For Claude Reid, the candidate in the Beauharnois riding for the Coalition Avenir Quebec (CAQ), the need to protect jobs and the economy are a local priority in the face of the trade war with the United States.
Reid highlights the current government’s decision to lower the eligibility threshold for certain aid measures to businesses with annual revenue starting at $200,000, to allow smaller businesses access to working capital.
The candidate, who is the incumbent in the riding, is also focusing his energy on “Buy Quebec” initiatives to shore up the province’s businesses. “We are using all the tools at the government’s disposal to buy more from Quebec, protect our jobs, and make our economy less dependent on the United States,” he said.
Reid referred to measures that favour Quebec suppliers in public procurement, and a team from Investissement Québec International that is helping small and medium-sized enterprises find buyers across Canada, as examples of CAQ initiatives to help the economy.
In terms of public services, Reid has emphasized the significance of government investment in infrastructure. He reiterated the CAQ’s commitment to increase funding for the Plan québécois des infrastructures (PQI) to $180 billion and to allocate 75 per cent of that amount to maintenance.
In education, Reid noted the arrival of 100,000 additional students in the province since 2018 while pointing out that 100 new schools have been built and 200 have been renovated to accommodate more students. He recalled the government negotiations with teachers that resulted in salary increases, and the addition of classroom aides to provide better services for students.
In healthcare, Reid pointed to investments in home care, the addition of long-term care beds, and the modernization of CHSLDs as successful CAQ initiatives.
As Beauharnois continues to experience rapid population growth, Reid acknowledged the challenges related to housing. In particular, he highlights the construction of 2,000 housing units for independent seniors and a tax credit of up to $7,000 for first-time homebuyers as solutions proposed by the CAQ.