Message from the NDP Leader
Dear Quebecers,
During the 2021 election, I pledged to do everything in my power to improve your quality of life. Although only one Quebec New Democrat - Alexandre Boulerice - was elected, the entire NDP caucus and I have worked tirelessly and wholeheartedly to fulfill our commitment to you.
Despite many obstacles, we never gave up. Whether it was when the Liberals said no, or when the Conservatives and the Bloc worked together to block important measures for Quebecers, the NDP showed we are in it for you, to make a difference in your lives.
Here is just part of what we were able to achieve for Quebec:
• Dental care for over a million Quebecers. And that's just the beginning;
• The start of a universal, fully public pharmacare plan, including funding for Quebec to make prescription contraceptives and diabetes drugs free;
• Ten days' paid sick leave for federal workers, and anti-scab legislation to help workers negotiate better working conditions;
• Stopping Ottawa from reducing Quebec's political weight in the House of Commons by eliminating a seat from Quebec.
New Democrats have shown that you can count on us. With the economic storm we're in, you'll need New Democrat MPs willing to fight for the things you care about. There are politicians who want to make Canada more like the U.S - focusing on the interests of banks and of wealthy CEOs. That's why I firmly believe that you need more New Democrats in Ottawa: to fight decisions that could hurt Quebecers and to keep getting real results for you. When you vote NDP, you send people like you to Ottawa – people who will never stop fighting to improve your quality of life, rather than CEOs.
In friendship,
Jagmeet Singh
Leader, New Democratic Party of Canada
Protecting what Quebecers hold dear
Donald Trump is threatening everything we hold dear, and that includes Quebec. Quebec is nation, a jewel of our country, and that is why the NDP is committed to protecting Quebecers from Donald Trump's attacks. The NDP will
• Immediately pass legislation to ensure that the French language, Quebec culture, supply management, our farmers and our waterways can never be subject to concessions in future trade negotiations with Trump.
• Prevent American interests from getting their hands on the flagships of the Quebec economy that are the pride of our entrepreneurial sector.
• Defend Quebec workers and help them weather this storm. We will fight for a thorough reform of Employment Insurance so that people who lose their jobs have access as quickly as possible to the support to which they are entitled in order to pay their bills on time.
• Pass legislation to protect our farmers from Trump's repeated attacks and to avoid any concessions in future trade negotiations. We will also compensate producers impacted by previous concessions. We will also increase investment to support our agricultural sector, particularly against the impacts of the climate crisis and to help address labor shortages;
• Prevent grocery giants and large corporations from using the pretext of the trade war to unfairly inflate their prices;
• Defend and support Quebec's vital industrial sectors, such as aluminum and aerospace, and their workers;
• Defend the interests of the forest industry, which has suffered greatly from our strained relations with our southern neighbors;
• Invest significantly in Quebec's infrastructure, prioritizing our home-grown industries and products and creating good union jobs;
• Ensure that Quebec is at the negotiating table with the United States and that its interests are defended.
In times of crisis, we have shown that you can count on the NDP to defend your interests. In this trade war launched by Donald Trump, you need NDP MPs in Ottawa who will fight for the interests of working people and defend what we hold dear, because the other parties won't.
In it for our health care
Across the country, our healthcare system is crumbling. Quebec is no exception. More than 2 million people have no access to a family doctor; the number of private medical clinics is growing rapidly; emergency rooms are now at 200% of capacity, and the wait to see a specialist can now reach 14 months.
We believe it's time for Quebecers to have more MPs who are in it for them, who will fight to improve our public healthcare system. The system is bearing the full brunt of cutbacks, lack of funding and a drift towards privatization. Private healthcare is not the solution. Rather it is a cause of significant problems. To protect our free, public healthcare system, the NDP will :
• Increase health transfers by 1% to help all Quebecers access a family doctor and to support recruitment and retention of more health care professionals.
• Fight to continue implementing universal pharmacare. We have won funding from Ottawa to lay the groundwork for a universal pharmacare system to cover prescription contraceptives and diabetes medications for the time being. We will fight to extend coverage to all essential drugs.
• Defend and expand dental care so that more Quebecers have access to the care to which they are entitled. We will also partner with the provinces to address staffing needs in the sector.
