(Quebec) A more nationalistic turn is emerging among the Liberals, an attempt that has been abandoned in recent years due to internal disagreements.
Posted at 5:00 p.m.
The Committee to Revive the Quebec Liberal Party (PLQ) is bringing back the project of a Quebec constitution, recommending that Ottawa retain control over temporary immigration and proposing to transform the Senate into the Chamber of the Provinces.
Without denying its history and values, “the Quebec Liberal Party must represent a bold, inclusive and unifying nationalism,” the committee writes in its report, obtained by La Presse and published on Thursday. Above all, he presents a “project to reaffirm” Quebec.
Parliamentarians took note of this 80-page document, entitled “Affirm, Unite, Prosper: A Liberal Project for All Quebecers” on Wednesday afternoon.
Created in March, five months after the PLQ’s electoral debacle, the committee was tasked with consulting activists who have been neglected in recent years and proposing “lines of reflection” to rebuild the party and re-engage with Quebecers – not just the French-speaking majority, he emphasizes.
Its co-presidents are André Pratte, former senator and former La Presse columnist, and MP Madwa-Nika Cadet.
“The liberal approach to bringing Quebecers together is based on four pillars: French as a cement of Quebec identity and social cohesion, interculturalism as a model of integration and coexistence, liberal pluralistic secularism and research partnerships with First Nations and Inuit,” he concludes.
“Quiet the debate”
The Committee believes that the PLQ should consider adopting a law on interculturalism – as opposed to Canadian multiculturalism – as a model for the integration of newcomers and the development of cultural diversity. “To calm the debate,” he recommends setting up a committee of independent experts responsible for measuring Quebec’s absorption capacity before developing immigration thresholds.
“It is true that there is legitimate concern about the future of the French language and culture in Quebec today. We do not avoid this observation and propose here paths of reflection rooted in the Liberal heritage and aimed at bringing all citizens together around the Quebec identity,” he explains.
In this sense, the committee proposes a “deep reform of French teaching” and “strong measures” to encourage companies to “intensify the presence of French in their workplaces”.
According to the committee, “the application of laws that disregard the rights of Quebecers, as well as the hostility towards immigration expressed by certain politicians” are invariably described by Liberal activists as detrimental to the protection of the French. This is a reference to the Legault government.
Which nationalism?
The committee concludes that activists “take pride in liberal values” and that we must not “abandon these principles through opportunism or populism.” The PLQ “remains the only authentically federalist party in the National Assembly.” But it is also a “nationalist party” and it must prove this, the committee argues.
In May, during a general meeting of the PLQ, nationalists publicly declared that they were running out of strength within the party, which caused a stir. One young activist used a shocking formula: “Being a nationalist in the PLQ is like being a PQ in D’Arcy-McGee”, a constituency in the “West Island”.
During consultations with activists, “some may have shied away from calling themselves nationalists because they believe this concept is at odds with diversity,” the committee said. “For them, inclusive liberal nationalism and the resulting interculturalism make it possible to balance the defense of individual rights and freedoms with the affirmation of Quebec’s distinctiveness. Many have also called on us to reappropriate and highlight emblems and expressions of Quebec identity, such as Fleurdelisé and the national day. »
There is no break with the traditional credo of the PLQ in the committee report. “We must be proud to be Quebecers, proud to be Canadians, and continue to prioritize the defense and promotion of Quebec’s interests within the Canadian federation,” he concludes. And he insists: “The Liberal Party of Quebec has always defended Quebec’s interests first and foremost and will continue to do so.”
For the committee, Quebec today must face three challenges “if it wants to assert itself”: “fighting economic and social retreat, maintaining its political weight in Canada and making the right use of the levers offered by Canadian federalism.” He would like to respond to this with his “affirmation project”.
The committee therefore recommends making progress outside of Canada’s constitution and amending the country’s founding text. We should “not be afraid of tensions with the federal government without trying to exacerbate them,” he said.
Constitution
The committee presents the adoption of a Quebec constitution as a “strong gesture of national affirmation.” “It would be an essential basis for securing Quebec’s cultural and linguistic vitality and its political weight,” without “a confrontation with the federal government or the others “Provinces” to mean.
This document “was intended to confirm the existence of Quebec as a nation within the Canadian Federation, the status of French as an official and common language, the fundamental rights and freedoms of Quebecers and the contribution of cultural communities.” The existing rights of the English-speaking community to education and health services in English language and control over its institutions should be clearly recognized in the Quebec constitution. This should also recognize the rights of the First Nations of Quebec and the Inuit. »
Under Dominique Anglade, the PLQ had flirted with the idea of proposing a constitution for Quebec. The former Liberal leader had also proposed an interculturality law. It was stated that the party under Philippe Couillard was not nationalistic enough. However, internal disagreements led to these ideas being abandoned.
In recent years it has been reported that Justice Minister Simon Jolin-Barrette is working on a constitution for Quebec. It is a project that has been in the works for decades.
Negotiations with Ottawa
For the committee, a Liberal government should “work with Ottawa to clarify the Gagnon-Tremblay-McDougall agreement to extend the Quebec government’s jurisdiction to admit all temporary foreign workers.”
The committee also suggests negotiating with Ottawa to establish a unified tax relationship.
It would be a “long-term work, especially since there is very little interest in the issue in the country,” but Quebec should propose revisiting the Canadian Constitution to reform the Senate.
The Upper House was to become a house of the provinces “in which representatives of the provincial and territorial parliaments would sit, so that the provinces and territories would participate directly in the federal legislative process and in the administration of the Canadian federation.” This house should include representatives of the First Nations and the Inuit include. »
“Granting Quebec a number of seats commensurate with its historical demographic weight (the 25% threshold would be the acceptable minimum) would preserve Quebec’s status and the influence it enjoys in organization and governance.” even strengthened the Canadian association. » argues the committee.
Should constitutional negotiations one day occur, the PLQ would demand other changes, namely “Quebec’s traditional demands” from the failed Meech Lake Agreement.
The PLQ Revitalization Committee will present its report to liberal activists on Saturday during the party’s general meeting. At this meeting, the rules for the leadership competition and the date of the congress are determined.
41 “Reflection Lines”
The committee proposes 41 lines of thought, including:
- Pass inflation protection and housing affordability legislation
- Seriously consider introducing a new method of voting – preferential rather than proportional
- Increase funding for schools and promote the role of teachers
- Promote the idea of a minimum income from activity that the Quebec government would pay to every person whose income is below a set threshold
- Hold a summit on Quebec’s economic, social and environmental future
- Include the right to a healthy environment in the fundamental rights of the Quebec Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms
- Approve any natural resource exploitation project on the condition that it is part of a government strategy or contributes to achieving Quebec’s environmental goals
- Implement a real national industrial strategy that includes green transition and artificial intelligence
- Promote new free trade agreements with countries in Asia and Africa
- Creation of autonomous bodies for each region responsible for developing a regional economic and social development plan
- Initiate a cultural change in the public service in collaboration with trade union organizations to “put the State of Quebec at the service of the people more than ever”
- Reform the labor market to address labor shortages, such as tax-free overtime and reimbursing the tax credit for seniors who extend their careers