Monique Jérôme-Forget (; born August 8, 1940) is a
psychologist
A psychologist is a professional who practices psychology and studies mental states, perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and social processes and behavior. Their work often involves the experimentation, observation, and explanation, interpretatio ...
and a former
Quebec
Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...
politician
A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...
. She was the
Member of National Assembly (MNA) for the riding of
Marguerite-Bourgeois in the Montreal region as a member of the
Quebec Liberal Party
The Quebec Liberal Party (QLP; , PLQ) is a provincial political party in Quebec. It has been independent of the federal Liberal Party of Canada since 1955.
The QLP has traditionally supported a form of Quebec federalist ideology with nuance ...
between 1998 and 2009. With the government in power she was the
Finance Minister
A ministry of finance is a ministry or other government agency in charge of government finance, fiscal policy, and financial regulation. It is headed by a finance minister, an executive or cabinet position .
A ministry of finance's portfoli ...
from 2007 to 2009, the President of the
Treasury Board
The Treasury Board of Canada () is the Cabinet committee of the Privy Council of Canada which oversees the spending and operation of the Government of Canada and is the principal employer of the core public service. The committee is supported ...
and the Minister of government services and the Minister responsible of the
government administration
The term administration, as used in the context of government, differs according to the jurisdiction under which it operates. In general terms, the administration can be described as a decision-making body.
United States
In American usage, the ...
from 2003 to 2008.
Education
From 1960 to 1976, Jérôme-Forget studied at several
universities
A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...
including the
University of London
The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a collegiate university, federal Public university, public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The ...
(England) in
economics
Economics () is a behavioral science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services.
Economics focuses on the behaviour and interac ...
,
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University (often abbreviated as Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1876 based on the European research institution model, J ...
in
history
History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the Human history, human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some t ...
, the
Université de Montréal
The Université de Montréal (; UdeM; ) is a French-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university's main campus is located in the Côte-des-Neiges neighborhood of Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce on M ...
in
public economics
Public economics ''(or economics of the public sector)'' is the study of government policy through the lens of economic efficiency and Equity (economics), equity. Public economics builds on the theory of welfare economics and is ultimately used as ...
and
McGill University
McGill University (French: Université McGill) is an English-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill University, Vol. I. For the Advancement of Learning, ...
in psychology. At the end of her studies, she received a
bachelor's
A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ( ...
and
doctor's degree
A doctorate (from Latin ''doctor'', meaning "teacher") or doctoral degree is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''Licentiate (degree), licentia docendi' ...
in
psychology
Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Its subject matter includes the behavior of humans and nonhumans, both consciousness, conscious and Unconscious mind, unconscious phenomena, and mental processes such as thoughts, feel ...
at McGill in 1972 and 1976 respectively.
Professional career
On completing her doctorate in psychology, Jérôme-Forget began practice as a psychologist at the Royal Victoria Hospital (part of the McGill University Hospital Centre).
From 1979 to 1982, she worked as the Director of Professional Services at the CLSC Metro, Montreal.
From 1982 to 1985, she served as Assistant Deputy Minister in the federal Department of Health and Welfare in Ottawa.
In 1985–86, she worked as the Vice-Rector, Finance, Institutional Research and Human Resources, at Concordia University in Montreal.
From 1986 to 1990, she was chair and CEO of Quebec's Commission de la santé et de la sécurité du travail (CSST). The commission is responsible for workplace health and safety. She also was chair, Institut de recherche en santé et sécurité du travail (IRSST).
From 1991 to 1998, she was the CEO of the Institute for Research on Public Policy (IRPP). As well from 1993 to 1998 she was a columnist for the Financial Post and Les Affaires.
Community involvement
She has been heavily involved in the community, working for the
Montreal Symphony Orchestra
The Montreal Symphony Orchestra () is a Canadian symphony orchestra based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The orchestra’s home is the Montreal Symphony House at Place des Arts.
History
Several orchestras were precursor ensembles to the curren ...
, la Cinematheque Québécoise, the Quebec federation for the environment, the
Social policies
Some professionals and universities consider social policy a subset of public policy, while other practitioners characterize social policy and public policy to be two separate, competing approaches for the same public interest (similar to Compar ...
committee
A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly or other form of organization. A committee may not itself be considered to be a form of assembly or a decision-making body. Usually, an assembly o ...
of the
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD; , OCDE) is an international organization, intergovernmental organization with 38 member countries, founded in 1961 to stimulate economic progress and international trade, wor ...
(OECD), the
Medical Council of Canada
The Medical Council of Canada (MCC; ) is an organization charged with the partial assessment and evaluation of medical graduates and physicians through standardized examination. It grants the qualification called Licentiate of the Medical Council ...
and the Société investissement jeunesse. She was also a member of the Institute for Intergovernmental Relations of
Queen's University in
Kingston, Ontario
Kingston is a city in Ontario, Canada, on the northeastern end of Lake Ontario. It is at the beginning of the St. Lawrence River and at the mouth of the Cataraqui River, the south end of the Rideau Canal. Kingston is near the Thousand Islands, ...
