A 4th budget Leitao to make you forget the austerity

File Photo, Simon Clark
The minister of Finance Carlos Leitao photographed on march 28, 2017, when he received the congratulations of Philippe Couillard following the tabling of the budget 2017-2018 to the national Assembly.

Antoine Robitaille

Wednesday, 14 march, 2018 04:00

UPDATE
Wednesday, 14 march, 2018 04:00

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The last budget of the government of Couillard before the election of the 1st October will be tabled on 27 march and will aim to make them forget about the fiscal discipline of the first years, learned our Bureau of investigation.

It will contain in particular spending a billion in support for families, and an increase in the health budget from 4.5 %. This will bring health spending to more than $ 38 billion.

No surplus

These additional expenses will not prevent the government to reach a balanced budget. But despite the tax revenue spectacular 2017-2018, any excess will not be clear. All that is possible to be spent will be.

Even a part of the ” stabilization reserve “, cushion amassed from 2016 to prepare for emergencies, and assessed currently at $ 4.7 billion, will be used to improve services. The reserve was considered too large by critics of the opposition as well as economists.

Quality time

The budget speech of the Finance minister Carlos Leitao will resume of the themes which became recurrent in the speech of Philippe Couillard since the redesign of the October 11, 2017.

There will be talk of “giving back quality time” to individuals and families, ” simplify the life “. The billion spent on support for families will include new measures to support family caregivers, a-t-on learned.

Mobility

In order to” improve the lives of families “, Québec will focus on mobility. To this end, various road projects will be supported, such as the extension of autoroute 19 in Laval, in favour of which the prime minister has already spoken.

Another extension, that of the blue line of the Montreal metro will once again be the subject of an ad. Already present in the budget of the last year, no accurate sum were not there, however, connected because of a dispute between Quebec and Ottawa. They have neither the one nor the other yet specified how much would their investment.

The budget Leitao will also a few words in support of the transportation project, structuring of Québec, for the moment undetermined, the mayor Régis Labeaume has to present shortly.

SMES

On the 27th of march, any reduction of additional tax will not be announced to the individuals. These were their gift to the economic update of November 21.

Unlike this fall, the small and medium-sized companies will have this time right to tax measures in order to mitigate the effect of various increases in expenses, such as the minimum wage, which will rise to $ 12 may 1, and the increase of the contribution to the Régie des rentes du Québec.

Finally, Quebec will reiterate its willingness to receive in the name of tax fairness, taxes on the online sales of the giants of the digital economy, such as Netflix, Amazon.