War of words rages between Quebec, Ottawa over transit
Couillard says three provincial public transit projects ‘must become a reality’
Political tensions grew Thursday as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accused Quebec politicians of playing games at the same time as the National Assembly expressed its dismay in the federal budget.
One day after Quebec said it was “extremely disappointed” that Bill Morneau’s budget did not clearly commit Ottawa to infrastructure funding, Trudeau and the Liberal government in Quebec City kept up their war of words, taking pot shots at each other through the media.
It started in the morning with three Quebec cabinet ministers wondering aloud just what the 40 Quebec Liberal MPs in Ottawa were doing for Quebec to get so little.
By the afternoon, Couillard himself dove into the mix in reaction to the legislature’s adoption of a motion expressing its “deep disappointment,” in the budget.
“This has to be seen in Ottawa as a very strong message,” Couillard told reporters in Montreal. “This is not trivial. The three public transit projects must become a reality. We are going to fund these projects heavily. We need the federal government’s participation and I expect it.
Off in Toronto on a tour promoting the budget, Trudeau said it is false to say Ottawa forgot about Quebec.
He pleaded that had Ottawa been more specific in its choices about what to do with a total of $81 billion over 11 years in infrastructure money including the $20.1 billion announced Wednesday for transit it would have been accused of meddling in provincial jurisdictions.
“Had I said exactly how these projects would be done, people would have said, ‘No way, it’s not you who will decide this, it’s up to us to do it,’ ” Trudeau said.
“I understand the game being played.”
But Couillard said while he understands the budget might not have exact details, it should have given a clear signal anyway.
He bristled at Trudeau’s suggestion Quebec has yet to decide which of the three big ticket projects on the list, the Réseau électrique métropolitain (REM), the extension of the blue métro line and an express bus system for Quebec City, were most important.
When it comes to the REM, project planning is well advanced with work set to start at the end of 2017.
Quebec now is looking for the cheque. It will include the amount it expects from Ottawa in next week’s provincial budget.
“It’s a disappointment but the story is not over,” Couillard said. “I understand Mr. Trudeau said this morning the three projects are important, but I want to repeat what I said in private: We want all three.”
Federal officials later insisted Ottawa has not in fact said no to any of the projects: it’s just more complicated than people believe.
Quebec and Ottawa have yet to sign a bilateral protocol over the handling of the $81 billion and as a result the province has yet to officially submit the projects for programs Ottawa has yet to create, the official said.
Quebec concedes the métro and bus line projects are less advanced, but notes the paperwork for the REM has been in Ottawa’s hands since last February.
Behind the scenes there is a feeling of suspicion in the Quebec bureaucracy that Ottawa will be as slow on the REM as it was in announcing assistance for Bombardier.
Quebec feels Trudeau’s decision to name himself his own Quebec lieutenant means he does not have time to do look after the details of the complex Ottawa- Quebec relationship. In Ottawa, federal Liberals MPs interviewed seemed to not understand what the fuss was about.
But the damage was done. At the end of question period, Liberal politicians decided to back a Parti Québécois-sponsored motion expressing the National Assembly’s “deep disappointment,” in Ottawa’s budget.
The motion passed: 95 for, 0 against.
And the federal-provincial spat played right into the hands of the PQ, with leader Jean-François Lisée opening a morning news conference by sarcastically congratulating Ontario MPs for bagging $100 million for its automobile industry.
Lisée taunted the Couillard government by saying Quebec gets more out of Ottawa when the PQ is in power.
“We (in the PQ) are not loved (in Ottawa),” he said, “but we are feared.”
And for the first time in a long time, three top provincial Liberal cabinet ministers took turns criticizing federal MPs for not sticking up for their home province.
“Where are they?” asked Quebec Finance Minister Carlos Leitão.
“To date we have not heard them,” added Treasury Board President Pierre Moreau.
Leitão presents his budget Tuesday.