, as well as the McGill University Institute for Canadian Studies. She was the representative for Canada on the International Commission for Workers' Compensation.
Political career
First mandate
Jérôme-Forget entered politics in 1998. She became the MNA for Marguerite-Bourgeoys in the
1998 elections
The following elections occurred in the year 1998.
Africa
* 1998 Burkinabé presidential election
* 1998 Central African parliamentary election
* 1998 Gabonese presidential election
* 1998 Guinean presidential election
* 1998 Lesotho general elect ...
and would serve as the opposition party's critic in finances when the
Parti Québécois
The Parti Québécois (PQ; , ) is a sovereignist and social democratic provincial political party in Quebec, Canada. The PQ advocates national sovereignty for Quebec involving independence of the province of Quebec from Canada and establishi ...
had their second mandate as a majority government.
Second term
She was re-elected for a second term in the
2003 elections, in which the Liberals won a
majority government
A majority government is a government by one or more governing parties that hold an absolute majority of seats in a legislature. Such a government can consist of one party that holds a majority on its own, or be a coalition government of multi ...
, and became a prominent force inside
Jean Charest
John James "Jean" Charest (; born June 24, 1958) is a Canadian lawyer and former politician who served as the 29th premier of Quebec from 2003 to 2012. Prior to that, he was a member of Parliament (MP) between 1984 and 1998. After holding se ...
's
cabinet
Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to:
Furniture
* Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers
* Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets
* Filin ...
as she was named the president of the
Treasury Board
The Treasury Board of Canada () is the Cabinet committee of the Privy Council of Canada which oversees the spending and operation of the Government of Canada and is the principal employer of the core public service. The committee is supported ...
and the Minister of Public Administration and Government Services. She was also for half the mandate the Minister responsible for the Montreal region until 2005 when the responsibilities were given to
Culture
Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, Attitude (psychology), attitudes ...
Minister
Line Beauchamp
Line Beauchamp (born February 24, 1963) is a Canadian politician. She served as the Liberal Member of the National Assembly (MNA) for the Sauvé riding, and for Bourassa-Sauvé at the Quebec National Assembly from November 30, 1998 to May 14, 20 ...
.
As public administration minister she negotiated a six-year collective agreement covering half a million public sector employees and resolved a long-standing issue over pay equity affecting some 400,000, mostly female employees. As Treasury Board President she kept the nominal growth of public expenditure under 5% giving Quebec the slowest growing public sector of all Canadian governments. As a result, the credit rating of the Province of Quebec was increased on two occasions.
She also put together the most important infrastructure program in the history of Quebec ($41 billion for the first five years) and introduced in that province the concept of Public-Private Partnerships (or PFI) and to oversee it, she set up an agency that has won two international prizes for the quality of its work. Under these initiates, as she resigned her position in the government some $10 billion of projects from highways to teaching hospitals and concert hall were under way. The program was enhanced in her third (2009–2010) budget as an important element in her recession fighting strategy.
Third term
She was easily re-elected for a third term in the
2007 elections
The following elections occurred in the year 2007.
* Electoral calendar 2007
* Elections in 2007
* 2007 United Nations Security Council election
Africa
* 52nd National Conference of the African National Congress
* 2007 Algerian legislative elect ...
. After the election, she became one of the senior ministers of the new
minority government
A minority government, minority cabinet, minority administration, or a minority parliament is a government and cabinet formed in a parliamentary system when a political party or coalition of parties does not have a majority of overall seats in ...
as Premier Charest gave her additional responsibilities including the
portfolio
Portfolio may refer to:
Objects
* Portfolio (briefcase), a type of briefcase
Collections
* Portfolio (finance), a collection of assets held by an institution or a private individual
* Artist's portfolio, a sample of an artist's work or a ...
of Governmental Services, previously held by
Henri-Francois Gautrin, and Finances which had been held by
Michel Audet
Michel Audet (; born November 12, 1940) is an economist and a politician in Quebec, Canada. He was the Finance Minister of Quebec in the first Charest government.
Audet was first elected to the National Assembly of Quebec in the 2003 Quebec gen ...
who did not seek a re-election in 2007. She became the first minister since
Jacques Parizeau
Jacques Parizeau (; August 9, 1930June 1, 2015) was a Canadian politician and economist who served as the 26th premier of Quebec from September 26, 1994, to January 29, 1996.
Early life and career
Parizeau was born in Montreal, Quebec, the s ...
to hold both the positions of President of the Treasury Board and Minister of Finances.
Her 2007 budget provided for a $700 million reduction in personal income tax. It also initiated a phased abolition of the
capital tax
A wealth tax (also called a capital tax or equity tax) is a tax on an entity's holdings of assets or an entity's net worth. This includes the total value of personal assets, including cash, bank deposits, real estate, assets in insurance and ...
on businesses and continued a policy of significant funding increments to the health and education missions. These moves on the fiscal front were designed to implement campaign commitments to lighten the fiscal burden in Quebec to a more reasonable level as compared with other provinces. Over the period 2007–2008, she supervised the negotiations that led to the "Montreal Accord" to deal with the problem with
asset-backed commercial paper
Asset-backed commercial paper (ABCP) is a form of commercial paper that is collateralized by other financial assets. Institutional investors usually purchase such instruments in order to diversify their assets and generate short-term gains.
