There are many challenges related to planning an agricultural succession: access to capital, cost of land acquisition, unsuitable support programs, access to training, access to maternity and parental benefits, etc.
The next generation of farmers, whether related or not, remains essential to ensure rural vitality and the sustainability of the food pantry of Quebecers. Taking over an existing farm or starting a new business means devoting many hours each day and each week to managing and working on the business, very often also combining paid employment outside to make ends meet, without forgetting the founding of a young family and all that is involved in the birth and education of children.

Do you and your Party agree to adopt and implement the Succession Plan which proposes in particular:

• The establishment of a patient capital fund capable of bearing high risk (long-term loans that can be spread over 40 years with low, fixed interest rates and whose initial investment would be guaranteed by the government )?
• The improvement of assistance for the next generation by offering a financial support program for the next generation with twice as much subsidies and by abolishing the distinctions between part-time and full-time establishment in the company, currently based on the number of hours what does an off-farm job entail?
• To save a seat for representatives of the next generation of farmers in all the decision-making spheres that concern them?
• The adoption of tax measures favoring the transfer of a business to the successor rather than its dismantling?
• The adoption of an anti-speculation law aimed at prohibiting the purchase of agricultural land by investment companies and real estate developers?
• Adapting maternity and parental benefit programs to the reality of young farmers?

While some 9,500 hectares of land have lost their agricultural vocation to urban sprawl over the past 5 years, agricultural producers have long since adopted new practices that are more respectful of the environment (reduced tillage, planting cover crops, development of riparian strips and windbreak hedges, agro-environmental fertilization plan, crop rotation, manure storage structure, creation of a center of excellence in integrated pest management, etc.) in order to reduce the risks associated with agricultural and forestry activities.

Closer to home, in Montérégie, let's think about the initiatives offered by the implementation of the Alus Montérégie and AgrEAUenvironmental scholarships programs.

The Quebec government supports agri-environmental initiatives, in particular through the Prime-vert program, but this support is insufficient. In the United States, direct support for agri-environmental initiatives represents about 1% of farm cash receipts. In Quebec, this annual assistance is currently approximately $45 million, or 0.4% of farm cash receipts (2021 baseline).

Amendments have recently been made to the Agricultural Operations Regulation (REA) to improve certain conditions, for example, the fact of being able to now cultivate the area of ​​land from which a rock wall or an unused building has been removed, etc. However, certain legislative and regulatory irritants remain within the REA and unreasonably hamper the profitability of the agricultural sector and the achievement of its full potential, in particular:

• The moratorium on the cultivation of new areas;
• The calendar of manure and slurry spreading dates;

Do you and your Party commit to:

• End the moratorium on the cultivation of new areas (so that producers can reasonably increase their areas, with guidelines for doing so – it is not a question of giving carte blanche to raze forests or destroy sensitive environments )
• Revise the REA, in particular its calendar of spreading dates, taking into account advances in agronomic science in the management of fertilizers and changing climatic conditions?
• Ensure stable and adequate funding: increase to $100 million per year, for a period of 10 years, direct assistance for agri-environmental initiatives?
• Broaden the encouragement of good practices: reward producers for developments made to protect natural environments and biodiversity, in particular for developments required within the coasts?

In your opinion, what should be the place of community organizations in our society? Which sector should it be associated with? And, how do you plan to help them do their job while reducing bureaucratic burdens?

Knowing that the indexed sustainable income in rural areas of Quebec is at least $25,000/year after taxes for a single person and that according to the most recent data, the median income of all households was $29,731 for Jardins-de-Napierville and $25,069 for Haut-Saint-Laurent, what structural measure do you propose to low-income families in order to help them cope with rising prices?

What actions will you take to ensure economic, political and social equality for Quebec women?

What actions do you propose to do in order to help our local businesses go green and boost synergies to promote sustainable development and the circular economy?

Despite its large area, the riding of Huntingdon has very few cultural venues: performance halls/theatres, exhibition halls, artists' studios, etc. Does your party plan to contribute to the establishment of cultural venues to support our local artists and thus increase the cultural offer, the development of the cultural economy and the development of tourism in our territory? If yes, how ?

Following the amendments made to the Cultural Heritage Act on April 1, 2021, MRCs and municipalities must adopt and periodically update an inventory of buildings that have heritage value by April 1, 2026. Although the Ministry (MCC) has mentioned that a framework would be provided as of how to carry out the said inventory in order to ensure uniformity in Quebec, no guide has been provided yet. In order to meet their obligations before the deadline, can RCMs and municipalities expect to receive, in 2023, the specific compliance instructions that will be required?

In the past year, initiatives have been set up in the Haut-Saint-Laurent to promote public transit, but these are only suitable for a tiny part of the population. What role can you play in this local issue that could really encourage people to use public transport?

