‘Bureaucratic monster’: PQ pledges to dismantle Santé Québec if elected in fall
Posted August 21, 2026 12:04 pm.
Last Updated August 21, 2026 12:25 pm.
A Parti Québécois (PQ) government would abolish Santé Québec in order to invest more in direct care for the public. The PQ wants to use the savings to strengthen primary care and access to care through the CLSCs, as well as to reduce surgical waiting lists.
At a press conference outside Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital in Montreal on Friday morning, PQ leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon lamented that Santé Québec has failed to meet expectations.
“We are definitely facing a bureaucratic monster. We must regain control over this state-owned corporation, and it must be held accountable for growth that is completely out of control,” argued St-Pierre Plamondon, referring to the organization’s growing number of employees.
Health Minister Sonia Bélanger criticized the PQ leader’s announcement in a statement posted on X, asserting that abolishing Santé Québec would amount to “a massive waste of time and resources, with all the disruption that would entail for the healthcare system.”
“To suggest that we can simply abolish Santé Québec, recoup a few savings, and use that to resolve access to care is so simplistic that it’s almost dishonest. The entire population would lose out if the next few years were spent dismantling and rebuilding structures,” wrote Bélanger.
“It’s just cut, cut, cut, without necessarily considering the consequences,” said Quebec Liberal Party leader Charles Milliard at a press conference in Lévis on Friday.
“People want a doctor’s appointment; they don’t want a new organizational chart for Santé Québec,” Milliard argued.
Santé Québec stated on Friday that it had no intention of commenting on the proposals from the various political parties. “We remain focused on coordinating the network’s operations and delivering results for the public,” the organization said in a statement sent to La Presse Canadienne.
Santé Québec was created in 2024 and became the sole employer of staff in the health and social services network. Jan. 23, 2025, marked the official transfer of all eligible ministry staff to Santé Québec. A total of 894 positions were transferred.
–This report by La Presse Canadienne was translated by CityNews
