Quebec legislature opening delayed again, now to Dec. 1

Quebec Premier Paul St-Pierre Plamondon’s government has delayed the opening of the new National Assembly session a second time, to Dec. 1, nearly two months after the Oct. 5 election.

The premier’s office confirmed the new date to CTV News on Wednesday, CTV Montreal reported. The session was first set for Nov. 17, and the government had already moved it back one week. La Presse also reported the Dec. 1 date. The premier’s office did not immediately say why the session was pushed back again.

The change leaves little time for legislative work before the Christmas break. Dec. 1 is 57 days after the vote that gave the Parti Québécois a minority government with 59 seats, five short of a majority.

Opposition parties objected. Liberal parliamentary leader André Fortin had urged the government earlier Wednesday not to delay a second time, citing health-care access, the cost of living, affordable housing and the economic slowdown. He said any further delay was unthinkable and asked the government to confirm a Nov. 24 start.

Québec solidaire co-spokesperson Ruba Ghazal said on social media that voters elected members to work, not so the government could keep delaying the session (translated from French). Conservative parliamentary leader Maité Blanchette Vézina said Quebecers expect their government to get back to work without waiting two months, and asked what the point of the transition committee was if the government was still not ready (translated from French).

The timing of the opening has been tied to a dispute over the monarchy. St-Pierre Plamondon has said he wants to abolish the office of the lieutenant-governor, whose duties include opening the legislature, and has said he wants to keep Lt.-Gov. Manon Jeannotte from attending the opening ceremony. The Liberals said Wednesday that the Assembly’s rules require the lieutenant-governor to deliver an address at the opening, and that delaying the session over her attendance would be unacceptable. Conservative leader Éric Duhaime proposed that Jeannotte deliver her address from her office, with the speech broadcast in the Salon bleu.

A court is also weighing whether the session can legitimately begin before all members swear the oath to the King. A judge is expected to rule soon on an injunction request against a 2022 law that made the oath optional. A lawyer argued the session cannot validly open until every member swears it, and the Quebec attorney general opposes the injunction. We reported on that court challenge last month.

The lieutenant-governor also skipped the cabinet swearing-in at the premier’s request, and the PQ cabinet took office on Oct. 21. The government’s first priorities were set out in our look at the PQ’s first 100 days.

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