Quebec's four main parties clash over affordability and immigration as election enters fourth day

Affordability and the economy took centre stage Sunday as Quebec's election campaign entered its fourth day, with party leaders unveiling competing visions to ease financial pressures while grappling with the province's budgetary constraints.

The Coalition Avenir Québec released its full fiscal plan, proposing to spend an additional $9.7 billion over five years to fulfil its promises. The party said Quebec would need to generate $6 billion in revenue to reach a balanced budget, with leader Christine Fréchette saying she would not lower taxes until the budget is balanced. The CAQ is counting on "expected revenues" from the federal government, though no formal commitment from Ottawa has been secured.

The Quebec Liberal Party and Québec solidaire both unveiled housing plans, with Liberals proposing to cap rents and service fees in privately managed seniors' homes. Québec solidaire promised 50,000 new units of social housing and a rent cap for all tenants, arguing that rents have skyrocketed since the Coalition Avenir Québec first took power in 2018. Both parties criticized Fréchette's claim Saturday that the housing crisis has been "solved" in "many regions" of Quebec.

Conservative leader Éric Duhaime emphasized tackling the cost of living through tax reductions, announcing his government would abolish the sales tax on used goods and pursue what he described as "a historic reduction in the tax burden on individuals." The Conservatives have also promised to reduce government spending by $47 billion.

PQ leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon continued to focus on immigration, linking it to the decline of the French language in Quebec. He told journalists the province is facing a "linguistic emergency" and a "historic decline in the French language," a framing that drew renewed criticism from his rivals who accuse him of using immigrants as scapegoats.

According to Quebec's auditor general, the next government will face significant budgetary constraints. A pre-election report published earlier this month highlighted that the deficit must be eliminated by 2029-2030 under the balanced-budget law, leaving little room for ambitious campaign promises.