Quebec Liberal Party welcomes new leader Charles Milliard

well-nigh 600 people welcomed  charles ix Milliard as the  young  head up of the  quebec city Liberal Party, in Trois-Rivières, Que., on Sunday, days after he was acclaimed in a leadership race that no one else joined.

Milliard, who entered the room at the Delta Hotel in the city about halfway between Montreal and Quebec City on the north shore of the St. Lawrence River, takes over a party recently shaken by the December resignation of former leader Pablo Rodriguez.

“We have gone through a difficult period, but today we look forward,” Milliard said.

“Under my leadership, integrity, transparency, and accountability will be the watchwords because the party I want to lead must be above reproach, and trust is earned, not requested.”

Milliard outlined his five key priorities for a potential Quebec Liberal government: strengthening the economy, improving public services, supporting Quebec’s regions outside major urban centres, promoting culture and addressing access to housing.

He highlighted flagship policies a Liberal government would pursue, including a telemedicine platform available seven days a week, a goal of 100,000 new housing starts per year, and tax relief for small and medium-sized businesses.

“I am nationalist, I am regionalist, I am federalist, and no, that is not contradictory,” Milliard told the audience.

Former Quebec Liberal premiers Daniel Johnson and Philippe Couillard, along with past interim leaders, attended the event to welcome the new generation of party leadership. 

Rodriguez stepped down amid a crisis involving allegations of vote-buying and reimbursed donations during the leadership race he'd won in June. 

Originally from Lévis, Que., and former president of the Quebec Federation of Chambers of Commerce, Milliard faces the challenge of introducing himself to Quebec voters, having never held elected office at the provincial or federal level.

At Sunday's event, he promised to hold broad consultations on education if elected this fall, aiming to reform the system to better engage both students and teachers.

“Our current system has reached its limit — the bell has rung,” he said.

A pharmacist by training, Milliard said mental health would be a top priority, alongside expanding home-care services. He said a Liberal government would invest so seniors can stay as long as possible in their homes and regions, adding that uprooting seniors is "a scourge on society." 

Milliard further pledged to empower local governments, calling himself “the prime minister of decentralization in Quebec.”

Later, in his first news conference as leader, Milliard said the coming week would be important for the party, including decisions at the first caucus meeting — notably on the future of MNA Marwah Rizqy. 

Rizqy had been parliamentary leader but was expelled from caucus last year after firing her chief of staff, Geneviève Hinse, without consulting then-leader Rodriguez, a move Rodriguez called a breach of trust that “did a lot of damage” to the party and sparked an internal crisis. 

Rizqy maintains she acted to preserve her integrity. Hinse has since filed a $500,000 lawsuit against Rizqy over her dismissal.

“This is one of the subjects we will address in the first caucus … I will make a team decision, so I need to discuss it with the team. I am not rushing things,” said Milliard.

Quentin Dufranne is a journalist with The Canadian Press.

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