• Do our part to improve our long-term care system so that seniors can age with dignity, and wealthy investors don't make a profit on their backs.
• Ban U.S. companies from buying healthcare facilities in Quebec.
• Strengthen and enforce the Canada Health Act to tackle health privatization.
• Prevent the government from making concessions related to our universal, public health care system in the face of Donald Trump.
When New Democrats see a crisis - when people are suffering - we cannot stand idly by. This is not the time to make excuses. It's time to work together to find solutions. It's about raising standards - not lowering them. It's about working together as a team, joining forces to improve people's quality of life. If, following discussions, the Quebec government does not wish to participate in a federal program, of course Quebec will have the right to withdraw with compensation, unconditionally.
In it for a more affordable future for Quebecers
New Democrats want lower bills for Quebecers. We believe people have paid enough and it's time to have the courage to demand that the ultra-rich and profitable big businesses pay their fair share to make life more affordable for people. Therefore, the NDP will:
• Fight for billionaires to finally pay their fair share through a wealth tax.
• Reverse Mark Carney's decision to give a capital gains gift to the ultra-rich, a decision that could cost the Quebec government $600 million per year in lost revenue;
• Pass legislation to give Quebec the powers it needs to fight tax loopholes and tax havens which allow the wealthy to reduce the amount of taxes they pay, or avoid paying taxes altogether.
These new sources of revenue will allow us to invest in making life more affordable for Quebecers. The NDP will:
• Remove the GST from essential goods such as children's products, groceries and your heating and Internet bills;
• Stand up to the big grocery chains by capping the prices of essential foods to reduce Quebecers' bills;
• Lower taxes for middle-class families, unlike Carney and Poilievre, who prefer to give gifts to the rich;
• Cap internet and cell phone prices – which are essential services - for everyone, and improve internet access in rural areas;
• Tackle the housing crisis with bold measures that will give Quebecers access to housing they can afford. Specifically, the NDP will :
◦ Ban the purchase of affordable housing by real estate giants, such as Akelius in Montreal, and thus limit the phenomenon of “renovations” in major urban centers facing this crisis;
◦ Build at least 120,000 social and affordable housing units in Quebec over the next ten years, half of them within five years;
◦ Set a target for social and non-market housing to represent 20%of the housing market by 2050;
◦ Increase the Rental Protection Fund by $2 billion to protect the social and affordable housing we already have on the market;
◦ Create a Community Housing Bank to partner with non-profit developers, cooperatives and aboriginal communities;
◦ Impose a permanent ban on foreign buyers acquiring domestic housing units;
◦ Set aside 100% of federal land for the construction of social, community and cooperative housing.
• Increase the Guaranteed Income Supplement to lift all seniors out of poverty;
• Double the Canada Disability Benefit to help people with disabilities live in dignity.
A different relationship with Quebec
Since the Sherbrooke Declaration, the NDP has been committed to building a different relationship with the Quebec nation - one based on respect for its identity, its language and its choices. And we're proud of it. Here are a few commitments that illustrate what a renewed relationship between Quebec and Ottawa could look like under an NDP government:
• The NDP wants a future where Quebec's national character is recognized not just with fine words and grand speeches, but with concrete decisions and governance that exercises asymmetrical, cooperative and respectful federalism. This means that Quebec must have specific powers and room to manoeuvre. In concrete terms, this means, among other things, the right to opt out of federal programs, with financial compensation for Quebec. It's not a question of ignoring our differences, but rather of embracing them.
• The NDP believes that the patriation of the Constitution in 1982 without Quebec's signature was historical error. Our objective is to allow Quebec to integrate into the Canadian constitutional framework, because we sincerely believe that Quebec's national character can find expression in the Canadian federal context.
On the basis of asymmetrical, cooperative and respectful federalism, New Democrats believe that Quebec should have a say in the issues that affect it. Indeed, the NDP :
• Firmly believes that infrastructure projects that could have an environmental impact, particularly those involving the transportation of hydrocarbons, should be subject to Quebec's environmental assessment process. Unlike Mark Carney and Pierre Poilievre, who want to impose pipeline projects like Energy East and LNG Quebec on Quebecers, the NDP is opposed to these projects. Rather, we believe that any such project should be subject to Quebec's environmental laws and should not go ahead without the agreement of the Quebec government, Quebecers and Aboriginal communities.
