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Charest wants to boost rural jobs, agriculture and population

Former premier of Québec is one of six candidates vying to lead federal Conservative Party
Jean Charest
Conservative leadership hopeful Jean Charest spoke to Great West Media reporters from his Vancouver hotel room May 20 via Zoom. 

ATHABASCA – Jean Charest wants unity — among conservatives, among provinces, among the many divides that separate Canadians, including one particularly familiar to rural residents in this area and across the country. 

Charest joined Great West Media journalists via Zoom from his Vancouver hotel room May 20 to field questions about his leadership platform and provide some of his insights as to where he wants to take Canada should he become Conservative leader and potentially the next prime minister. 

The former federal cabinet minister and Québec premier is competing to lead the party with five others — Scott Aitchison, Roman Baber, Patrick Brown, Leslyn Lewis and Pierre Poilievre. 

“I am very much in this race because of the country,” Charest said in his introductory remarks. “It's been the common theme of my whole political life and I see a country that's deeply divided right now. And it isn't just the east-west, it's also rural and urban Canada, and new Canadians, and intergenerational, in a country that's certainly not living up to its promise.” 

On the subject of that urban-rural divide that is so prominent in Alberta, Charest said there are broader issues involved, namely demography. With the 2021 census showing an 11.6 per cent decline in population in Athabasca County, the largest in the country, and a 6.9 per cent decline in the Town of Athabasca, bringing people into rural areas is going to be an important challenge.  

“We have acute labour shortages that are going to cripple our economy and our ability to be able to prosper,” Charest said. “And on that issue, there's a host, a menu of things that need to be done.” 

One of the things on that menu is increasing the workforce by having a sound daycare policy that will allow parents, particularly women, to participate in greater numbers. He related his experience opposing what he thought was a bloated daycare policy when he started in Quebec politics. 

“I was wrong. That policy allowed women of working age between 25 and 50 for a higher participation rate in the labour market, it gave them the freedom to choose to go into it. Now it has increased productivity and reduced poverty, and it allowed families to have more revenue,” he said. 

In addition, Charest would like to see policies directed at helping experienced workers work for longer if they so desire.  

He also wants to see more work done to attract immigrants to rural areas of Canada. To succeed in that will require a focus on integrating new citizens into communities. 

“We as a country should take advantage of this world situation where there is a clamp down on immigration because of populist sentiment and go after the best talent in the world. Whether it's researchers, whether it's professionals, whether it is tradespeople or non-trained labour, non-skilled labor to bring them into the country.” 

Agriculture is a big industry in rural Canada, and helping farmers navigate record high fuel and fertilizer costs will also be helpful in stimulating rural growth, he said, pointing out he would attempt to decrease inflationary pressures by lowering income taxes and decreasing spending.  

“The inflation story is more than just about what the banks are spending; it's about supply chains; it's about COVID; it's about the war, all these are events that contribute to this phenomenon. And ultimately if we have to, if we have to support our farmers, we will have to do it financially to allow them to be able to function and get their product to market and be able to make a profit,” Charest said. 

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