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Analysis

It’s going to hurt in the short term but will be worth it in the end.

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Premier Philippe Couillard Wednesday made good on his pledge to shift Quebec onto the austerity track to fight a public finance disaster that — unchecked — will eventually threaten everything.

But for some observers it was Couillard’s take about diversity instead of fearing it after last year’s divisive debates that hit home in a good way.

“You noticed I applauded when he said diversity is not a danger, it’s a wealth,” Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre said in an interview with The Gazette. “That was amazing.

“That speech is an antidote against morosity and cynicism. I’m very pleased.”

Coderre, accompanied by his new best buddy, Quebec City Mayor Régis Labeaume, was in the dignitaries “chicken coop” of the National Assembly to hear Couillard’s inaugural speech opening the 41st legislature in Quebec’s history.

Sixty minutes long and heavy on the sober side, the speech was a reflection of Couillard’s Cartesian nature in the face of what looms.