Plante defends tuition stance after Legault blast

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Valerie Plante said she was surprised by the explosion of criticism she received from the Legault government this week after criticizing tuition hikes expected to hurt Concordia and McGill universities.

But Montreal's mayor said it's normal that he doesn't agree on everything with Premier Francois Legault — and he insisted the city and province have a fruitful relationship.

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“Am I surprised by coordinated criticism?” Yes, but this is not the first time that the CAQ government and … our administration have not fully agreed on something,” Plante told reporters on Friday.

He added: “I am the mayor of Montreal, so in this case it is very important, namely, yes, we want and we must protect and promote the French language, but we must support all the university institutions that make us. shines internationally.”

A day earlier, the CAQ government publicly punished Plante.

Legoult said he “doesn't care about the French in Montreal.” French Language Minister Jean-Francois Roberge Plante said he could not “contrary to the fact that Montreal is French and say that Montreal is the francophone metropolis of Quebec.”

They were responding to Plante's criticism of the Legault government's decision to raise tuition by 33 percent for the rest of Canada's students attending Concordia and McGill.

“We see this as a direct attack on Montreal, and it's not fair,” he told reporters on Tuesday. He said he agreed that French universities needed more support, “but should we penalize Anglophone universities for this? My answer: No thank you.'

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The tuition increase, which affects only McGill and Concordia, is part of the CAQ government's efforts to increase funding for French universities and reduce the number of non-French speakers in Montreal's post-secondary institutions.

Concordia and McGill say tuition hikes could scare off many out-of-province students. Combined with changes to funding for international students, the increase could bring them tens of millions of dollars a year, they say.

Both schools say they have seen a sharp drop in applications from the rest of Canada – 27% at Concordia and 22% at McGill.

On Friday, the Conference Board of Canada said Montreal's population growth is being “directly impacted by rising tuition fees for foreign students and stricter rules regarding French language capabilities, as well as national restrictions on foreign students.

Plante said he is concerned that the number of students from the rest of Canada could drop because they help Montreal's economy, especially downtown, where most of Concordia and McGill's operations are located.

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“I think it's important to remember that all of us, including the (CAQ) government, want downtown Montreal to come alive.

“We know how bad it was for merchants, restaurants, businesses after (the pandemic). Everyone needs to be involved to find a solution.

“But the small number of students also plays an important role. For me, it's a complete ecosystem, so I don't think it's necessary to choose between (protecting the French language and ensuring the prosperity of English universities). You have to do both at the same time.”

He said that his administration and the Legault government were “not arguing or squabbling. We don't necessarily have the same perspective on things.

“But it all works out in the end. I work with all CAQ ministers. I have a very good relationship with them, we talk to them, we talk to each other. Things are going well.”

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