Quebec Election Day 11: public transit and agriculture on the menu

On Day 11 of Quebec’s election campaign one party leader is promising to support public transit in Montreal, while another looks to cancel a tramway project in Quebec City if elected.

Québec solidaire co-spokesperson Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois was in Montreal to announce several public transit plans including a purple metro line with eight stations that would connect the east end of Laval to downtown Montreal. It would pass by Rivière-des-Prairies, Montreal-North, Rosemont and the Plateau Mont-Royal.

Québec solidaire is also promising, if elected, to extend the green line by one station eastbound, and extending the orange line by two stations further into Laval. Among the public transit promises were a tramway to run between Lachine and Pointe-aux-Trembles, as well as adding to the REM.

Quebec Solidaire in Montreal announcing public transit plans if elected on October 3, 2022. Photo Credit: CityNews/Matt Tornabene

Conservative Leader Éric Duhaime, meanwhile, was in Quebec City campaigning against a tramway project that is being championed by Mayor Bruno Marchand. Duhaime says commuters in the capital region don’t want a tramway and instead prefer a new bridge linking both shores of the St. Lawrence River.

THE CANADIAN PRESS / Jacques Boissinot

RELATED:

• Quebec Conservative Party courting Anglophone vote, would repeal Bill 96 if elected
• Quebec Election Day 10: Liberal Leader Dominique Anglade is going on the offensive

Coalition Avenir Québec Leader François Legault was on Montreal’s South Shore this morning for a meeting with a professional farmers’ union — Union des producteurs agricoles — and then to speak with reporters. He promised $50 million to support farmers who want to put more environmental measures in place. He also said another $50 million would be put towards the Fonds d’investissement pour la relève agricole, helping new farmers buy or rent land.

Ce matin, j’ai parlé devant le conseil général de l’@upaqc. Je suis fier de nos agriculteurs, de nos pêcheurs et de nos transformateurs. Leur travail est essentiel.
Pour me lire ????https://t.co/TpFeg8gXrF pic.twitter.com/DfldICSisv

— François Legault (@francoislegault) September 7, 2022

Liberal Party Leader Dominique Anglade was also visiting a farm in the same region and met with the farmers’ union. She is promising tax benefits for farmers who inherit land from family. She also promised quicker approval times to develop environmental agricultural projects.

She is calling the wealth and inheritance taxes proposed by Québec solidaire an attack on farmers.

QS promised Tuesday to tax Quebecers with net assets of $1 million or more.

“Things need to change if we want a great future for our kids and our grandkids,” said Nadeau-Dubois. “Things need to change if we want to take care of all generations including the elderly people, if we want to invest in care at home for seniors.

“We need to find that money somewhere. We will take that money from the biggest corporations and from the millionaires in Quebec. I think it’s a reasonable thing to do to take care of our society.”

Anglade pointed to a combine harvester parked behind her at a farm, explaining that the value of that single piece of equipment is around $1 million.

She says it’s hard enough to find young people to take up farming that taxing them more is the wrong policy, adding that there are “millions” of examples of people who have worked hard and want to leave assets to their children.

Nadeau-Dubois says his party, if elected, would need to tax people more in order to improve services in health and education and to fight climate change.

“My message for the young people of Quebec is first you need to go out and vote,” said Nadeau-Dubois. “You have the power to influence the results of that election. You need to exercise that power. It is important for the future of Quebec and the future of the planet.

“But my second message is go talk to your parents, go talk to your aunts, your uncles. We need all generations to work together if we want to succeed in our fight against climate change. So go out and vote and go talk to your parents and grandparents.”

All Quebec’s major party leaders are scheduled to meet with the province’s professional farmer’s union today and tomorrow.

Quebec Liberals on Montreal’s South Shore making agricultural promises if elected on October 3, 2022. Photo Credit: CityNews/Martin Daigle

Parti Québécois Leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon was on the Gaspé Peninsula this morning for a news conference announcing measures to get those over the age of 60 back on the job market to improve the current labour shortage. Promising a 15 per cent tax deduction on their last $35,000 of revenue.

Annonce à Carleton avec @AlexisDeschenes concernant les travailleurs expérimentés.

Le PQ s’engage à donner un rabais d’imposition de 15 % sur les derniers 35 000 $ déclarés en revenus, sans pénalité sur les rentes et les pensions, jusqu’à un revenu annuel maximal de 80 000 $. pic.twitter.com/lugtXGuwHd

— Paul St-Pierre Plamondon (@PaulPlamondon) September 7, 2022