(Quebec) Conservative activists opposed the resolution, which proposed cutting funding for the CBC and Radio-Canada.
Posted at 3:57pm.
According to La Presse, this resolution was thrown out during the workshops, which took place behind closed doors.
The resolution will therefore not be debated in the plenary session on Saturday, where delegates will be asked to vote on the resolutions to be part of the election manifesto.
Behind the scenes, Quebec delegates, led in particular by Conservative MP Pierre Paul-Hus, Pierre Poilievre’s political deputy in Quebec, led the push to block the resolution. That resolution read as follows: “We believe that the control and operation of the CBC/SRC as a unit should be ensured through independent, non-governmental funding.”
This resolution could have embarrassed boss Pierre Poilievre if it had been accepted by all delegates. The Conservative leader has never hidden his intention to cut funding to the CBC, but he has repeatedly expressed his intention to protect Radio-Canada.
PHOTO JACQUES BOISSINOT, THE CANADIAN PRESS
The Conservative leader has never hidden his intention to cut funding to the CBC, but he has repeatedly expressed his intention to protect Radio-Canada.
According to Pierre Paul-Hus, the rejection of this resolution is a major victory for Quebec Conservative members.
“I am very pleased that the Conservative Party of Canada delegates rejected this proposal. For Pierre Poilievre and the Quebec Caucus, it is clear that Radio-Canada must be protected and preserved. Radio-Canada is essential to Quebec and Canadian Francophonie. There is a lot to change at the CBC level. But CBC Radio is also important. Therefore, this request was not acceptable and I am glad that it was rejected,” Paul-Hus told La Presse.
The conservative party conference lasts until Saturday. Pierre Poilievre is expected to give a speech on Friday evening.
This conference comes at a time when numerous polls released over the last three months show the Conservative Party with a large lead.
A poll by the firm Abacus Data released Thursday morning, on the first day of the party’s convention, found the Conservative Party has 40% of voting intentions nationwide, compared to 26% for the Liberal Party and 19% for the NDP. In Quebec, the Bloc Québécois gets 30% support, versus 28% for the Liberal Party and 25% for the Conservative Party. According to Abacus Data, the NDP in Belle province has to be content with 12%. Such a push would allow Pierre Poilievre to win a majority seat.