Uber to get 3-month reprieve from Quebec

CAROLINE PLANTE

QUEBEC In a dramatic change of tone, the Couillard government announced Tuesday it will amend Bill 100 to give the ride-sharing company Uber a three-month reprieve.

The bill, in its present form, calls for ride-hailing companies to adhere to Quebec’s existing system of taxi permits, or risk facing stiff penalties.

Last month, Transport Minister Jacques Daoust said he was prepared to sit down with Uber to discuss a potential pilot project, provided the company forced its drivers to acquire Class 4C driver’s licences and taxi permits.

On Tuesday, those two conditions seemed to have been dropped.

“We want to negotiate that,” Daoust told reporters. “That’s part of the negotiation. Tax-wise, we have to be sure that it’s respectful, we have to look at the driver’s permit, the car permit, all the system, the way it works.”

Daoust, who has been highly critical of Uber in recent months, said Tuesday his goal is to bring back “social peace” to the province. He was flanked by Quebec Liberal Party youth wing president Jonathan Marleau, who took credit for the government’s shift in attitude. The youth wing had expressed displeasure over the direction the government was taking with Uber at a general council in Drummondville in May.

Quebec has been the scene of many heated confrontations between taxi and Uber drivers, with cabbies most recently threatening to block access to Montreal’s Grand Prix this weekend out of frustration that Uber is engaging in unfair competition.

That threat no longer exists, said Benoît Jugand, a spokesperson for the Métallos union, which represents about 4,000 taxi drivers in the province. “What we want is a law,” he said. He called Daoust’s proposal — which is to pass Bill 100 by the end of the week, but only have it take effect in 90 days — fair.

“We did our job. We advanced a step saying, yes, we will accept that compromise, but it’s now time for Uber to suspend their activities ... while they’re working on that pilot project.”

Uber Canada spokesperson JeanChristophe de Le Rue said Tuesday the company does not intend to cease operations this summer.

“It was agreed that Uber will continue to operate during discussions concerning the pilot project,” he said.

Still, Jugand said taxi drivers will not protest.

“If Uber is still working illegally, as far as I know, there are still police officers . ... They are going to be showing the government that they are not respecting citizens. So it’s going to be up to the government to decide whether or not they allow, yes or no, a pilot project,” he said.

Uber has so far presented two compromise proposals, both suggesting the creation of a separate category for ride-sharing companies in Quebec. The company’s latest proposal calls for Uber drivers to pay $15 for a permit, which would give them the right to transport people, with a regular driver’s licence, unless they earn more than $10,000 in three months.

Uber previously proposed paying an annual administration fee of $100,000, plus a 35-cent fee per ride. The company also said it would charge clients a tax of seven cents per ride for the benefit of Quebec’s automobile insurance board, on top of the QST and GST.

Under Uber’s proposals, traditional taxis would obtain exclusive rights over street hails, taxi stands, reserved lanes and government contracts.

“With this opening, the government is recognizing that other business models exist and are worth exploring,” said Stéphane Forget, interim director-general at the Fédération des chambres de commerce du Québec.

While interest groups were cautiously optimistic about what they call a good — albeit fragile — step forward, disagreement over Bill 100 still consumed politicians at the National Assembly on Tuesday.

The Coalition Avenir Québec was attacked by both the Liberal government and the Parti Québécois for stalling debates on the adoption of the bill.

If the CAQ continues to “obstruct” parliamentary procedures, Bill 100 may not be adopted by Friday, PQ MNA Martine Ouellet said.