François Legault ensures that increasing the tax burden for motorists is out of the question, even if the Ministry of Transport (MTQ) is interested in a tender on the possibility of levying a surcharge like that of Québec solidaire. But it’s not out of the question in the long term, warns François Bonnardel.
• Also read: Environment: Quebec is considering a tax that Legault ridiculed
According to the documents consulted by our investigation office, the MTQ wants to study not just one but six possibilities to compensate for the eventual loss of revenue related to the petrol tax, including by imposing a tax on polluting vehicles.
This solution, already implemented in some European countries, is reminiscent of the surcharge proposed by Québec Solidaire (QS), which François Legault demonized throughout the election campaign, calling it the “orange tax”.
Hard to swallow for QS
Learning about the details of this tender from the pages of the Journal, “I swallowed my coffee wrong and fell off my chair,” responded Solidarity MP Ruba Ghazal, who sees in this message a demonstration of François Legault’s hypocrisy.
“[Le ministre sortant de l’Environnement] Benoit Charette told us it would cause a social crisis,” Ms Ghazal recalled.
However, some of the scenarios the MTQ wants to explore “go much further than what Québec solidaire is proposing,” she noted, citing, for example, the exemptions her party promised for workers and motorists in remote regions.
“I see that there is a lack of transparency [de la part de la CAQ]. […] Was François Legault aware [de cet appel d’offres]? […] We’ve been honest and brave with Quebecers,” Ms. Ghazal said.
In any case, one day the government will have no choice but to deal with it as fuel tax-related revenue falls as the number of electric vehicles increases.
Legault hasn’t changed his mind
When asked to respond, the prime minister’s entourage emphasized that it was only a tender.
“It changes absolutely nothing about our position. We promised, we said, we repeat: increasing the tax burden on Quebecers is out of the question,” stressed François Legault’s press secretary, Ewan Sauves.
“These are just scenarios considered by the MTQ over the long term. But we rule out a priori an increase in the tax burden for Quebecers,” he assured, arguing that the Coalition Avenir Québec, on the contrary, wants to put more money in taxpayers’ pockets, notably with an anti-inflation check and tax cuts.
Not excluded in the long term, Bonnardel clarifies
During the Mario Dumont show, outgoing Transport Minister François Bonnardel did not rule out the introduction of new taxes in the long term, but assured that there would be none during the term.
“In the next four years, unlike the orange tax, we have no intention of adding a new tax, not at all, none,” he told LCN.
With road infrastructure currently financed at 80% from the gas tax and the government targeting 100% of vehicles sold in 2035 to be ‘green’, Mr Bonnardel thinks it is ‘normal and healthy’ for the Ministère des Transports is investigating new ways of financing the road network.
“We’re projecting ourselves into 15-20 years, saying to ourselves: if we have the goal of 100% green vehicles by 2035, how are we going to fund our new infrastructure?” he wondered.
In collaboration with Gabriel Côté, agency QMI
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