Press release
The project for two university medical complexes in Montreal :
a decisive step has just been taken
Montreal, June 23, 2004 On behalf of its 7,000 members, the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal is happy to announce that today, Philippe Couillard, Quebec Minister of Health and Social Services, has greenlighted the construction of new facilities for the Université de Montréal hospital centre and the McGill University Health Centre.
By approving the guidelines that will form the basis for the construction of the two university medical centres, the Government of Quebec is fully meeting the project's stated execution schedule. In our opinion, this is a giant development in terms of supporting areas of growth such as health and biotechnology, stated Benoit Labonté, president and CEO of the Board of Trade, In this respect, it is important to note that today's announcement will quickly translate into concrete, planned actions, without in the process jeopardizing the thoroughness, financial realism and supervisory needs that are essential to the success of a project of this scale.
The construction of these two university medical centres is a crucial strategic and catalyzing investment that will result in additional benefits of $1 billion over and above the government investment of $1.6 billion necessary to build them, for a total contribution to Quebec 's economy of over $2.6 billion, a large portion of which is in the Greater Montreal area. This is undoubtedly a major investment on the government's part, but it also promises to attract, develop and retain expertise in training, biomedical research and state-of-the-art health care in Montreal and Quebec. In this respect, it is fitting to recognize the duality of effort required by Minister Couillard to build both university medical centres, which, in the Board's opinion, represents a decisive success factor, continued Benoit Labonté.
Approval for the execution of this seminal project is all the more important in that it enables the Board to send a clear message to the Shriners, who plan on investing $100 million in the construction of a new wing for their hospital in Canada. With the upcoming construction of the new hospital for the McGill University Health Centre, the Shriners may then be confident that, in years to come, they can count on talented and experienced Montreal practitioners who are backed by facilities that are at the forefront of science, added Labonté.
The Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal has some 7,000 members. Its mission is to represent the interests of Metropolitan Montreal 's business community and provide an integrated range of specialized services for individuals, merchants and companies large and small so as to support them in realizing their full potential in innovativeness, productivity and competitiveness. The Board is the largest private economic development organization in Quebec.
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Information:
Julie Desjardins
Agent, Communications
Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal
Tel.: (514) 871-4000 ext. 4008
julie.desjardins@ccmm.qc.ca