Latest news with #QuebecCity
National Post
3 days ago
- Business
- National Post
Quebec says it 'is open to interprovincial trade' after tabling new bill
OTTAWA – Quebec is joining the Canadian internal trade party. One of the most regulated provinces in the country has introduced 'the most ambitious bill in Canada' aimed at removing its trade barriers. Article content Article content 'We are sending a signal that Quebec is open to interprovincial trade,' said Christopher Skeete, Quebec's minister delegate for the economy. 'We must accept to open our market.' Article content Article content Quebec is yet another Canadian province to remove such barriers, along with Nova Scotia, Ontario and New Brunswick. Nova Scotia was the first province to pass a new law encouraging reciprocity between provinces and territories earlier this year. Article content Article content 'For me, reciprocity is not the answer. Our solution has been to open for everybody regardless, and we believe if everybody does that, we each achieve the same goal,' Skeete said in an interview with National Post. Article content With Prime Minister Mark Carney scheduled to meet with his provincial counterparts in the coming days, Quebec announced it wants to open its market to other provinces by allowing any of their products to be marketed, used or consumed without any other requirement. Article content The idea is to facilitate trade in goods by adopting the principle of automatic recognition applicable to all Canadian products. Exceptions will be announced later, but alcohol is not among them. Though, it will be treated 'separately' due to its specific characteristics. Article content Article content 'If it's good for somebody in Ontario, it should be good for Quebecers, unless we have a reason to say otherwise,' Skeete said. The reasons may be related to the protection of human safety, health, or the environment, for example. The construction sector is not included because the Quebec Building Code and the sector are different from those in the rest of the country. Article content According to the government, 60 per cent of Quebec businesses have no activity in the Canadian market. However, since 2018, domestic trade has increased by 34 per cent to reach nearly $200 billion. Quebec businesses currently export goods and services worth $108 billion and import $96 billion. Article content 'In Quebec, we have our Civil Code… so it creates a little bit of a difference in the way that we write laws here, said Skeete. We had to do more work to make sure that we harmonize a little bit more with the rest of Canada.' Article content Skeete denied that Quebec is the most protectionist province in the country, nor the most regulated, even though it has the most trade exceptions. He admits that his province is 'unique' and 'different' from others.
CBC
3 days ago
- Business
- CBC
Quebec bill would let goods from other provinces bypass local rules
Quebec is moving to lower interprovincial trade barriers, with some exceptions. Minister for the Economy Christopher Skeete has tabled a bill to remove all restrictions on the use and sale of products from other provinces. It also states that the government can exclude some goods from the bill and must publish a list of exceptions online. The proposed legislation comes amid a push by provinces and the federal government to lower interprovincial trade barriers in response to U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs. The bill states that goods from other provinces and territories may be "commercialized, used or consumed" in Quebec without further requirements relating to their manufacturing, composition or classification.
Globe and Mail
4 days ago
- Business
- Globe and Mail
Quebec's National Assembly unanimously votes to break ties with the monarchy
Quebec's National Assembly had a parting gift for King Charles III on Tuesday: a unanimous motion to abolish the monarchy in Quebec. Within hours of the sovereign leaving Canada after his brief visit to open Parliament and deliver the Throne Speech, the blue chamber of the provincial legislature voted 106-0 to cut all ties between the Crown and the province. The motion does not bind the government to act, and constitutional experts agree that enacting it would be nearly impossible, but the gesture highlighted the stark difference in feeling toward all things regal in English and French Canada. King Charles delivers Throne Speech asserting Canada's sovereignty, pledging major transformation in economy The leader of the sovereigntist Parti Québécois, Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, put forward the motion, but every party in the legislature supported it, with no abstentions, including the governing Coalition Avenir Québec and the staunchly federalist Liberals. The practical implications of the motion would include jettisoning Quebec's Lieutenant-Governor, the representative of the Crown in the province, who formally appoints ministers, signs laws and launches elections. The leftist Québec solidaire suggested replacing her with an 'administrator' until the province becomes independent, as QS would like. 'I have nothing against the English,' Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon said in a scrum Tuesday. 'It's just not my king. It's not my country. And I don't understand why we throw tens of thousands of dollars every year at these institutions. I find it unacceptable.' Quebeckers have always had a complicated relationship with a monarchy that some still view as a symbol of conquest. Today, the overwhelming sentiment is one of crushing indifference: 87 per cent of respondents in a recent Léger poll said they felt no attachment to the Crown. The Quebec government has taken steps in recent years to diminish the place of the monarchy in public life. In 2022 it scrapped the requirement for members of the National Assembly to pledge allegiance to the King, after a stand-off with deputies from the PQ who refused to do so. In 2023 the National Assembly approved a motion calling to abolish the role of lieutenant-governor. But bringing this week's motion into force would require much more drastic action, said Jean-François Gaudreault-DesBiens, a professor of constitutional law at the University of Montreal. To break with the monarchy in Quebec would require abolishing it across Canada, a step that would involve constitutional reform agreed to by all the provinces and the federal government. 'It's a bit of wishful thinking,' Prof. Gaudreault-DesBiens said. 'As long as Quebec wants to remain within the constitutional order of Canada – so unless it achieves independence – it has to play by the rules.' The PQ, currently leading in the polls, has promised a referendum on independence during its first mandate if elected. But despite the party's popularity, support for Quebec sovereignty is hovering around a historic low amidst U.S. President Donald Trump's threats to annex Canada. The office of Premier François Legault declined to say Wednesday whether it would take steps to abolish the monarchy in Quebec, but spokesperson Ewan Sauves defended the government's support for the motion. 'We are a nationalist government,' he said in a statement. 'We are responding above all to the people of Quebec. It's clear for us that a majority of Quebeckers don't recognize themselves in the monarchy. And remember: Quebec is a distinct nation within Canada. The motion adopted yesterday is in that spirit.' With reports from The Canadian Press
CBC
5 days ago
- General
- CBC
Quebec passes bill requiring immigrants to adopt shared values
The Quebec legislature has passed a bill requiring immigrants to embrace the common culture of the province. Newcomers to the province must adhere to shared values including gender equality, secularism and protection of the French language. The law is Quebec's answer to the Canadian model of multiculturalism that promotes cultural diversity. The Quebec government believes the Canadian model is harmful to social cohesion. Quebec can use the new law to withhold funding for groups and events that don't promote Quebec's common culture. Critics have said the legislation is an attempt to assimilate newcomers and could stoke anti-immigrant sentiment.
