Quebec energy minister calls for drastic decrease in number of cars, Premier hesitates

Quebec's energy minister says there needs to be fewer cars on the road to meet emission targets. Meanwhile, the premier says the priority should be a switch to electric.

Quebec Energy Minister Pierre Fitzgibbon says the number of cars on Quebec roads will need to decrease drastically if the province hopes to reach its carbon-neutral target by 2050.

The minister was questioned by reporters outside the National Assembly Wednesday after he suggested earlier this week that the number of cars would need to be reduced by half — regardless of fuel type.

On Wednesday, the minister clarified he would not be setting specific targets for the number of cars in the province, but instead is calling on individuals to use their “common sense.”

“It’s going to come naturally. Quebecers are intelligent people,” Fitzgibbon said.  “Who am I to say you shouldn’t drive a Ford Explorer with a lot of fuel? That’s your decision. Maybe it’s going to cost more money to do it, but it’s not the government’s job to tell you what to drive. ”

The minister also invited the population to change their overall energy consumption habits.

“If you want to be carbon-neutral in 2050, you’re going to eat differently, probably travel differently. You’re not going to go to Florida every month using kerosene across the ocean if you want to be carbon-neutral.”

But Premier François Legault didn’t go quite as far with his comments Wednesday morning.

“We want to work with incentives, not obligations. … I think that the priority right now is to move from gas cars to electric cars.”