Stru ...
.
The
Parti Québécois
The Parti Québécois (PQ; , ) is a sovereignist and social democratic provincial political party in Quebec, Canada. The PQ advocates national sovereignty for Quebec involving independence of the province of Quebec from Canada and establishi ...
and
Action démocratique du Québec
The (, ), commonly referred to as the , was a right-wing populist and conservative provincial political party in Quebec, Canada. On the sovereignty question, it defined itself as autonomist; it had support from nationalists and federalists. Its ...
declared that they would vote against the budget. However, only three PQ members were present for the budget vote on June 1, 2007, so that the minority Liberal government got its budget approved as the Parti Québécois clearly did not want to provoke an election.
Fourth term
She was easily re-elected for a fourth time in her riding in the 2008 elections. At her request, she gave up her portfolio of government services to
Bellechasse MNA
Dominique Vien
Dominique Vien (born February 10, 1967) is a Canadian politician, who served as Member of the National Assembly for the electoral district of Bellechasse from 2003 to 2007. She was defeated in the 2007 election by Jean Domingue of the Action d ...
as well as the position of President of the Treasury Board to former Finances Minister and former Deputy Premier
Monique Gagnon-Tremblay
Monique Gagnon-Tremblay ( ; born May 26, 1940, in Plessisville, Quebec, Plessisville, Quebec) is a politician in Quebec, Canada. She was the MNA for the Electoral district (Canada), riding of Saint-François (electoral district), Saint-François ...
but kept the responsibility for the Infrastructures program. In this last capacity, she signed several infrastructure agreements with her federal counterpart then also engaged in an anti-recession program.
The global credit crisis had gathered steam during the 2007-2008 period. It was compounded by a stock market collapse in October 2008. In the last months of 2008, she played a key role in developing a joint effort by the Alberta, Ontario and Federal governments, and of course that of Quebec, in providing guarantees to holders of asset backed commercial paper. This financial crisis had until then a relatively mild impact of the Quebec economy. This however was to change in the last days of 2008 and the first months of 2009.
In her third budget, presented on March 14, 2009, there was a major shift from the budget balance of previous years into a significant $3.9 billion deficit that the difficult circumstances made both inevitable and desirable to stimulate aggregate demand in the economy. She announced in that budget and the economic statement made in January several stimulative measures such a program called REA-II as well as additional funding of $100 million each for Investissements Quebec and the Societe Générale de Financement. The budget anticipated a return to equilibrium over the next four years and anticipated a rise of the provincial sales tax of one percent as of January 2011, as well as yearly cost-of-living related increases in charges and fees for government services as of the same date. However, she was clear that other, unspecified tax increases or expenditures cutbacks would be needed to restore a balanced budget.
In the beginning of February, a formal announcement of nearly $40 billion of losses were made by the
Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec
The Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (, CDPQ; ) is an institutional investor that manages several public and parapublic pension plans and insurance programs in the Canadian province of Quebec. It was established in 1965 by an act of the ...
for 2008, the worst results in the Caisse's history. These results (and even their anticipation given the dramatic declines in asset prices over the preceding months) generated a lot of debates and questions about the quality of risk management practices at the Caisse, the nature of its objectives and the adequacy of its management. All that was accompanied by many changes in that management including the Board, the chair and the CEO's position.
A federal-provincial tax controversy ensued one week later following the decision by the
Ontario government
The Government of Ontario () is the body responsible for the administration of the Canadian province of Ontario. The term ''Government of Ontario'' refers specifically to the executive—political ministers of the Crown (the Cabinet/Executive ...
to harmonize the PST and the
GST. After the federal government offered $4 billion to Ontario in compensation for the tax move, Jérôme-Forget and the Quebec government requested a $2.6 billion compensation from Ottawa. The province had received no money when it harmonized both taxes in the 1990s.
On April 8, 2009, Jérôme-Forget announced her retirement from politics.
She was named a
Member of the Order of Canada
The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit.
To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...
in 2015.
"Four Nova Scotians among Order of Canada honourees"
The Chronicle-Herald
''The Chronicle Herald'' is a broadsheet newspaper published in Halifax, Nova Scotia, owned by Postmedia Network.
History
Early years
Founded in 1874 as ''The Morning Herald'', the paper quickly became one of Halifax's main newspapers. The same ...
, July 1, 2015.
Further reading
* Monique Jérôme-Forget: ''Les femmes au secours de l’économie. Pour en finir avec le plafond de verre.'' Stanké, Quebec 2012
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jerome-Forget, Monique
1940 births
Alumni of the University of London
Living people
McGill University Faculty of Science alumni
Members of the Executive Council of Quebec
Politicians from Montreal
Quebec Liberal Party MNAs
Women MNAs in Quebec
Members of the Order of Canada
20th-century Canadian women politicians
21st-century Canadian women politicians
Women government ministers of Canada
Ministers of finance of Quebec
Female finance ministers
20th-century members of the National Assembly of Quebec
21st-century members of the National Assembly of Quebec