Social responsibility begins with fiscal responsibility

Sélectionnez une archiveLettres d'opinion 2012Lettres d'opinion 2011Lettres d'opinion 2010Lettres d'opinion 2009Lettres d'opinion 2008Lettres d'opinion 2007Lettres d'opinion 2006Lettres d'opinion 2005Yves-Thomas Dorval, President, Conseil du patronat du Québec
English version of an article published in La Presse (p. A-31, November 18, 2009)


The state of Quebec's public finances is of great concern. The magnitude of this year's deficit appears acceptable when compared to that of other Canadian provinces and other countries, but the scope of this debt is far less acceptable. According to 2007 statistics from the Mouvement Desjardins, Quebec would now be as debt-ridden as Italy, with a debt representing 103% of its GDP. This debt load is higher than the average in the 30 OECD countries (74%), the 16 countries of the euro zone (71%), the United States (63%) and Ontario (60%).

To arrive at 103% of the GDP, the Mouvement Desjardins attributed Quebec its share of the federal debt. This is important because, ultimately, taxpayers will have to pay the bill no matter what the level of government. Without the federal debt, in 2007 and 2008, Quebec's gross debt was about 50% of its GDP.

Returning to a balanced provincial budget by 2013-2014 is the top priority for the employers we represent. But before discussing tax and rate increases to augment revenues, we believe that we should first focus on expenditures. The government of Quebec has announced its intention to limit expenses to 3.2% for the coming years. This is a good start.

Governments regularly take on new commitments that we do not have the means to finance. Over the past 10 years, program costs in Quebec have grown by an average of 4.7%, rising at a faster rate than the economy as measured by its GDP. By living beyond its means – on credit, as we commonly say – our government has lost all manoeuvrability and several of our social programs could sooner or later potentially experience a brutal financial crash.

A gutsy, deep-cutting freeze In the context of its current pre-budget consultations with Quebec's Finance Ministry, the Conseil du patronat will be making a number of recommendations. The most fundamental of these is a quasi-across-the-board "freeze" of expenditures.

We believe it is high time to put a stop to new spending – for a period of at least 10 years, with a review at the end of this period. This means introducing a measure that would legally prohibit the process of creating new uncompensated expenses by cutting expenses in existing programs. While maintaining the flexibility required for addressing needs and priorities, this approach would obviously apply to the global payroll expenses for government employees during negotiations to renew collective agreements.

This legal measure – which could be referred to as the "deep-freeze" – requires two elements to be successful:
     • A quasi-constitutionalization of the measure
     • A law that is very binding for ministers and deputy ministers.

All amendments and repeals would require the vote of two thirds of the members of the National Assembly, thus making this measure quasi-constitutional. As for the binding component of the law, a variety of measures could make government leaders and public administrators more accountable than they currently are.

Should we be worried about cutbacks across the board? On the contrary. While it would be impossible to write this in the law, we believe that such a freeze would force the government to demonstrate greater vision and establish clear priorities in terms of its fundamental missions, while abandoning anything that is mere embellishment. After all, the current global budget appears to us to be quite sufficient.