Local Journalism Initiative

by Lorraine Carpenter, Local Journalism Initiative reporter

Quebec Premier François Legault announced on Sunday that the provincial government has made an offer — one that he refers to as a “big move” — to teachers and education staff including an increase in both salary and support. This comes at the close of the latest round of negotiations on collective agreements with unions that were one strike prior to the holidays.

Legault said that the new starting salary for Quebec teachers, should this agreement be accepted, would be $65,000, while the highest salary level would be $109,000, representing increases between 18.6% and 27% “with the compound effect.” The province would also commit to creating 5,000 new permanent positions for teachers and 4,000 full-time equivalent classroom assistants.

“I am confident that with the agreement we signed, salary conditions in the education sector will become much more attractive and that we will gradually fill all positions.

“But I want to say to all Quebecers: this choice will have financial consequences. The next budget will be largely in deficit because of this choice, among other things. But we do it for the good of the Quebec nation. As Premier, I fully accept this. It’s the responsible choice to make!”

by Lorraine Carpenter, Local Journalism Initiative reporter

According to a report from the Montreal police, the city saw a 26% reduction in gun violence in 2023 compared with the previous year. The SPVM describe “armed violence events” as “firearm discharges, murders and attempted murder by firearm.”

Montreal police reportedly made 351 arrests last year in connection with events involving guns in 2023, and 774 guns were seized. 

The SPVM report attributes this decline in gun violence to various police initiatives, from officer visibility to criminal investigations and intelligence to crime prevention and deterrence programs, as well as work done by community organizations and institutional and government partners.

by Lorraine Carpenter, Local Journalism Initiative reporter

Amidst the ongoing housing crisis, the City of Montreal has announced what Mayor Valérie is calling a record-breaking initiative to secure affordable housing.

In the East End, 720 affordable housing units have been protected from speculation following investments from the city, other levels of government and private investors.

“This is the largest operation to protect affordable housing in Montreal. We are taking action to house Montrealers!”

A West Island couple’s attempt to advocate for a cause they have been supporting for years that got swept up last week in the growing pay-to-play scandal engulfing the CAQ government say they want to keep the focus on their mission – persuading provincial authorities to impose stricter drunk-driving regulations.

But Roxboro resident Elizabeth Rivera acknowledges the revelation she made during a hearing last Thursday before a National Assembly hearing examining Bill 48 that aims to amend Quebec’s Highway Safety Code has attracted more attention than all of their lobbying efforts to date. Yet, she refuses to be distracted, pointing out that she has still not received a reason why Quebec Transport Minister Geneviève Guilbault refuses to lower the drunk-driving threshold, leaving Quebec as the only province in Canada that has not dropped the limit to 0.05 for administrative regulations that would permit a driver’s licence to be suspended or have a vehicle impounded.

“They never gave us a clear reason why,” Rivera said in an interview with The 1510 West on Sunday. “We ask the question: Tell us why. Why are we the last province? They don’t want to change it. And we don’t understand why.”

Although the federal Criminal Code makes it a criminal offence to drive with a blood-alcohol concentration of 80 milligrams of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood, a measurement that is referred to as 0.08, all provinces except Quebec impose administrative regulations that permit a motorist’s driver’s permit to be suspended or their vehicle to be temporarily impounded if they are found to have a blood-alcohol level of 0.05.

Rivera, who is the president of Mothers Against Drunk Driving Montreal, said she and her husband, Antoine Bittar, have been pushing for Quebec to strengthen its administrative sanctions so that drivers testing at 0.05 or above have their cars seized for up to seven days and their driver’s permits suspended for seven days. These measures would not affect the 0.08 threshold that would trigger criminal sanctions.

Rivera argues that stricter administrative regulations that would come with non-criminal sanctions like in the other provinces would have a preventative effect.

If a driver has their licence suspended for seven days, “the next time the person drinks, they will think,” Rivera said.

“Why aren’t we doing prevention?” she asked, pointing out that the statistics from other provinces that have made the move have seen a drop in alcohol-related deaths.

In British Columbia, she said, alcohol-related deaths on the roads have dropped by 52 per cent since the province dropped the limit to 0.05. In Saskatchewan, the limit has been dropped to 0.04.

