Quebec

The tops of buildings are visible from a distance, lit by sunset

Legault puts six-month freeze on Montreal’s low-wage temporary foreign workers

August 22, 2024 by Jules Bugiel

Quebec Premier Francois Legault has put a six-month freeze on parts of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program in Montreal.

Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, Legault again said the rise in temporary migrants were to blame for many of the province’s issues in housing, health and social services, as well as the decline in the French language.

Minister of Immigration, Francization and Integration Christine Fréchette also justified the move by saying that key demographics face unemployment rates above 10 per cent in Montreal.

Speaking to CKUT after the announcement, the Immigrant Workers Centre’s Mostafa Henaway said the changes are largely symbolic. He says a more meaningful change would be to end the system of closed work permits that tie temporary foreign workers to a single employer, and leave them open to abuse.

An audience watches a woman speak into a microphone in front of a projected slide.

Migration not to blame for the housing crisis, think tanks say

June 21, 2024 by Jules Bugiel

The Institut de recherche et d’informations socioéconomiques (IRIS) and the Observatoire des inégalités raciales (OIRQ) have teamed up to release a new publication pushing back on the narratives that migrants are to blame for Quebec’s housing crisis.

Quebec Premier Francois Legault recently attributed the province’s hot rental market to the rise of temporary migration. But the OIRQ’s Geneviève Vande Wiele Nobert, author of the June 11 publication, says that skyrocketing rents in low-migration regions show there’s more to the story.

With files from Athina Khalid.

Warden discusses recent FQM conference, meeting with health minister

June 5, 2024 by Caleb Nickerson

MRC Pontiac Warden Jane Toller stopped by CHIP 101.9’s studios this week to discuss her attendance at a meeting of the Fédération québécoise des municipalités on May 30 and the issues that were discussed.

She highlighted a short meeting that took place between the wardens of the Outaouais and Quebec’s Health Minister Christian Dubé regarding short-staffing issues in the region’s health care facilities.

Toller also spoke about the discussions surrounding Bill 57, incoming legislation from Quebec’s Minister of Municipal Affairs Andrée Laforest which would impose fines on people who harass or intimidate elected officials. She said that the pandemic was a turning point when it came to hostile interactions between citizens and elected officials.

Norway Bay Pier closed following engineer’s report

March 8, 2024 by Caleb Nickerson

The Norway Bay pier, a fixture in the cottaging community for decades, will be closed until further notice following the results of an engineering report on its structural integrity.

The decision had been anticipated in the last few weeks, but was made official at the Bristol municipal council meeting on March 4.

Bristol councillor Val Twolan-Graham explained that they would be forming a committee to examine the various options and chart the path forward. She noted that the boat launch will still be operational, but the remainder of the pier will be blocked off.

Pat Byrne, the President of the Norway Bay Municipal Association, called the news “devastating”. He said that this time of year is when they typically start hiring employees to offer swimming lessons, and they are scrambling to work out potential alternatives to the floating docks that are typically attached to the pier.

A portrait shot of Isabelle Charest sitting at a table with her hands folded. The Quebec flag is pictured behind her.

Quebec aims to reinforce protections for people in sports and recreation

March 1, 2024 by Taylor McClure

The Quebec government is preparing for its consultation process on Bill 45 – which amends the act respecting safety in sports – to reinforce protections for people in sports and recreation in the province.

Minister of Sports, Recreation, and the Outdoors Isabelle Charest tabled Bill 45 at the beginning of February. According to Charest, the reform is in “response” to the inquiries (2023) into violence in sports by the provincial government, which showed the need for more “grip” on how complaints of harassment and abuse are handled.

Under Bill 45, a sport and recreation integrity ombudsman will be appointed to handle complaints of harassment and abuse and they will be given more powers to investigate complaints right away, explained Charest.

Bill 45 also introduces certain requirements for criminal background checks for those that work with athletes and participants, and it applies to a wider range of sport and recreational organizations.

The Quebec Winter Games make their way to the Townships

February 1, 2024 by Taylor McClure

The City of Sherbrooke has been chosen to host the finals for the 58th edition of the Quebec Winter Games in March.

Sherbrooke hosted the Quebec Summer Games back in 1977 and 1995, but it marks the first time that the winter games are coming to the Eastern Townships, said Amélie Boissonneau, communications coordinator for Destination Sherbrooke and promotor of business and sport tourism. She noted that the event will be of the biggest that the city hosts this year and it will be beneficial for tourism and economic growth in the region.

According to Boissonneau, the 2024 winter games will bring together more than 3,000 Quebec athletes between 12 and 17 years old to participate in 19 different sports.

She added that the event is expected to attract $7 million in spending for Sherbrooke and its surrounding areas, and the total economic impact of the games is estimated at $21 million.

The exterior of a municipal office and garage on a snowy day. There are two buildings, one of them a one story building, the other a large equipment shed with double doors. The word "Litchfield" is on the shed above the double doors.

Budget 2024: Litchfield invests in roads, looks ahead to new fire hall

January 18, 2024 by Caleb Nickerson

As part of its annual coverage of municipal budgets in the early days of each year, CHIP 101.9 spoke with Litchfield Mayor Colleen Larivière about this year’s plans.

