New Gatineau hospital site purchased, Fortin not convinced
Last Tuesday, the CAQ representatives for the Outaouais announced the purchase of the Asticou Centre property for the future site of the new hospital they promised in their 2018 election campaign. The site was purchased from the federal government for $9 million, and the province anticipates construction on the 600-bed university-affiliated hospital to begin in the fall, CBC News reported.
However, some citizen groups have criticized the location as not being central enough, and noted the high cost to upgrade nearby roads.
Pontiac MNA and Quebec Liberal parliamentary leader André Fortin criticized the site selection and said if his party is elected in the fall and there isn’t yet an agreement with the City of Gatineau, they would re-evaluate the selection.
“All [the Coalition Avenir Québec] managed to do in eight years is now buy a piece of land, but this piece of land has serious issues with it,” he said.
The CAQ minister for the Outaouais Mathieu Lacombe said that it was time to move forward.
“The debate has taken place, the decision has been made. Everyone has been heard, everyone who had a say has spoken,” he said.
Outaouais sees increase in homelessness
Visible homelessness is on the rise in the Outaouais region according to statistics from the Ministry of Health and social services reported by Radio-Canada. The most recent provincial count, conducted in spring 2025, pegged the number at 866 individuals in the Outaouais, a rate of 200.7 per 100,000 residents. This is an increase of 22.6 per cent from the number of individuals recorded in 2022 (706), which itself was a steep rise from the 146 reported in 2018. Across the province, there were 12,077 people experiencing homelessness counted in the 2025 study, which is up from approximately 10,000 in 2022 (though the earlier data was only from 13 regions, as opposed to 15 in 2025). More detailed results from the 2025 count will be released in the fall.
Fréchette to be named premier after winning CAQ leadership
Christine Fréchette will be named Quebec’s new premier, after winning the CAQ leadership race on Sunday afternoon, taking 57.9 per cent of the vote, compared to her only opponent, Bernard Drainville with 42.1 per cent, the Montreal Gazette reported. Roughly 20,500 CAQ members were eligible to vote in the race, which had a participation rate of 77.1 per cent.
Fréchette’s victory follows the departure of party founder François Legault, who announced his resignation in January.
“It’s spring,” she said in her victory speech. “It’s that time when we open the windows, when we let in the fresh air.”
Drainville congratulated his opponent in a post on social media.
“She will be a rigorous and determined premier who will know how to move Quebec forward,” he wrote.
Fréchette is the second woman to lead the province, after Pauline Marois.
