Parti Québécois pledges to balance Quebec budget by 2028-2029

Parti Québécois Leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon speaks at a news conference while candidate Nicolas Marceau, left, looks on, in Quebec City on Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2026. Quebecers are going to the polls for a general election on Oct. 5. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jacques Boissinot)

The Parti Québécois is promising to balance the provincial budget by 2028-2029, a year earlier than the current Quebec government’s projections.

The party made the pledge as it released the financial plan of its election campaign platform on Tuesday.

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The PQ’s plan calls for a $6.6-billion reduction in government spending over five years.

PQ candidate and economist Nicolas Marceau says those funds would be reinvested primarily in health care, education and support for small and medium-sized businesses.

Quebec’s electoral campaign is unfolding under tight fiscal constraints, with the balanced budget law requiring the province’s to eliminate its multi-billion deficit by 2029-2030.

Quebecers go to the polls on Oct. 5.

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Marceau did not say how many jobs in the public service would be cut by the PQ if it forms a government, saying instead that the party wants to reduce the total payroll by 2.5 per cent.

Among its key measures, the PQ is also committing to reduce taxes for businesses.

However, a PQ government would also slash subsidies for multinational corporations, said Marceau.

The auditor general warned in a pre-election report that the province needs to do some serious belt-tightening to balance its budget.

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The PQ was the last of the parties to release its fiscal plan.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 15, 2026.