In terms of user services at the Barrie Memorial Hospital, what are candidates proposing to do in order to restore at the establisment all meal prep for patients who stay there, rather than transporting meals prepared a long time ahead from Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, when the establishment has a perfectly functional kitchen?

We want to add $50 million to help the next generation acquire farmland. We want to support young producers and give them the chance to succeed.

One thing is certain, our young farmers certainly do not need new orange taxes, as QS is proposing.

Regarding the purchase of agricultural land by investment companies and stakeholders in the real estate sector, the government does have the right by articles 66 and 96 to make a decree. This possibility has existed for a very long time (Jean Garon 1978).

My colleague Minister of Agriculture, André Lamontagne, had it written into law that when the government uses this decree:

• It has to go through the Minister of Agriculture;
• There must be equal quality ground compensation;
• There must be financial compensation.

Please refer to the answer of the first question.

Community organizations are very important and I am proud to come from a region where the community is so involved and united.

Last May, the CAQ government announced an investment of $1.1 billion over 5 years in its Government Action Plan for Community Action. This is in addition to $100 million for organizations working in mental health.

As part of this election campaign, we are committed to invest an additional $20 million to support the network of food banks in Quebec.

At the CAQ, we believe in the importance of the community, we have supported organizations like no government has done before us and we will continue to do so.

We offer an inflation shield that includes:

• A 1% reduction in the first two tax brackets as of 2023. Quebecers will save $7.4 billion in taxes over the next mandate and over 10 years, this reduction will reach 2.5%.
• Direct assistance of $600 for people with an annual income of less than $50,000 and $400 for those earning $50,000 to $100,000.
• Increase the maximum amount for assistance for seniors from $411 to $2,000. This will join a total of 1.1 million people aged 70 and over.
• A cap on all government tariffs, so that their increase is limited to 3% or less. If inflation is less than 3%, the rate increase will be lower.

First of all, I am proud to be part of the party that set a record for the number of women candidates and women elected in 2018. In addition, we broke that record this year by presenting 69 women candidates and 56 men candidate.

To ensure economic, political and social equality for Quebec women, we must ensure that each child has a place in daycare. No government has believed in and invested in early childhood services as much as the CAQ. We do it because we listen to the needs of women and parents and want the best for our children.

The CAQ has also done a lot to improve the working conditions of predominantly female trades (teachers, nurses, etc.). We also increased the CNESST budget for pay equity by more than 17%. We have invested nearly $1 billion to fight domestic violence, in addition to creating a specialized court for sexual violence and domestic violence.

There will always be work to done and that is one of the reasons why I am involved with the CAQ, a party that cares a lot for women and will continue to do so.

The environment and the economy are two top priorities for the CAQ. All regions of Quebec have been connected to high-speed Internet, a promise that all previous governments had failed to fulfill for 20 years. It will allow our businesses in the regions to improve their productivity and it will help them go green.

The CAQ has taken many courageous decisions in terms of the environment, in particular to extend the deposit to all single-fill beverage containers, including wine bottles, and also by extending the obligation to recover appliances at the end of life for appliance manufacturers.

The CAQ is precisely making water protection one of its major commitments in this election campaign. A future CAQ government will create a Blue Fund to protect one of Quebec's greatest assets: our water.

The Blue Fund has a budget of $650 million for the next mandate, partly financed by an increase in royalties from industries that use our water.

It will be used to support existing measures, may improve them and fund new initiatives. The government will thus be more efficient and transparent in its water management.

Culture is the bedrock of our identity. Defending its language and protecting its cultural heritage is vital for the Quebec nation. These are constant priorities for the CAQ.

Never has a government invested so much in culture: in 2022, $1.7 billion will be devoted to it. This is $500 million more than in 2018. This is a major catch-up and it has allowed us to take strong action to promote and make known our culture:

• We made a historic reform of the laws on the status of the artist to better support our creators.
• A minimum of two cultural outings per year have been planned for elementary and secondary school students. This will have a direct impact on the cultural environment of the riding of Huntingdon.

The guide that helps municipalities produce inventories will be available by the end of September.

To fight climate change, Québec solidaire is committed to adopting a Climate Act to reduce greenhouse gases by at least 50% from 1990 levels by 2030, with a view to achieving carbon neutrality by 2050.

To protect biodiversity while guaranteeing access to nature for all, Québec solidaire is committed to ensuring that a representative 30% of Québec's territory and its ecological diversity is protected by 2030, particularly in southern Québec. Wildlife corridors will be developed and the St. Lawrence River will be given legal status.

The SÉPAQ network will be expanded, vacant urban land will be subject to an expropriation right linked to the creation of green spaces, and we will adequately protect existing woodlands as well as wetlands and the animals that inhabit them, taking into account citizens' initiatives. We will promote the protection of watercourses while facilitating public access to shorelines maintained in a natural state.