La performance économique du Québec : constats et défis

I characterize the performance of the Quebec economy over the last quarter century: 1981-2007. Many indicators are presented: GDP, GDP per capita, population, job creation, employment rates, average weekly earnings, private investments, exports, debt, R&D. In spite of some strong sectors, the global economic performance of Quebec has been significantly lower than that of the rest of Canada and the United States. Many challenges are confronting us. We are in a certain sense condemned to be more efficient and more innovative than our main competitors and partners in order to reverse the current trend towards marginality. We need a new quiet revolution capable of both reaffirming the social-democratic goals and principles that have become synonymous with modern Quebec and emerging from a radically different set of ways, means and policies, that is, a new quiet revolution to implement a competitive social-democracy. Je caracterise dans ce rapport la performance economique du Quebec de 1981 a 2007 (26 ans). Plusieurs indicateurs sont presentes : PIB, PIB par habitant, population, creation d'emplois, taux d'emploi, remuneration hebdomadaire moyenne, investissements prives, exportations, dette et R&D. Malgre la presence de secteurs en plein developpement, la performance economique globale du Quebec traine dangereusement derriere celle du reste du Canada et des Etats-Unis. Plusieurs defis doivent etre releves. Nous sommes d'une certaine maniere condamnes a etre plus efficaces et plus innovateurs que nos principaux concurrents et partenaires afin de renverser la tendance actuelle vers la marginalite. Nous avons besoin d'une veritable nouvelle revolution tranquille incarnant les memes principes sociaux-democrates que ceux qui ont preside a l'avenement du Quebec moderne mais s'appuyant sur des moyens, modalites et politiques radicalement differents, c'est-a-dire une nouvelle revolution tranquille pour implementer une social-democratie concurrentielle.