Another year, another political storm. Nine months before the election, Quebec Premier François Legault is abandoning his sinking ship.
At his resignation press conference, he boasted about all his supposed feats, giving the impression that he had been successful on all fronts. Viewers were left thinking: why is Legault so hated then?
In reality, his departure reflects the anger simmering among workers, against the backdrop of a huge cost-of-living crisis and the destruction of public services, of which the CAQ government has been complicit.
Bosses’ government
Legault and the CAQ came to power in 2018, on the back of a massive rejection of the capitalist establishment represented by the Liberals and the PQ.
But in reality, the CAQ was always a party of the Quebec bosses. Led by ministers and deputies from the business community, nationalist but consciously setting aside the sovereignty-federalism debate, it was able to skillfully use nationalism and a fake struggle for “secularism,” to divide the working class. After years of tumultuous mass movements, from the 2012 student strike to the 2014-15 anti-austerity strikes and demonstrations, the ruling class embraced this tactic with open arms.
But the CAQ did not immediately go on the offensive against the workers. Inheriting record budget surpluses and with the COVID-19 crisis making austerity politically unthinkable, the CAQ was able to avoid attacking the working class head-on for many years.
However, this could not go on forever. For a long time, Quebec’s ruling class has wanted to slim down the welfare state and make unions docile and submissive. With historically low labour productivity in Quebec, compounded by the trade war, from a capitalist point of view it is necessary to make Quebec “competitive.”
All this explains Legault’s offensive against the labour movement, his cuts to the civil service, and the cuts imposed in education.
The CAQ has also pulled out its checkbook to help private companies with taxpayers’ money. In addition to the spectacular failure of Northvolt, the CAQ has lost $143 million on Lion Électrique and $400 million on the Airbus A220 (formerly Bombardier’s CSeries) bottomless pit.
Austerity for workers, generous cheques for bosses—such is the nature of capitalism today, in Quebec as elsewhere.
Social crisis
With yesterday’s insufferable chorus of praise for Legault, one could be forgiven for forgetting the depth of the social crisis in Quebec.
François Legault boasted about helping nurses during his term in office. What do the 7,200 who are injured or on sick leave think about that? Everyone in Quebec knows the healthcare system has never been in such a parlous state. Forced overtime, low pay, and understaffing has led to nearly half of all nurses leaving the profession before the age of 35.
Legault spoke of teachers as “the most important people in our society after parents.” Really? Why then are cuts forcing schools to pinch pennies? Why are there record teacher shortages every September? Why did resignations increase 67 per cent in five years under the CAQ?
The CAQ boasts that since coming to power in 2018, Quebec has caught up with Ontario in terms of wages, GDP per capita, and purchasing power. While it is true that the gap between Quebec and Ontario has narrowed, this has more to do with Ontario’s decline than Quebec’s rise.
In reality, the CAQ’s rhetoric masks the fact that Quebecers’ purchasing power has declined since 2022.
All indicators show that workers are struggling to make ends meet.
Food banks have seen a 37 per cent increase in demand since 2022. As people become poorer, food banks are receiving fewer donations from generous ordinary people.
The unemployment rate has risen dramatically among young people, reaching 10.9 per cent last spring, with many young university graduates unable to find work.
But the big question has been the cost of housing. Typically, Quebec has been among the provinces with the cheapest rent and housing costs in the entire country. But since 2019, rents have increased by 71 per cent in Montreal! It should be noted that until recently, the CAQ denied that there was a housing crisis, and its Minister of Housing recommended a very “simple” solution to poor tenants: invest in real estate!
The result of all of these things together is that Quebec has become the province where families have the smallest financial cushion after monthly expenses in the entire country—a mere $684.
Under these circumstances, how could people not be enraged at the CAQ which, while presiding over this decline of living standards, took the time to increase the wage of MNAs by 30 per cent?
Turbulence
At this point, it is difficult to predict what the post-Legault era will look like.
What is certain is that whatever comes, the workers will continue to be made to pay. The CAQ, unpopular and lacking any legitimacy, is still in power. They will continue with their austerity measures. In fact, two days before Legault’s resignation, further cuts to education were announced—a $13-million cut to cultural outings for kids.
And it is unlikely that the result of the election in October will see anything better. With the Parti Québécois still atop the polls, it seems likely that they will win the election. And PQ leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon has recently made it very clear what side he is on when he supported breaking the strike of the STM workers.
The Liberals, the traditional party of the Quebec ruling class, are trying to quickly rebound after yet another corruption crisis which led to the resignation of their leader Pablo Rodriguez a few weeks ago. The plan seems to be to crown Charles Milliard, the former president of the Quebec Federation of Chambers of Commerce, as soon as possible.
It is possible that the ruling class of Quebec, which has never fully trusted the sovereigntist PQ, will try to turn Milliard into a savior à la Mark Carney. Last fall, Rodriguez said that “old donors are coming back” to the party, suggesting the possibility of big business rallying behind their traditional voice.
The return of the Liberals to power would undoubtedly signal the continuation of the CAQ’s attacks on public services and workers.
Therefore, whatever happens, the labour movement should be on a war footing. Unfortunately, that is not what we are seeing. The FTQ, for example, says that the CAQ government must now “reconnect with the people” and “initiate a social dialogue.”
This approach is completely wrong. We cannot have any illusions in what remains of the CAQ—nor in the Liberals or the PQ. Magali Picard, president of the FTQ, had a good idea when she spoke recently of “paralyzing Quebec” and of a “social strike” for May Day. It is through uncompromising struggle that we can build opposition among the working class to the bosses’ offensive. This, and this alone will be able to repel their agenda.
Weak left
With the difficulties of the CAQ and the Liberals, the cost-of-living crisis, and the discrediting of the capitalist system, the way should be wide open for the left.
However, Québec solidaire has never been so weak. As we have explained many times elsewhere, the party leadership has tried to show how “reasonable” they are. They have adapted themselves to the capitalist system and the parliament, instead of exposing both.
Just take, for example, this cringe-worthy video of QS leader Ruba Ghazal talking about “taxing the rich”. While most workers agree with taxing the rich, Ghazal puts this forward as a way to… “reduce the deficit without cutting services”! This is basically QS trying to convince the business community that the party can responsibly manage the state finances. Hardly the stuff to inspire any working class person struggling to make ends meet.
Similarly, her response to Legault’s departure was lamentable. She spoke of having “tried” to talk to Legault about his “blind spots” such as housing and inequality, before going on to describe how Legault was like “a nice uncle” who she would have over to dinner “to argue with him.”
These comments capture the essence of QS’s approach. The party does not see itself as a champion of workers against the politicians who make their lives miserable, but as colleagues of those politicians trying to help them see the light, or as… a “family” having dinner.
As a result, the party is more and more seen (to the degree that people pay attention) as an unserious part of this hated establishment. This leaves room for a potential breakthrough by Éric Duhaime’s Conservative Party, which has successfully risen to 16 per cent and third in the polls by portraying itself as an anti-establishment option.
Socialist solution
A quiet anger is brewing in Quebec. Life is getting worse by the day. No worker will weep over the departure of Legault. But the workers still have no outlet for this anger.
Workers need a party independent of the bosses’ parties, a party that openly proposes a socialist solution to all the ills of this society.
It is entirely possible to build a world without food banks, without unemployment, with high-quality public services, quality housing, and much more. But this is not possible as long as a wealthy minority monopolizes the wealth produced by workers. We must nationalize large corporations and establish a rational plan of production.
This is the message that communists will bring in 2026, which promises to be a turbulent year, both in Quebec and internationally. Join us!
