Culture and Communications Minister Mathieu Lacombe has a lot of work to do. I took advantage of his visit to last week’s Transistor Festival in his home state of Gatineau to address some pressing issues.
First thing: The famous Blue Space program was abandoned. Launched three years ago, this concept of regional museums in Quebec’s 17 administrative regions benefited from a $259 million budget to renovate and upgrade heritage buildings to accommodate these places dedicated to our history.
To date, four buildings have been affected (Charlevoix, Frédéric-James Villa, the former convent of the Petites Franciscans in Caspé, Vieux-Palais, Abidpy-Demiscamingue, the Camille-Roy Pavilion of the Séminaire de Quebec). Reconstruction will be carried out. The work is expected to cost around 120 million.
The Seminary Pavilion, the mother house of Blue Spaces, will now be converted into the National Museum of History. The other three locations now have to find a career.
Photo by Yann Douplet, Le Soleil Archives
The pavilion of the Séminaire de Québec will not become a blue space, but a national history museum.
Seeing that we were headed for a serious increase in spending (estimated at 1 billion), Mathieu Lacombe decided to put the brakes on the idea, described by the opposition as a “failure”. “I took this decision, and I am proud of it. As a minister, you have to cut off a project. »
When the idea was launched, many experts said that the initially projected amount of 259 million would not be enough. How did the government not notice this?
The explosion of construction costs has led me to this choice, either I’m being diligent or I’m recognizing pointless costs.
Matthew Lacombe
Mathieu Lacombe got this idea published in June 2021 by François Legault and Nathalie Roy. He soon realized that he had a large hot potato in his hand. He was unable to defend the project when the demands of the cultural community were multiplying.
“For me, it’s clear to invest in theaters and companies that have needs. » This is a phrase he likes to repeat in the cultural community.
Although he abandoned the Blue Space project, Mathieu Lacombe passionately defends what he envisions as a future National History Museum. “I have an ambition to make it the most digital museum in the country. To attract the youth. I don’t just want dates and portraits of our rulers on the wall. »
During a podcast interview conducted in front of an audience at the Transistor Festival, his relationship with Canadian Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge in Ottawa was discussed. We often get the impression that the race between these two politicians is very tight.
Mathieu Lacombe challenged the host to organize a meeting that would bring them together on stage. “I like it, Pascal, we work for governments that protect their areas of expertise. »
Precisely, on the subject of Areas of Expertise. A few days ago, Mathieu Lacombe mentioned the creation of a fund financed from the taxation of Internet giants to help the media. This was in response to a question from Sol Zanetti, a Quebec Solitaire MP who proposed the idea.
I told him my confusion. Pascale St-Onge raised 100 million from Google last year to do this work. Are we going to repeat the same exercise at the provincial level? What power do we have to take such a step? Are we not in danger of breaking the agreement with the central government?
Mathieu Lacombe moderately supported this approach. “It’s an idea worth considering, but it’s not something at the top of my pile. »
Quebec admits not discussing this with Minister Pascal St-Ong.
You are right that duplicating work is neither creative nor profitable. It is not true that Quebec culture will be decided in Ottawa.
Matthew Lacombe
This phrase is a favorite of the Minister of Culture and Communications.
Mathieu Lacombe announced the creation of a cultural passport for young people. The age limit and value are yet to be determined. One thing is certain, the minister is taking advantage of the French and Spanish experience to avoid slippage (in France, young people use the amount to buy a computer).
“The passport should be used for Quebec cultural products, that’s very clear to me. »
With a reputation for efficiency, he also likes to organize the programs of the Société de développement des industries culturelle du Québec (SODEC) and the Conseil des arts et des Lettres du Québec (CALQ), which he considers too complex. He told the audience at Transistor Festival that if they saw some of the shows, “they’d get nosebleeds”.
“I see this and I’m tired. Need a project for filmmakers under 25 who want to make a movie about monkey breeding on Île d’Orléans? Or, a project to renovate old houses located on the odd side of a certain street in Quebec? I’m exaggerating, but there are many projects. And They must be managed. We wonder why our hands are still tied: let’s cut the red tape.
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