Rivera urges everyone to sign the electronic petition that is registered with the National Assembly in support of MADD’s demand.

Sponsored by West Island MNA Monsef Derraji, the petition can be found on the legislature’s website: assnat.qc.ca.

To find the petition, look for the tab in the centre of the page that is part of the blue heading that says “Exprimez votre opinion!” Click on Petitions: “Signer un petition électronique.” Scroll down the list of petitions until you see the one sponsored by Derraji entitled: “Ajout de mesures visant à prévenir la conduit avec les facultés affaiblies par l’alcool.”

A grieving West Island couple who unveiled the latest incident in the widening “pay-to-play” scandal that has engulfed Premier François Legault’s CAQ government had no intention to embarrass the minister they were appearing before last week when they presented a brief at the National Assembly in Quebec City. But they have no regrets, either.

“I answered a question,” said Elizabeth Rivera in an interview Sunday with The 1510 West. “At no time did I want to explode a bomb.”

Rivera and her husband, Antoine Bittar, appeared during a commission hearing before Transport Minister Geneviève Guilbault to discuss Bill 48, legislation put forward last fall that seeks to amend the provincial Highway Safety Code.

The Roxboro couple have become actively involved in advocating for stricter drunk-driving regulations following the death of their 26-year-old daughter in a car accident on Highway 20 on March 20, 2017. The driver of the car their daughter and two others were in lost control of the vehicle, crashing on an exit ramp. The driver had been drinking and was found to have a blood-alcohol level of 1.25, Rivera said, more than three times the legal limit of 0.08.

After presenting their brief demanding that Quebec follow the lead of all other provinces and drop the blood-alcohol limit to 0.05 for administrative regulations to kick in, allowing police to suspend a motorist’s driver’s permit for seven days and impound their vehicle for seven days, Rivera and Bittar were asked by Nelligan MNA Monsef Derraji, a Liberal member of the commission, to explain the steps they had taken since their daughter’s death to push for these tighter measures.

In answering the question, Rivera described that after initially starting a petition that had been rejected by the National Assembly, the couple approached Soulanges MNA Marilyne Picard after hearing that her step-son had died in an accident. They felt Picard would be sympathetic to their cause and help them push for stricter regulations.

After Bittar had an initial conversation with Picard in the spring of 2023, the couple said they were disappointed with the inaction. They made several attempts to get Picard to respond to their inquiries about presenting Guilbault with the documents they had supplied – proof of how lowering the regulations in other provinces showed a drop in the number of deaths. But their requests went unanswered, so they gave up in frustration, they said.

Then, months later, in October 2023, an aide to Picard called them to say that if they paid $100 each to attend a fundraising cocktail, they would each be given two minutes with Guilbault.

The couple decided to pay and attend the event, as it was two days after the minister had announced publicly that the government would not be reducing the drunk-driving threshold. The couple were hoping to get an answer as to why, Rivera said on Sunday.

The revelation comes as the National Assembly’s commissioner for ethics and professional conduct launched two investigations earlier this month into two MNAs following news reports that they had invited mayors and voters to fundraising events to meet ministers in the Legault government.

Guilbault defended herself after the hearing last Thursday, saying no one has to pay to meet with her.

Questions about the government’s ethical practices has prompted Legault to announce the CAQ will no longer accept donations from individuals, despite having proposed last summer to raise the contribution limit to $200.

Legault has also reimbursed Rivera and Bittar for the contributions received last October. The couple will donate the funds to MADD.

By Lorraine Carpenter LJI Reporter

The Sûreté du Québec has confirmed that two women are dead and a third 70-year-old victim was critically injured in a multiple stabbing just before noon today in an apartment building in Vaudreuil-Dorion.

Five ambulances were reportedly called to the scene of the armed assault in the town 45 kilometres west of Montreal, where one 44-year-old male suspect was arrested during a major police operation.

Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante commented on the incident when the news was first reported earlier today.

“What horrible news. All my thoughts are with the community of the city of Vaudreuil-Dorion.”

Nelson Sergerie

GASPÉ – The Cégep de la Gaspésie et des Îles marks a significant milestone as it celebrates 25 years of distance learning.

