A leaner cabinet and a drive for efficiency

The new premier, Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, unveiled his cabinet on Wednesday. With 23 members, including the premier, it is one of the smallest cabinets since the Quiet Revolution. The message is clear: the state must tighten its belt, and the executive council is leading by example. By comparison, Christine Fréchette’s government had 29, six more.

Shrinking a cabinet is always harder than expanding one, especially when regions, gender parity and individual ambitions all have to be balanced. In his address, the premier set out his expectations, and they are high. In a minority context, with fewer ministers to deliver, he will be judged on his ability to execute far more than on the size of his team.

A lighter state and lighter bills for Quebecers

The government’s message extends to the entire state apparatus. The effort starts at the top: the President of the Treasury Board, Alain Therrien, must freeze the salaries of MNAs and senior executives until the budget is balanced again. He must also lead a regulatory relief exercise whose savings will be returned to Quebecers.

The work continues inside the government machine. The Minister Delegate for Government Efficiency and Regulatory Relief, Sébastien D’Astous, must create a Secretariat for Regulatory Relief and Government Efficiency and set up a commission to hear from businesses. The Minister of Economic Development, Innovation and Energy, Stéphane Paquet, must reduce the tax and regulatory burden and put an end to favouritism in subsidies.

But the exercise gets complicated, since the government has also committed to easing the burden on taxpayers. The Minister of Finance, Nicolas Marceau, must restore a balanced budget while removing taxes on used goods and cutting the fuel tax, even as other departments carry costly commitments, such as building 20,000 social housing units in four years. The first budget, in March 2027, will show how far the government can go in both rigour and promises.

Parity and regions

Balance shows first in the numbers: the cabinet has nine women and 13 men, or 40% women, which puts it at the edge of the parity zone. It is also a cabinet designed to cover the territory, and every region has a minister responsible for it. Meggie Richard, Minister Responsible for Regions and Land Occupancy, must make sure every voice is heard around the table and carry out decentralization.

But being responsible for a region is not the same as understanding it and embodying it. The Quebec City region and the Outaouais are good examples: in the capital, where the Parti Québécois has no MNA, the file goes for now to Nicolas Girard, member for Repentigny, while in the Outaouais it is Camille Pellerin-Forget, member for Iberville, who carries the region without holding a seat there. They will need to surround themselves well and earn their legitimacy on the ground.

Independence at the cabinet table

The cabinet includes a title devoted to independence: Minister Responsible for Quebec’s Accession to Independence. It comes on top of the roles of Deputy Premier, Minister of Immigration and Integration and Government House Leader, all entrusted to Catherine Gentilcore.

In the government’s words, the mandate includes preparing for independence, protecting the space for reflection on the subject, working with Ottawa when Quebec’s interest calls for it and ending the constitutional status quo. Her challenge will be to reconcile this mission with her role as House Leader. She will have to build agreements with the other parties, even though not all of them share the government’s goal.

Milestones to watch

Several projects will give the first hints of the government’s tone. The commission on regulation, expected by the end of the year, will show how it intends to listen to businesses. In health, the will to decentralize the network, cut bureaucracy and make governance easier to understand will test the current organization, including Santé Québec. The Estates General on education, planned for early 2027 with parents and students, and not only interest groups, will show whether the announced openness is real.

The success of these projects will depend on collaboration. The premier says he has clearly heard the message from voters, who elected members from four different parties. Ministers will now have to learn to work with the opposition to prove it.

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