Will Red-Ink Budgets Be a Thing of the Past? Challenges and Choices for Quebec

Thanks to favourable economic conditions and improving public finances, Quebec is the end of a long period of budgets that were awash in red ink. In the medium and long terms, Quebec could attain financial flexibility provided it is able to reduce growth in health care spending from 5.2 per cent to 4.2 per cent. For one of the few times in its history, Quebec could simultaneously maintain services at their current levels while reducing its debt load and achieving fiscal flexibility. This report examines ways the budget surpluses could be used, including paying down the public debt, providing tax relief for individuals and businesses, or launching new social programs or economic development projects.