It was in the academic year 1998-1999 that the first distance learning course was launched at the École des pêches et de l’aquaculture du Québec at the Petit-de-Grat campus, in Nova Scotia, which was part of the community colleges of New Brunswick. Embarking on such an endeavor was ambitious given the technology and resources at the time.

“The means were rudimentary. We had cathode ray tube televisions, the signal was transmitted by telephone lines. Even the lecture notes were handwritten and had to be manually entered into a computer. We weren’t digital. It was a lot of adaptation and we didn’t know that it would become an extremely important avenue of development for the Cégep de la Gaspésie et des Îles,” notes the director of studies, Serge Rochon.

Today, the institution offers eight programs through distance learning. “We were in the early stages of distance learning. We were among the first and our geographical distance meant that we thought about it to attract new students. It was quickly included in the strategic plans for development avenues. But we didn’t believe at the time that it would be so important,” notes the director.

“Our teachers have adapted their teaching so that the programs are suitable for distance learning. It is because we invested in human resources and technology that we succeeded in this shift,” notes Mr. Rochon.

The deployment of the nursing techniques program with remote sites in Chandler and Carleton-sur-Mer during the 2011-2012 academic year marked a significant turning point for distance education.
“We did not think that such a complex program could be deployed remotely. It was a complex program to put in place and that gave the signal to start,” points out Mr. Rochon.

The program contains laboratory practices, which added to the complexity of developing adequate training.
“Remote training was not invented with the pandemic. For us, it’s been there for a long time. This helped keep programs alive that might have been suspended or closed. Accounting and management in the Magdalen Islands was very fragile; and the nursing program too. This was the case for Medical Archives and Legal Techniques (programs). Eight distance learning programs help promote accessibility to studies for young people in the Gaspésie. These are programs offered both in-person and remotely. We are able to guarantee these programs for young people in the Gaspésie,” notes Mr. Rochon.

Even though technology has simplified the creation of virtual programs, face-to-face training will remain in the long term.

“At eight programs, that’s probably the potential we can afford,” admits Mr. Rochon, considering the ins and outs surrounding distance learning.

“We want to consolidate what we do and we have set ourselves the goal of remaining a leader,” maintains the director of studies. This year, distance learning has 475 students. “We have never had so many students,” he notes.

“I was looking at the Accounting and Management program in the Magdalen Islands. A third of the graduates in the last 10 years are students who are in distance learning. You see the impact,” says Mr. Rochon who estimates that hundreds of students have been trained remotely in a decade.

Moreover, the costs associated with creating virtual classrooms have significantly decreased over time.
At one time it cost $80,000 to create such a class, whereas today it is possible to do it for less than $25,000.

“It costs a lot less than at the time, but we have around forty classes. Equipment must be upgraded regularly but we think it’s worth it,” concludes Mr. Rochon.

Nelson Sergerie

GASPÉ – A series of podcasts exploring the experiences of women in politics is being produced by the Gaspé Peninsula Magdalen Islands Round Table of Women’s Groups (Table de concertation des groupes de femmes). The series features interviews with women actively engaged in politics of social movements, aiming to shed light on their experiences in what is still largely perceived as a “man’s world”.

“We had the idea of highlighting women in politics and presenting the testimonies of those who are involved in politics but also women who come from social movements,” explains the women’s health development agent and host of Women and Politics, Léa Blouin-Rodrigue.

Additionally, “we also wanted to see what challenges they face in their work or their involvement.” Recent events, such as the resignation of councillors and mayors, prompted this initiative.

“Why do these women leave? There are various reasons. There are certainly advances being made, but also challenges that women face in the political sphere,” mentions Ms. Blouin-Rodrigue.

Gender parity is an ongoing concern in every election, yet achieving balance remains a challenge. “Women and men’s experiences in politics are shaped by their genders. Politics was made by and for men, making it difficult for women to find their place. Often, women are the primary caregivers of children. Sometimes it’s more difficult to reconcile,” says Ms. Blouin-Rodrigue.

The podcast addresses this issue. “They (women) must prove that they are capable of being a mother and a politician, questions that are not asked of their male counterparts,” says Ms. Blouin-Rodrigue.
“We don’t question women and men on the same subjects. It can be an additional challenge for women to have to prove that they are up to the challenges,” she mentions.

