SHERBROOKE, Que. — Premier Bernard Landry looks more like an opposition leader than a head of government as he scrambles to find an issue to derail the Liberals, Jean Charest said Thursday.

The Liberal leader was reacting to renewed attacks by the Parti Quebecois on a proposal to allow newly formed mega-cities to hold referendums to undo municipal mergers. "I expect Mr. Landry to be aggressive all of a sudden," he said. "You sort of have to wonder where he was during (Monday's leaders') debate, though."

Landry suggested Thursday that the Liberal plan would flood Quebecers with referendums. Charest was also targeted by Action democratique Leader Mario Dumont, who didn't bring up the mergers but dismissed Liberal candidates as "flowerpots."

Charest suggested Landry was "looking for an issue" but hasn't picked a good one.

"He's asking us to withdraw legislation we haven't even acted on yet," Charest said while campaigning in his Sherbrooke riding. "He's acting like someone who's already in opposition."

Opposition wasn't on Charest's mind Thursday as he confirmed a transition team was set up a year ago to prepare for a possible Liberal government.

He insisted he isn't being overconfident and is in fact humble after five years as Opposition leader.

Landry dismissed the Liberals' transition team and said he's not running scared.

"I don't feel threatened but I know we have to work," he said in Mirabel. "Maybe they feel threatened, though."

Charest also produced government documents to prove the Liberals could pay for their campaign promises if elected. Charest identified $3 billion that could be recouped through better management of such things as tax credits and reallocation of budgets.

Landry raised the merger referendum issue a few weeks ago in Sherbrooke, when he suggested Charest could benefit from tax breaks on his home in Montreal's Westmount borough if the mega-city broke up.

On Thursday, he seemed to use it as a response to Charest's contentions that the PQ has a hidden agenda to quickly hold a referendum on sovereignty if re-elected.

"In my case, I'm talking about one referendum," Landry said.

"And there will be one if I have the moral assurance to win it. Otherwise, there won't be any. It's one or zero. In the case of Mr. Charest, a possibility of more than 200."

Later, Landry also defended subsidies and tax credits for businesses in Quebec, insisting they have allowed the province to have a "crushing supremacy" in several economic sectors.

Landry was reacting to an analysis by Radio-Canada, which said Quebec gave $16 billion to business between 1995 and 2000- five times more than the government of Ontario - to little effect.

Landry disputed the report, saying Ontario and Quebec account for their annual spending in different ways.

Landry maintained that "intelligent intervention" of the PQ government has allowed Quebec to pass Ontario in several economic sectors, including research and development.

"We have a crushing supremacy and we should judge the tree by its fruit," he said. "We have succeeded. Unemployment didn't drop from 14 per cent to eight per cent for nothing."

In the ADQ camp, leader Mario Dumont was kept busy trying to quell reports that he was at odds with star candidate Pierre Bourque.

Bourque, the former mayor of Montreal, looked visibly ill at ease when he stood in the shadows earlier this week at what was the ADQ's largest gathering of the campaign.

When asked later about his low profile during the campaign, Bourque replied: "That's a good question. I don't know how to answer. I had to do my duty and this is where I was requested to go."

It would not be the first example of problems within the ADQ. The party had potential candidates withdraw before the campaign began and had two riding associations quit.

Dumont said there is no rift with Bourque.

"People are trying to fabricate something out of nothing," he said. "Nothing in the game plan has changed."

Instead, he drew a bead on Charest and his candidates, calling them window dressing.

"Jean Charest is hiding his team," Dumont said while visiting Les Mechins, on the south shore of the St. Lawrence River in eastern Quebec.

"The members of Jean Charest's team are flowerpots."