Bloc Urges Conservatives to Fund Quebec City Arena

Gilles Duceppe says federal funding for Toronto’s failed Olympic bid set a precedent.

Funding for an NHL-ready arena is one of the conditions the Bloc is expected to ask the Conservatives to meet if the government wants the party to support its next budget and avoid an election. Duceppe said that funding the arena would only be fair, pointing to the government’s willingness to spend $1 billion on the G20 in Toronto last summer and the $500 million given to the city’s Olympic bid in 2001. The arena issue is politically explosive because many voters outside of Quebec don’t want to see taxpayer dollars go towards a sports facility during a time of recession, but a new arena could help get Quebec City an NHL franchise and win the Conservatives coveted Quebec votes.