Ten episodes will be presented in this podcast series and the first two were presented on January 24 during a launch in Gaspé.

Former Member of the National Assembly and spokesperson for the Parti Québécois Mégane Perry Mélançon and Charlotte Guay-Dussault, a community organizer, solidarity activist and mother are the subject of the first podcast.

“We also want to highlight that the political implication is vast. It’s not just about running for office and then occupying an elected role. It can be volunteering in a party, organizing demonstrations, or uniting with citizen groups. There are lots of ways to get involved and we wanted to highlight them,” notes Ms. Blouin-Rodrigue.

The podcasts are available on various platforms for broadcast.

The Round Table will share links on social media directing listeners to the Autour de la table channel.
If there’s enough interest, there might be a phase 2.

Nelson Sergerie

PERCÉ – The Town of Percé is still searching for a solution to maintain the Municipal Tourist Information Office, which has been cut due to 2024 budget reductions.

The mayor of Percé, Cathy Poirier, met on February 5 with staff from the office of the Member of the National Assembly for Gaspé, Stéphane Sainte-Croix, Tourisme et commerce Rocher-Percé, the Rocher-Percé MRC and Tourisme Gaspésie to explore possible solutions to maintain office.

Even if the Town of Percé is prepared to support a buyer to provide the service, the fact remains that the $230,000 in payroll is a significant obstacle to relaunching the office.

“It’s still a considerably high amount for the taxpayers of Percé who already have a fairly high tax rate. We had to cut all departments in the budget. Is the tourist reception office part of our obligations? No. Is snow removal part of our obligations? Yes. Is the fire service part of our obligations? Yes. The municipal council chose this way,” recalls the elected official who indicates that the tourist office represented a tax increase of 4.5%.

“Who should pay for this service? Is it the citizens? The industry? The visitors? We will continue to look to eventually find a solution,” she says.

The mayor plans to meet with Percé merchants. “We planned a meeting with some merchants. We don’t want to have the entire business community. We want to clarify possible solutions and see the interest in the resumption or continuity of operations of the tourist reception office,” explains the mayor.

The situation isn’t causing a significant mobilization in the merchants. “I don’t feel any movement being made. We are talking about it. People are still in shock. We maintain our commitment to participate in this maintenance. What we are asking for is help from the business community,” says the elected official who is still not able to define the form that the recovery will take.

“Are we going to find a hybrid way of doing it? If we can add partners to develop something else? Will it be digital?” wonders Cathy Poirier.

She, however, cautions that there is no government program to fund the operations of a tourist office.
A citizen intervenes

Citizen intervention

The co-owner of the Pit Caribou microbrewery spoke as a private citizen during the February 6 municipal council meeting after attending the January meeting.

“I believe that Percé needs to have this office. On the other hand, the budget is very tight. Incompressible expenses represent up to 90%,” mentions Jean-François Nellis.

In his opinion, the tourist fee was seen as a first step to reduce the tax burden on citizens and maintain infrastructure.

“There are 500,000 tourists who come to Percé every summer. At the moment, the majority of people who pay for infrastructure are citizens,” explains Mr. Nellis.

“That’s why I suggest we sit down and discuss. The fee went to court and was refused. The objective was commendable, but not the method used. The basis was to reduce the tax burden and I consider it important to discuss it,” continues the citizen.

“If we don’t have the tourist fee, what do we do? People come to criticize, but do we provide solutions? I only heard people venting about the town council. I would like us to sit down together and work toward a common goal,” says Mr. Nellis, who sees Ms. Poirier’s outstretched hand as an opportunity to do so.

Citizens present at the council suggested that Mr. Nellis’ intervention had been prompted by someone else. “I am capable of expressing my opinion as an individual and no one is going to control me,” he replies.

Nelson Sergerie

CHANDLER – The Superior Court rejects the motion to declare the Town of Chandler’s behaviour as abusive and dismisses the application instituting proceedings filed last April by former mayor Louisette Langlois.

Ms. Langlois was trying to put an end to the lawsuit filed by the Town of Chandler in January 2022, which claims $230,411 from her in the saga surrounding the 180-day sanction from the Municipal Commission from January to July 2021.

