Disappointment was in the Montreal air in the hours after the Gallant Commission report into the SAAQclic fiasco was made public.
The report found the Société de l’assurance automobile du Québec (SAAQ) “lied” to government authorities by providing them with “misleading” information in order to “conceal” the increased costs of its digital transformation – from $660 million to $1.1 billion.
That’s one of the main conclusions of the 586-page report presented Monday by Judge Denis Gallant, who chaired the public inquiry into the SAAQclic fiasco.
Commissioner Denis Gallant unveils his report on SAAQclic, in Quebec City on Monday, February 16, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jacques Boissinot
“It’s a lot of money,” Richard told CityNews. “Could have much been better used, you know, working within society.”
“Disappointment,” added Gilles. “Disappointment in communication, disappointment in timing, obviously disappointment in cost.”
“I’m just disgusted, that’s all,” said Westmount’s Don McGrath. “Disgusted with the way this province is run.”
Westmount’s Don McGrath is calling for more transparency after the SAAQclic fiasco. Pictured here Feb. 16, 2026. (Gareth Madoc-Jones, CityNews)
Montrealers also shared with CityNews a desire for more transparency from government.
“This whole thing feeds into the larger question of where our taxes go in general, and also questions of government transparency of which I think has been very, very little,” McGrath said.
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“It was a fiasco for sure, and it impacted a lot of people, including myself, that had a lot of difficulty getting their licence organized,” said Gilles.
“I tried to go on SAAQclic on several occasions during the transition period, and there were huge delays, and it was a very trying time to work working on the government websites,” Richard said.
Gilles tells CityNews he was directly impacted by the SAAQclic fiasco. Pictured here Feb. 16, 2026. (Gareth Madoc-Jones, CityNews)
While the Gallant report pointed the finger at the SAAQ for allegedly lying to government authorities about the increased costs of the digital transformation, political analyst Karim Boulos suggests the government could have done more to ensure the cost of the SAAQ’s modernization had better oversight.
“Now, whether it was the Liberals or the CAQ, one started it, one finished it, although it’s not finished,” Boulos said. “It doesn’t absolve anybody of responsibility of oversight. This is an oversight question, and taking information at face value is not acceptable.”
Boulos also suggests the Gallant report’s recommendation to create a new division to oversee public projects could just be another layer of bureaucracy
“So I don’t think adding more administration is the way,” he said. “I think it comes down to training the elected officials and making them understand that it’s nice to have your face on a poster, nice to get elected, nice to get a pension at the end of it, but you’ve got a job to do while you’re there. And your only job is to ensure that the people in place are responsible for the work that they’ve been assigned. That’s your only responsibility. That’s all.”
Montrealers are hoping to see more accountability from government.
“It just can’t go to over a billion without management knowing, management or elected officials,” said Gilles.
“Obviously, I think that those in charge should have accountability, and that means their own remunerations,” said Westmount’s Caroline Jondahl. “This can’t go on.”
“It seems absolutely incredible that this would have happened without the knowledge of that being happening in the ministries,” added André Garneau.
Montreal’s André Garneau tells CityNews his feelings about the SAAQclic fiasco, Feb. 16, 2026. (Gareth Madoc-Jones, CityNews)