• Will review the federal judicial appointment process, ensuring that selection is made from a list of candidates systematically pre-selected by the Quebec government.
• Undertakes to formally consult Québec on all international trade agreements. We are also committed to transparent trade negotiations, to ensure that costs and benefits are known before any agreement is signed.
In it for Quebec culture and the French language
The NDP wants to see a future where Quebec culture, local arts and the French language shine, whether here in Quebec, across the country or on the international stage. The NDP:
• Will not give in to Donald Trump, and will ensure that web giants finally pay their fair share of taxes;
• Will reinvest in the cultural sector to preserve Quebec's cultural vitality and ensure better funding for Radio-Canada;
• Will offer artists and cultural workers the option of income averaging for federal tax purposes, and create a tax exemption for the first $10,000 of royalty income from artistic activities;
• Will increase funding for organizations working to promote and protect the French language in Quebec and elsewhere. And in the face of globalization, web giants and Trump's threats, we will update legislative protections for the French language;
• Will ensure that judges sitting on federal courts are bilingual. We will also ensure that every judge is able to read and speak in both official languages;
• Will work with the cultural community and the Quebec government with the goal of restoring Quebec's cultural sovereignty. This autonomy would take the form of a transfer of powers and a transfer of the federal government's historic share of cultural funding.
To ensure that Quebec can reap the benefits of immigration, and to ensure that the integration of newcomers is positive and promotes living together, the Quebec government must have a reliable ally in Ottawa. It's time for a real partner in Ottawa, one that will fully assume its responsibility for the integration and francization of people who choose to settle in Quebec. The NDP will:
• Increase the immigration transfer to the Quebec government by $100 million per year on a permanent basis, and reimburse the Quebec government in full for the costs associated with the increase in asylum seekers in recent years;
• Work with the Quebec government to raise awareness and encourage newcomers to settle in regions;
• Invest more in francization programs to better welcome and integrate newcomers, so that they can achieve their full potential here in Quebec.
In it to tackle the climate crisis
Pierre Poilievre's Conservatives don't believe in the climate crisis. And Mark Carney's Liberals are dragging their feet and setting us back. They're forgetting that the climate crisis is a critical issue that we must face up to with bold solutions. The NDP want to invest in our future, build clean energy, increase our climate resilience and develop our leading-edge industries to remain competitive in the face of the challenges ahead.
We have concrete, science-based commitments to tackle the climate emergency and create quality jobs. For Quebecers, these commitments would mean :
• Their tax dollars would stop being used to counter to our climate objectives, eliminating subsidies to Big Oil, saving $1.8 billion a year;
• Investing in an east-west power grid that will enable Quebec to sell its hydroelectricity to the rest of Canada rather than to the U.S., while allowing the whole country to reduce their bills and greenhouse gas emissions;
• No oil pipeline will pass through Quebec territory without the agreement of Quebecers and without an environmental assessment by Quebec;
• The federal government would not invest in the 3rd Link project in Quebec City, nor in any other similar project that runs counter to our climate objectives;
• The Quebec City tramway project would be further funded by Ottawa, making transportation easier for thousands of people in the Quebec City region;
• Quebec would become a world leader in the electrification of transportation and a center of innovation for electric batteries and charging stations;
• The St. Lawrence River would be considered a living entity and a subject of law, to ensure it is fully protected;
• Within 100 day we will introduce legislation to protect our freshwater and ensure that it is not used as a bargaining chip in future negotiations with Trump;
• The High-Speed Rail in the Windsor-Quebec City corridor would finally get underway, would be entirely public, and would be built with Quebec and Canadian materials;
• 30% of our land, freshwater and oceans would be protected by 2030;
• An Office of Environmental Justice would be created to address the disproportionate impacts of pollution and biodiversity loss on low-income, racialized and other marginalized communities.
Quebecers have consistently demonstrated their willingness to tackle the climate crisis, as well as their outrage at government inaction in the face of this crisis. At the NDP, we're more ready than ever to change the course of history with you. It may be a minute before midnight, but it's not too late. With New Democrats in Ottawa fighting for you, we'll have the courage of our convictions and implement concrete solutions to the climate crisis.