Former Montreal Alouette and Grey Cup winner Balarama Holness announced in May his run for mayor of Montreal, with a new political party called Mouvement MTL.
“We here at movement Montreal have concrete policies from housing to transportation to culture, to the environment to the economy. We believe that we’re going to be the party and the future of Montreal and we reflect that within our party and within our policies,” said Holness.
The mayoral candidate and his team’s main priorities are job security, affordable housing and accessible public transportation, among others.
“The city of Montreal put a 2020 bylaw which says that any construction will be 20 per cent social housing, 20 per cent affordable housing, 20 per cent family housing, however there’s a massive exit clause in which a promoter can simply buy themselves out of it. So here at Mouvement MTL, we want to close the exit clause to ensure that truly there’s going to be a mix metropolis city, where we’re going to have affordable social and family homes across the island,” he said.
Holness and his team work to ensure that Montrealers’ voices are being heard through the cracks in each problem.
“Honestly, it’s a team that reflects Montreal and that was very important to me. It’s a team that is looking to present diversified, qualified candidates,” said Mauricio A. Pena, a Mouvement MTL city councillor candidate for Snowdon.
“Our party is a reflection of all the diversity in Montreal, both professionally as well as culturally,” said Holness.