A vast majority of Québec counties have significantly lower potential for economic development and productivity compared to the rest of Canada or even the United States, according to a briefing by Canada Economic Development.As per Blacklock’s Reporter, 75 of 104 regional county municipalities in La Belle province had about 13% lower productivity rates compared to other parts of Canada and 57% lower than the US.The province suffered from “disparities in growth,” “increased barriers” and problems with “demographics, remoteness, infrastructure costs (and) challenges of modernizing so-called ‘traditional sectors,'” said the Briefing Book For CED Deputy Minister. This was the “reality on the ground,” it said..In 1966 Québec accounted for about 29% of Canada’s population, a figure which has shrunk to 22% last yearStatsCan.In all, the agency allocated about $544 million in business aid for the province in 2023.The document followed a 2022 federal guide that suggested cabinet consider “economic status” for the French language in Canada in a bid to boost economic development. “The shrinking demographic weight of persons for whom French is a mother tongue or the language used most often at home has led French speakers to question the extent to which English speakers and allophones are using French,” said the Discussion Guide: Cross-Canada Official Languages Consultations.“Given the significant worldwide appeal of the English language and the importance of immigration to Canada’s population growth, measures may need to be adopted to secure a foothold for French in the public realm by way of political, cultural and economic status,” said the guide.Immigration is of particular concern. Québec is one of the few regions in the country that has failed to experience a meaningful contribution from inmigration from other parts of Canada. In November, Statistics Canada reported that 893,351 English Québecers and those speaking a foreign language — mainly Italian and Greek — had left the province since 1966. At the time Québec accounted for about 29% of Canada’s population, a figure which has shrunk to 22% last year, according to StatsCan numbers.