Globe and Mail
5 days ago
- Business
- Globe and Mail
Via Rail subsidiary paid marketing firm more than $330,000 to rebrand passenger rail project
A federal Crown corporation paid more than $330,000 to an outside marketing firm to rebrand a planned passenger rail project between Toronto and Quebec City and boost its popularity. Documents obtained by The Canadian Press detail how the corporation, concerned about 'widespread disinterest' in a high-frequency rail corridor announced in 2021, decided to change its name and pivot to high-speed rail instead. As part of that shift, the Via Rail subsidiary hired a Quebec-based firm, Cossette Communication Inc., to develop a marketing plan that would reflect a new direction – signalled by the Crown corporation's chief executive, Martin Imbleau – to ensure the project placed a greater emphasis on speed. With the firm's help, the corporation came up with a new logo and a new name – Alto – more than a year ago. The rebranding was apparently so sensitive that the Crown corporation also chose a code name for Alto. Multiple documents, obtained using access-to-information law, refer to the new name as 'Tracks.' It would take until February, 2025, for the new name to be made public, when former prime minister Justin Trudeau announced the government was awarding a contract to a consortium to design the 1,000-kilometre high-speed rail network. If completed, the train would take passengers from Montreal to Toronto in just three hours. Via Rail workers vote to give Unifor strong strike mandate The government's initial plan for the passenger rail system, announced in July, 2021, envisioned a high-frequency rail line connecting Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal and Quebec City. The network would have cut travel times for passengers, but the trains would be too slow to be considered high-speed. The documents make clear that by the fall of 2023, however, the Crown corporation felt it needed to change course and scrap its original name – Via HFR. 'The concept of 'high frequency' faces strong opposition. There's widespread disinterest and dissatisfaction associated with the term, hindering any meaningful discussions and support. This resistance has become particularly challenging to navigate as the term 'high frequency' is directly embedded in the [corporation's] name,' reads an undated briefing note written in late 2023 or early 2024. It goes on to say that discussions of higher speed 'are met with openness,' which would lead to 'greater project support and acceptance.' It adds that the Via HFR name should be changed early in the process, while the public's awareness of the project is 'relatively low.' Via HFR's work with the marketing firm dates back to at least September, 2023, when it signed a contract with Cossette to develop a 'brand narrative' and a tag line for the corporation as part of the shift to high speed. The contract appears to have been extended multiple times through the end of 2024, and invoices from the marketing firm show it billed more than $330,000 between October, 2023, and January, 2025. Opinion: Great high-speed rail, Ottawa. Let's make sure we can actually build it Cossette declined to comment on the contract. In a statement, the office of Transport Minister Chrystia Freeland said Alto is an arm's-length organization responsible for its own day-to-day activities. 'Minister Freeland expects that these institutions are well-managed and ensure value for taxpayer dollars,' it reads. A presentation from the firm dating from December, 2023, shows a list of 'top 3' names under consideration at the time: Inter, XLR and Trax. But none of those made the cut. An April, 2024, presentation from Via HFR shows the corporation had landed on Alto, which it said 'embodies the project's stronger focus on incorporating higher speeds and providing a higher level of service to Canadians.' Alto also evokes 'music and the train as catalysts for connection,' the presentation says, and is a 'play on words with the train as an alternative way to travel.' The name also works in both official languages, it adds. 'Naming a national project of this scale goes beyond branding,' a spokesperson for Alto said in an e-mail statement. 'A strong, meaningful name anchors public support, reflects ambition, and shapes how Canadians will connect with the project for decades. It's a sensitive process. We approached Alto's naming with care, rigour, and a long-term vision.'