Revenue — There wasn’t a huge difference from last year’s budget, with overall revenues decreasing from $2.5 million in 2023 to $2.1 million in 2024, mainly due to a dip in transfers.

Expenses – Like most rural municipalities, road work accounts for a large portion of Litchfield’s expenses, and Larivière said that this year they would be expending municipal funds as well as funds from the TECQ program for resurfacing on Church Road in Vinton and installing guard rails in several locations.

She said that they were making progress on the construction of the new firehall for the department that they share with the municipality of Campbell’s Bay.

The 2024 budget and 3-year capital expenditures for Litchfield are available here: Budget 2024

A man in a hoodie speaks into a microphone at the head of a conference table.

MRC Pontiac Economic Development Director officially resigns

December 22, 2023 by Caleb Nickerson

While the job posting has been on MRC Pontiac’s website since last week, it wasn’t until the council of mayors meeting Wednesday night December 20 that Economic Development Director Guillaume Boudreau officially announced his resignation, effective December 21.

Boudreau spent 13 months on the job after being hired in November 2022. Speaking after the meeting to CHIP News, Boudreau said that he was leaving to start a consulting business.

This position in particular has been difficult for the MRC to keep occupied, as Boudreau is the fifth director to leave the department in the last seven years.

Cyndy Phillips held the role from February 2020 to May 2022, taking over from Danielle Newman, who was hired in December 2018 until January 2020. Émilie Chazelas, who held the position before Newman, resigned from the post in May 2018. She took over from Marc Fortin, who left the post in November 2016.

A group of student firefighters pose for a picture in a gym.

ESSC student firefighters sharpen skills

December 20, 2023 by Caleb Nickerson

The parking lot of École secondaire Sieur de Coulonge was filled with firetrucks on Monday evening (December 19), but nothing was burning.

Instead, it was a training session for a new cohort of student firefighters conducted with the help of a couple of local departments.

This is the second hands-on practice that the group has held, and they invited school administrators, media and elected officials to observe.

Instructor Martin Bertrand explained that the course was the first of its kind after the Ecole National des Pompiers held two pilot projects elsewhere in Quebec. He said that the enthusiasm of the students is inspiring.

Local farmer participates in UPA demonstration in Quebec City

December 15, 2023 by Caleb Nickerson

A Pontiac farmer took part in a large demonstration in Quebec City last week along with other members of the Union des producteurs agricoles (UPA). The demonstrators, numbering in the hundreds according to Radio-Canada, marched to the National Assembly ahead of the UPA’s annual general meeting.

CHIP 101.9 spoke with David Gillespie, a local UPA representative and L’Isle-aux-Allumettes farmer who made the trek across the province for the event. (Note: Gillespie also sits on CHIP 101.9’s board of directors.) He said that it was a way to demonstrate to members of the National Assembly the challenges facing Quebec’s farmers.

He added that one of the most important issues to this region is the aging demographics of farmers, and the difficulty for young people to enter the industry. At a recent meeting discussing Pontiac’s agricultural plan, it was noted that of the 325 farm operators in the region, 215 were over the age of 55 and just 20 were under the age of 30.

A birds eye view of a town blanketed in forest fire smoke.

SOPFEU seeks recruits after record setting fire season

December 13, 2023 by Caleb Nickerson

Quebec’s provincial forest fire fighting agency SOPFEU is in the midst of its annual recruitment period, following the most destructive summer of wildfires in its recorded history.

Melanie Morin, a communications officer in SOPFEU’s western region, said that after a quiet spring, they saw more forest burned this season than the last 20 years combined. Things kicked off with a dry spell in May and June, followed by lightning storms that ignited more than 150 fires at the same time.

Morin added that this time of year is when the agency typically recruits, and they’ve seen an increase in interest after the summer’s activities. They typically look for people with experience in the forest, be it a degree in forestry or work as an outdoor guide. She said it also helps if candidates are willing to move to various locations around the province.

Legault puts six-month freeze on Montreal’s low-wage temporary foreign workers

Migration not to blame for the housing crisis, think tanks say

Warden discusses recent FQM conference, meeting with health minister

Norway Bay Pier closed following engineer’s report

Quebec aims to reinforce protections for people in sports and recreation

The Quebec Winter Games make their way to the Townships

Budget 2024: Litchfield invests in roads, looks ahead to new fire hall

MRC Pontiac Economic Development Director officially resigns

ESSC student firefighters sharpen skills

Local farmer participates in UPA demonstration in Quebec City

SOPFEU seeks recruits after record setting fire season

Some rights reserved © 2024 - frequencynews.ca

Developed and hosted by Natiotech

Quebec

Legault puts six-month freeze on Montreal’s low-wage temporary foreign workers

Migration not to blame for the housing crisis, think tanks say

Warden discusses recent FQM conference, meeting with health minister

Advocates call for modernization of laws around marital life and social assistance

Norway Bay Pier closed following engineer’s report

Quebec aims to reinforce protections for people in sports and recreation

The Quebec Winter Games make their way to the Townships

Budget 2024: Litchfield invests in roads, looks ahead to new fire hall

MRC Pontiac Economic Development Director officially resigns

ESSC student firefighters sharpen skills

Local farmer participates in UPA demonstration in Quebec City

SOPFEU seeks recruits after record setting fire season

Some rights reserved © 2024 - frequencynews.ca

Developed and hosted by Natiotech