Legault has ‘zero business sense,’ says Groupe Dynamite, Royalmount owner Andrew Lutfy

A month after mentioning leaving Quebec, businessman Andrew Lutfy returned to the fray with his criticism of the Legault government.

“Let’s not forget all the big bets of recent years, which ended in failure and cost us Quebecers billions of dollars,” he said Monday at a conference before the Canadian Club of Montreal. “For me, it’s mind-boggling.”

“When François Legault responds by saying ‘there are too many immigrants in Quebec,’ frankly, I have a hard time understanding him,” he said, parodying the premier’s voice. “He doesn’t get it.”

The head of retailer Groupe Dynamite and shopping centres Royalmount and Dix30 had mentioned leaving Quebec because of immigration policies that prevented him from recruiting the skilled employees he needed. He made a plea in several media outlets at the end of September to make “his despair” heard.

Lutfy added fuel to the fire Monday with some very harsh words for the premier. “I apologize, I know that he (Legault) worked in business at one point, but he has zero business sense and zero empathy for Quebecers,” he said during a press scrum on the sidelines of his conference.

During his presentation, he criticized “all political parties” that promise to reduce the administrative burden on businesses, while other issues are more urgent, in his opinion.

The CAQ could still be an interesting political vehicle, but Legault would have to not run in the next election, he said.

“In principle, it’s a coalition,” he emphasized. “You never know who could become leader of the CAQ. Maybe overnight, we could say, ‘Wow, that looks good.’ You change the three or four most important ministerial positions.”

Lutfy also expressed concern about the economic repercussions of a third referendum on sovereignty if the Parti Québécois, which is ahead in the polls, wins the next election.

The businessman believes Quebec’s economy has fallen behind because of the 1995 referendum.

“Even if it doesn’t pass, the referendum will certainly make (business people) think that Quebec is too risky,” he said.

–This report by La Presse Canadienne was translated by CityNews