Quebec premier outlines new economic vision in speech to legislature

QUÉBEC — In an attempt to revive his party’s political fortunes, Quebec Premier François Legault has outlined what he calls a “new economic vision” for the province.

During an inaugural speech Tuesday in the national assembly, Legault said the world has “profoundly changed” since the re-election of U.S. President Donald Trump last year, and Quebec must adapt.

He said his government will table a new bill to accelerate approvals for major projects, inspired by Prime Minister Mark Carney’s signature legislation to fast-track projects deemed to be in the national interest.

Legault also said he will ask the province’s largest pension fund manager to increase the share of its investments in the Quebec economy.

“We have absolutely everything we need to become one of the most prosperous, safest and, above all, happiest nations on the planet,” he said.

The Quebec premier shuffled his cabinet and prorogued the provincial legislature earlier this month, as his government faces dismal polling numbers and the prospect of being wiped off the electoral map.

After seven years in power, his party, the Coalition Avenir Québec, would be at risk of losing all 83 of its seats if an election were held today, according to poll aggregator Qc125.com.

In response, Legault has signalled a shift to the right, including a “shock treatment” in the form of deep cuts to the public service. On Tuesday, he said his treasury board president will, in the coming weeks, “announce ambitious targets to reduce the number of positions in the bureaucracy in the short term.”

He also said he has instructed his finance minister to find ways to help Quebecers struggling with inflation and the rising cost of living, though he offered few details.

“We are well aware that inflation has hit hard,” he said. “Housing and groceries cost much more than before. Quebecers are struggling to make ends meet. We need to do more to help them.”

Legault has also pledged to maintain his government’s focus on issues of identity, and on Tuesday he repeated promises to table a Quebec constitution and a new bill to strengthen secularism.

He said secularism is under threat from a growing phenomenon of “political-religious groups” intent on undermining Quebec values. “Let’s be honest,” he said. “It is mainly radical Islamists who are attacking these values ​​with the most intensity.”

Legault has also promised a renewed focus on law and order, and on Tuesday he said his new public security minister will have “the responsibility to introduce anti-crime measures.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 30, 2025.

– By Maura Forrest in Montreal

The Canadian Press