Bill 61, known as an “Act to restart Quebec’s economy and to mitigate the consequences of the public health emergency” due to the COVID-19 crisis, was unveiled by the government on Wednesday.
The bill’s plan aims to accelerate the construction of schools, seniors’ homes, roads and public transit systems in Quebec.
This includes 90 infrastructure projects in the health sector and 48 seniors’ homes, as well as several construction plans for Montreal.
Some of the Montreal infrastructure plans include:
- The renovation and expansion of the Lachine Hospital,
- The modernization of care units at the St. Mary’s Hospital Centre
- The expansion of Dawson College
- The development of an electric public transit projects to link east, northeast and southwest Montreal to the downtown core
- The expansion of the Royal Victoria Hospital
- The extension of the blue metro line from Saint-Michel station to Anjou station
- The reconstruction of the l’Île-aux-Tourtes bridge between Vaudreuil-Dorion and Senneville
Treasury Board President Christian Dubé said the proposed legislation to fast-track all these developments will revive the economy of several sectors.
The Federation of Quebec Chambers of Commerce (FCCQ) said it supports the government’s decision to accelerate the province’s infrastructure projects to relaunch the Quebec economy.
Martin Ouellet from the Parti Québécois however said on Wednesday that Bill 61 will go back on all the progress the province has made since the Charbonneau commission. He said the government is giving itself too much power to do what it wants and is giving up rigour for speed.
Quebec Solidaire’s Vincent Marissal was slightly more optimistic in reaction to the legislation on Wednesday, saying his party will cooperate with the government legislation, but the party however still has a lot of questions given the volume of the bill.