Quebec wants at least $22B over 10 years from Ottawa for infrastructure

Quebec wants at least $22 billion over 10 years from the federal government for infrastructure.

This was announced by Finance Minister Eric Girard on Friday, a few days before a meeting of all provincial premiers with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney.

This would be in addition to the $2 billion to $3 billion requested from the federal government by the Primer of Quebec François Legault on Thursday to build the transmission line for Quebec’s hydroelectric projects with Newfoundland and Labrador. 

Girard recalled that the provinces had obtained $70 billion over 10 years from Ottawa in an agreement that ended in 2023. 

For the next plan, he is setting the bar higher, to take into account inflation and the shortfall since 2023: a minimum of $100 billion from the federal government over 10 years for all of Canada.

“If we update a $70 billion plan over 10 years, 10 years ago, at a minimum, the bare minimum today, we are talking about an infrastructure plan of $100 billion over 10 years, so $10 billion per year.”

Thus, the portion that would return to Quebec, proportionally to its population, should be $22 billion over 10 years.

–This report by La Presse Canadienne was translated by CityNews