CAQ leadership candidate Fréchette promises to revive fast-track immigration program
Advertisement
Read this article for free:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Monthly Digital Subscription
$1 per week for 24 weeks*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*Billed as $4.00 plus GST every four weeks. After 24 weeks, price increases to the regular rate of $19.95 plus GST every four weeks. Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.
Monthly Digital Subscription
$4.99/week*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*Billed as $19.95 plus GST every four weeks. Cancel any time.
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional
$1 for the first 4 weeks*
*Your next subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $16.99 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $23.99 plus GST every four weeks.
Read unlimited articles for free today:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
QUÉBEC – Christine Fréchette, leadership candidate for the Coalition Avenir Québec, is promising to revive a popular fast-track immigration program that her government had recently ended.
She says if she’s elected to replace Premier François Legault, she would reopen the Programme de l’expérience québécoise — known as the PEQ — for two years.
The decision by the Legault government to end the PEQ in November sparked street protests and strong criticism from municipal politicians and business leaders who feared that qualified workers would be forced the leave the province.
Fréchette’s rival in the leadership race, Bernard Drainville, has said he would offer a “grandfather clause” for the PEQ, allowing people in priority sectors, like education or health care, to remain in the province.
The PEQ has become a sensitive topic in the leadership race, as the CAQ has long promised to reduce the number temporary immigrants, who Legault says are putting pressure on services.
Earlier today, Legault said a grandfather clause would potentially allow up to 350,000 temporary immigrants in Quebec a fast-track to permanent residency.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 10, 2026.