She also claimed $2,500 in damages to compensate for extrajudicial fees in connection with the application.

In support of her request, the former mayor cited the Town of Chandler and its lawyers for their inertia in advancing the case and, in particular, for their failure to promptly provide the various undertakings given during the examination for the discovery of a Chandler representative.

Ms. Langlois’ attorney, Charles Caza, noted in the application several delays since June 6, 2022, in the file, and that, in January 2023, the town’s attorneys filed a new request for an extension to submit the requested documents.

Subsequently, on March 14, “the plaintiff’s attorneys indicated that they were still in the process of gathering responses to the commitments,” the document states.

Ms. Langlois’s attorney argues in the application that “without notice and without having transmitted the commitments, the Plaintiff’s attorneys served a subpoena on April 12, 2023, directly to the Defendant to question her on two separate days, namely for April 20 and 21.

According to Mr. Caza, “such ways of doing things constitute maneuvers to prevent the defendant from having the right to a full and complete defence with the aim of depriving her of having access to all of the documents and other evidence.”

The documents, Mr. Caza argues, “go to the heart of this dispute and are necessary for the preparation of this case.”

For the attorney, “such delays demonstrate dilatory and abusive behaviour on the part of the plantiff.”
In the five-page decision rendered on February 2 following the hearing of the case on December 6, Judge Daniel Beaulieu notes that the parties accuse each other of not respecting certain of the deadlines provided for in the procedure.

He continues by indicating that on several occasions, the courts have been called upon to rule on this concept and the conditions to be met to obtain the dismissal of a request instituting proceedings.
“From these judgments and rulings emerge an almost unanimous consent, i.e. the obligation to act with “caution” before ordering the dismissal of a procedure,” writes the magistrate.

Subsequently, Judge Beaulieu details each of the stages in dispute on both sides and the deadlines which are not respected by both the former mayor and the town.

“In the opinion of the Court, there is no reason here to reject the Town of Chandler’s application to initiate proceedings, due to an abuse of process. Therefore, Ms. Langlois’ request must be rejected, with legal costs,” explains Judge Beaulieu.

“Although the details provided are in no way desirable, it appears that both parties have their respective faults regarding the progress of the case,” continues the judge.

As for the refusal to award $2,500 to the former mayor, the judge recalls “that the extrajudicial fees currently incurred for the representation of Langlois, including those incurred on the current request for dismissal, are assumed by the Town of Chandler. However, all of these sums are the subject of the claim on the merits in this case, a claim that the Court will then assess and award according to the criteria dictated by law and developed by case law,” mentions the decision.

The town launched complaint procedures against Louisette Langlois in January 2022. The resolution leading to the filing of the complaint by the town underlined in particular that the accusations against Louisette Langlois resulted from serious or intentional faults, by predominating her personal interest, from having taken actions in an intentional and premeditated manner, all to get her own way.

The argument was taken up in the request for initiation of proceedings for reimbursement of defence costs.
Chandler’s attorneys noted, in particular, that “the decision rendered (…) on December 21, 2020, is damning against the defendant and makes it possible to establish that the acts or omissions of the defendant are serious and/or intentional and/or separable faults of the exercise of her functions.”
They added that the former elected official “multiplied the procedures, some of which were useless, unfounded and truncated given the present evidence presented before the CMQ (Quebec Municipal Commission)”.

In December 2019, Louisette Langlois was cited for 21 violations of the Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct for Chandler elected officials.

After hearings in July 2020, the commission concluded that the former elected official was guilty of 20 breaches, notably conflicts of interest, in December 2020. Before the sanction hearing, Ms. Langlois had tried to obtain a halt to the procedures, contested the notice of sanction issued against her going so far as to ask to reopen the investigation, requests rejected by administrative judge Sandra Bilodeau.

The former mayor took her appeal to the Superior Court where it was dismissed in July 2021 and suffered the same fate in October 2021 before the Court of Appeal.

To date, this saga has cost Chandler taxpayers $353,495. The town of Chandler reserved the right to adjust its claim.

Nelson Sergerie

GASPÉ – The mayor of Gaspé, Daniel Côté is now calling for the possibility of buying back licences for shrimp fishermen dealing with the turbulence in the fishing sector.

