Who is Georges Painchaud, candidate for Cap-aux-Meules–Entry Island?

Georges Painchaud, candidate for the district of Cap-aux-Meules and Entry Island, is no stranger to election campaigns.

A former president of the Fraternité des policiers et policières de Montréal, Painchaud ran for the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) in the Magdalen Islands in 2012, and his volunteer work in the community continues to this day.

The 75-year-old deplores the tense atmosphere that prevails at public council meetings, although he believes that some of the fears expressed by citizens are justified.

“Several people I have met since submitting my candidacy for Councillor said to me that I am for the Mayor. No, I am not for the Mayor, I am not against the Mayor, I am for the citizens of the Magdalen Islands, and particularly those of Cap-aux-Meules and Entry Island. The last word, and my decisions will all be based on one thing: my conscience, no matter what the subject at hand. So I am not on any sides, I am a neutral guy, but when someone comes to me with a given situation, can I verify both sides of the story before giving judgement?” (Loose translation from audio)

Asked to identify the three priority issues for councillors, Mr. Painchaud immediately names the issue of access to public toilets on Entry Island, as well as the difficulties in the tourism sector.

However, he also believes that restoring the municipality’s financial health should be at the top of the agenda.

“There is a rumour, or a will to make citizens believe that we are in a poor financial situation, and that money is being wasted. That needs to be proven. We need to make the difference between doing nothing by fear of having a tax increase, and by the same token decrease the quality of life of citizens, and set back the Islands by not functioning at all. We will always have a need for investments on the Islands, but we need to know if the budget permits it.” (Loose translation from audio)

The candidate “finds it very hard” to justify the high cost of a project such as the future Grande-Entrée community hall to the residents of Entry Island, if the Municipalité des Îles is unable to offer them better public sanitary facilities.

On the other hand, he describes the Cap-aux-Meules eco-district project as “excellent”, although he questions the financial capacity of the archipelago to develop this project.

The by-election for the district of Cap-aux-Meules and Entry Island will be held on September 8, with advance polling on September 1.

To view the original article and listen to the interview (in French):

Qui est Georges Painchaud, candidat pour Cap-aux-Meules–Île-d’Entrée?

Special thanks to the Council for Anglophone Magdalen Islanders for the translation.