interesting, because it is not retroactive and it is not the current members who vote. It’s an idea that I had already mentioned before QS,” explained PQ MNA Pascal Bérubé.

According to Bérubé, the purpose of this increase is to ensure the “cohesion of the caucus” of the CAQ.

PQ MNAs are still waffling on whether they will support the CAQ’s bill. They are expected to announce their decision later Wednesday.

Liberals cautious

The Liberals, for their part, remained more circumspect about the QS proposal. “I will study the amendment as a team with our caucus and in due course,” said Liberal House Leader Monsef Derraji.

The Liberal Party (PLQ) has already said it supports the bill.

On Tuesday, Premier Legault defended the measure, saying it was a necessary “catch-up” and that his government was showing “courage.”

“A father, a young father or a mother has the right to go and earn as much money as possible to give as much as possible to his children. That’s how I see life,” he said during the question period.

Under the bill tabled on May 11 by Government House Leader Simon Jolin-Barrette, the base salary of elected officials would increase from $101,561 to $131,766. All MPs with additional duties (ministers, leaders, opposition leaders) will receive an even larger increase.

The CAQ wants to pass the MNA salary increase before the end of the parliamentary session on June 9. To achieve this, Legault has not ruled out using a gag order.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on May 24, 2023.