Daniel Côté notes that the two principles of not imposing a moratorium on shrimp fishing and lifting the one that was in force on redfish were a good idea.

“On the other hand, when we dissect the figures on granted or pre-granted quotas, the figures are too small to justify our shrimp fishermen taking off this year. No one would certainly have profitable operations this year,” says the mayor.

According to him, fishing companies need a boost for rationalization to remove shrimp fishermen from the fleet.

“So that the piece of the pie is distributed among fewer players rather than among all the current players so that a few can get their heads above water or make money,” says the mayor.

The buyback of licenses is the most likely avenue in his eyes. “There are fishermen who would be ready to get out of the industry and let others try to survive. But there is no desire to move in this direction from the federal government. The fishermen are sounding the alarm very loudly,” notes the mayor.

On the ground, the elected official has felt the economic impacts for almost two years, due to the already precarious situation in the shrimp industry.

“All businesses are suffering. People have less money so they spend less. Therefore, less investment in local shops and businesses. This crisis has a major impact,” says Mr. Côté

If the redfish quota increased to 150,000 or 200,000 tonnes, the elected official believes that shrimp fishermen would convert to redfish and a few would stick with fishing shrimp.

“We might (then) be starting to emerge from the crisis. Currently, this is not the case. People tell me that it’s great to go fishing for redfish, but as long as the markets and the processing capacity are not there, it’s useless. But the capacity for transformation can be done quickly after having spoken with stakeholders,” the mayor is told.

He believes that extra work will have to be done for marketing. “It is a collective challenge to ensure that redfish can find their place on the market. At the same time, if we take the redfish out of the Gulf, we remove shrimp’s largest predator and help restore the stocks. But if it stays at 25,000 tonnes, the fishermen will not convert and we know that we will give way to processing boats and that will not help our economy,” analyzes Mr. Côté

He is under the impression that the years 2024, 2025 and perhaps 2026 will be years of turbulence. “There are so many factors beyond our control. Are we going to succeed collectively?” asks the mayor.
Without a redfish quota announced as the fishing season is fast approaching, the mayor wonders what will happen in the short term.

“I can’t get my head around the quotas and how the fishermen are going to distribute them. If the fishermen do not go out (to sea), there are impacts on the economy,” he says, noting that 1,000 jobs are at stake in the fishing sector of Gaspé.

by Lorraine Carpenter LJI Reporter

Every Valentine’s Day, the Centre for Gender Advocacy and Iskweu hold a memorial march and National Day of Action in Montreal for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, Trans and Two-Spirit people. The event aims to honour and raise awareness about the countless disappearances, killings and violence against First Nations and Inuit people over the years.

“Too many Indigenous families have lost loved ones to colonial violence. Many Indigenous women, girls, trans and Two-Spirit people wonder if they will be next. This cannot go on.

“In 2019, the final report of the National Investigation into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls was released. Now is the time to act, to honour recommendations on how to stop genocide against Indigenous communities. We refuse to let the countless hours of testimony and knowledge from thousands of Indigenous people be wasted. We have all the information we need.”

Iskweu notes that these events, which also take place annually on Oct. 4, offer an “opportunity to learn more about activists and elders, and be inspired to take action through songs and performances by Indigenous artists.” This event’s speakers and performers include MC Sarah Carriere, Elder Kevin Deer, the Travelling Spirit Drum Group and Ellen Gabriel, among others.

The annual vigil — on Feb. 14 at 6 p.m. — will take place at Cabot Square, followed by a march on Ste-Catherine to Place du Canada. The event’s organizers encourage participants to bring drums, visual aids and/or candles.

The Assembly of First Nations, which is mandated to raise awareness about and address the issue of violence against Indigenous women, reports that Indigenous women and girls are five times more likely to be the victims of violence than other populations in Canada, and that that violence tends to result in more serious harm.

To view the final report by the National Inquiry Into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, please click here.

The Montreal MMIWG2S+ vigil and march will begin in Cabot Square (Atwater & Ste-Catherine) on Wednesday, Feb. 14 from 6 to 8 p.m. For more details, please visit the event page.