The Quebec election campaign started on August 28th. From the next day and until September 2nd, the Canadian Federation of Independent Businesses (CFIB) surveyed 787 local executives of small and medium-sized businesses to find out their top expectations of the parties vying for their vote.

The results of this survey were published today.

Not surprisingly, the implementation of measures to combat labor shortages tops the SME “shopping list” at 77%. Reducing paperwork comes second, attracting interest from 68% of respondents.

Improving the tax system for SMEs (64%), fighting inflation (56%) and reducing public services (52%) complete the top 5.

“We have felt a wind of solidarity from the public and authorities to help our small businesses during the pandemic. SMEs are facing major challenges today. They face rising costs while being held back by labor shortages. Meanwhile, they also have to bear the burden of unfavorable taxation and heavy paperwork,” said François Vincent, vice president for Quebec at the CFIB.

According to him, it is important that the interests of SMEs are at the heart of political party platforms.

The survey reveals a certain pessimism among businesspeople in this regard, with 69% of respondents not convinced that political parties will pay enough attention to their economic issues during the election campaign.

“When we see the doubts of the majority of Quebec entrepreneurs, it is all the more important to use the rest of the campaign to talk about their priorities,” concludes Mr. Vincent.