Education Minister says $540 million is ‘No blank cheque' for school centres

CTV News

3 days ago

Quebec Education Minister Bernard Drainville doubled down on school centres (CSS), saying the government's reinvestment of $540 million in student services must be accompanied by a reduction in administrative expenses.
Quebec will not sign a 'blank cheque' to CSS, he said at a news conference Wednesday morning in Lévis.
When asked about his promise to invest $540 million announced two weeks earlier, the CAQ minister reiterated that the envelope 'is not an open bar' for CSS.
'The entire $540 million must go to student services, and this must be accompanied by a reduction in the administrative expenses of the school service centres,' said Drainville.
To obtain the money, the CSS will have to be accountable and prove on a monthly basis that they have met their spending commitments, the minister explained.
'We're not going to give them the entire amount at once,' he said. 'We're telling them, 'Here's the money you're entitled to. Now, we're not giving you a blank cheque.' There will be accountability, and payments will be made on a monthly basis.'
He said the CSSs have already been in 'administrative spending review mode' for several months and have begun to identify where they can make cuts.
'We have supported them in this. And the reinvestment we are making is accompanied by efficiency measures, a reduction in bureaucracy and a reduction in administrative expenses,' said Drainville, who said he had tables showing the CSS measures and where the money will be invested.
When it unveiled its budget rules in June, the Legault government asked the CSS to reduce their spending by $570 million for the coming year.
This decision provoked outrage. A few weeks later, Quebec City reversed its decision and the Minister of Education announced on social media that $540 million would be reinvested.
To explain his reversal, Drainville said on Wednesday that he had consulted with and found that CSSs had enrolled more students than expected, mainly due to immigration.
'We were told, 'There are more students, and we may have even more next school year. The needs are greater than ever.' So, rather than stubbornly insisting, at some point you say: the needs are very great, parents are worried. So, seeing that, we decided to proceed with the reinvestment,' said the minister, repeating that this money would not be paid out unconditionally.
Despite the government's change of course, school officials believe that student services could be affected by budget cuts at the start of the next school year.
A petition sponsored by Parti Québécois MNA Pascal Bérbué calling on the government to abandon budget restrictions is still available on the National Assembly's website. It had collected more than 158,800 signatures by 2 p.m. Wednesday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French July 30, 2025.
Frédéric Lacroix-Couture, The Canadian Press