2023-04-18 21:21:44
Against a backdrop of political crisis, the municipal council of Quebec ratified Tuesday evening in a snatch – by 11 votes once morest 10 – the agreement with Alstom for the construction and maintenance of the tramway trains.
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Rich in twists and turns, Tuesday at Quebec City Hall was very eventful and ended with heated exchanges between Mayor Bruno Marchand and the leader of Quebec First (QcDab), Claude Villeneuve.
The agreement with Alstom was therefore endorsed by the shortest of majorities, even if the official opposition voted once morest it, saying it was dissatisfied with the responses from the tramway project office.
The favorable vote of the head of Transition Quebec, Jackie Smith, combined with the absence of the councilor of QD, Alicia Despins (on leave in Japan), allowed the minority team of the mayor to win this victory on the wire. The two elected members of Équipe Priorité Québec and the independent councillors, Jean-François Gosselin and Bianca Dussault, rejected the agreement.
sell his soul
“It is a sad spectacle that we have seen. This party has just broken with its main promise […] Quebec first has decided to sell its soul, ”launched Mayor Bruno Marchand, very disappointed.
Putting the blame entirely on Mr. Villeneuve, Mr. Marchand added that “the project [de tramway] is more fragile. You can’t do that without consequences. It is not true that the consortia that work with us do not look at the result of this type of democratic process”.
The mayor insisted that the agreement with Alstom must be signed by April 24. According to him, nothing says that a resumption of negotiations would have enabled the municipality to obtain a better price ($569 million for the construction of the trains and $768 million for maintenance over 30 years).
To look at oneself in the mirror
Surrounded by advisers from his team, Claude Villeneuve had a closed face when speaking to the media yesterday. “We are sad to have voted once morest this summary, he agreed. We want a tramway in Quebec.”
While refusing to “take the odious” of this imbroglio, the head of Quebec first felt that he had not received “the necessary information” regarding the agreement with Alstom. Mr. Villeneuve notably pointed out “the risk that we pose to the RTC [Réseau de transport de la Capitale]» for the 30-year interview and « the vagueness around the termination clauses ».
“The mayor should stop lecturing the world and look in the mirror a bit, he thundered. I am not responsible for the bad choices that the mayor and his team make.
Attempt to rally
Earlier in the day, Mayor Marchand’s team hoped to rally the official opposition until the last moment. Another plenary committee on the tramway, extending that of Monday, took place for an hour to allow the elected representatives of QD to ask their questions to the leaders of the project office.
Also, an attempt to organize a closed session for the attention of the councilors of Quebec first finally came to an end.
They said
“We will continue to see each other as critical allies of this project. […] It’s over to have that stuffed in your throat, summary following summary.
-Claude Villeneuve, leader of Quebec first.
“How Mr. Villeneuve does today [mardi] to say that it is an ally of the project? The main blow that was done to this project is what it is doing today.
-Bruno Marchand, Mayor of Quebec
“We are happy that finally the official opposition, Mr. Villeneuve, gives us reason that this project is badly managed and badly put together.”
-Patrick Paquet, Priority Quebec Team Leader
“We expect the City to continue to manage the file efficiently and responsibly. It’s taxpayers’ money.”
-Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister and Federal Liberal MP for Quebec
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