Economy and identity: Quebec premier delivers inaugural speech of 43rd legislature

The Quebec government will spend the next four years trying to reverse what it says is the decline of French in Montreal and transform the province's economy while reducing greenhouse gas emissions, Premier François Legault said Wednesday.

Legault delivered his inaugural speech — equivalent to a throne speech — to the legislature today, almost two months after his Coalition Avenir Québec was re-elected with a large majority.

His speech touched on labour shortages and the difficulties plaguing the health system. But the thrust of his message was about Quebec's identity and how to fight climate change without damaging the economy.

"On identity, the objective is to stop the decline of French in Quebec, and in particular in Montreal — to reverse the trend because French is the basis of our identity as a nation," Legault said.

"Imagine what would remain of us if we lost this fundamental link that unites us with past generations and those to come."

The premier noted that between 2001 and 2021, the number of people who speak French at home fell to 78 per cent from 83 per cent. In Montreal, he said, that number dropped below 50 per cent — to 48 per cent from 55 per cent — over the same period.

"It is imperative to stop this decline and reverse the trend," Legault said, adding that his government will produce yearly statistics on the health of the French language instead of waiting for census numbers from Statistics Canada.

There is an undeniable link between immigration policy and the vitality of the French language, Legault said. All Quebecers favour immigration, he explained, but they want newcomers to be properly integrated into Quebec society.

His goal, he said, is to ensure that by 2026, 100 per cent of economic immigrants to the province speak French.

"It's a question of survival for our language in Quebec," Legault said.

The premier boasted that Quebec produces significantly less greenhouse gas emissions per capita than the rest of the continent and said the fight against climate change should not interfere with increasing Quebec's wealth.

"Quebec emits 50 per cent less greenhouse gases per capita compared with the rest of North America. We have to go longer and faster (to cut emissions) but we also have to co-ordinate that with our goal to eliminate the wealth gap."

Quebec's government has pledged to have net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

Legault said the province will need the equivalent of half the total output of Hydro-Quebec — 100 terawatt hours more — by 2050 to meet the province's energy demands, adding that government must consider building new dams to do so, something that can take up to 15 years.