Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet visited francophone communities in New Brunswick this week — the first visit by a Bloc leader to the officially bilingual province in 13 years. But he insists it’s not a sign the sovereigntist party is setting its sights beyond Quebec.
“We believe that the best way for Quebec to promote its own future is through sovereignty. If we want Quebec to be a country, we cannot pretend to have candidates or MPs from outside of Quebec, which absolutely would be illogical,” Blanchet told CBC News.
“But if we can be of help to any community who needs support in Parliament or otherwise, I will be the first to say we will be there to help those people.”
How that help might materialize is not clear. Blanchet was in the province from Monday to Thursday morning. His official itinerary had him meeting with a number of francophone mayors and community groups — including the Société Acadienne du Nouveau Brunswick (SANB). He also took part in the province’s Fête Nationale de l’Acadie celebrations on August 15.
The official National Acadian Day ceremony and Grand Tintamarre was held in Dieppe, N.B. on Aug. 15. (Emmanuelle Robinson/Radio-Canada)
In 2021, in the dying days of the federal election campaign, Blanchet had a meeting planned with the SANB. He called off his visit to New Brunswick after the SANB cancelled the meeting and asserted publicly that Blanchet did not represent the province’s Acadians.
“The Bloc is not and must not be the voice of Acadians in Ottawa,” the group wrote in a media statement. “Only Acadians can speak in the name of l’Acadie.”
The SANB never offered a clear explanation for the meeting’s cancellation, although it did say it wasn’t due to outside pressure but was something its board and president decided together.
At the time, Blanchet accused unnamed Acadian elected officials of torpedoing the meeting, saying they had raised complaints with the SANB.
In 2021, Bernard Thériault, mayor of Caraquet, N.B. and a former provincial Liberal minister, said it was inappropriate for the SANB to meet with a political party that has no representation in New Brunswick.
Blanchet said he does not pretend to represent anyone outside of Quebec.
“On many issues we have been the voice for those people, because we offered them to convey the word they wanted to be conveyed in Parliament,” he said. “But I would never pretend to represent people of New Brunswick or anywhere outside Quebec.
“I realize that in the past, for some time, Quebecers or authorities in Quebec were not so open toward French communities outside of Quebec. But this is something that has changed and we want to be part of this different way.”
A message for voters back home?
One political analyst suggested Blanchet may have gone to New Brunswick to send a message to voters in his own province — that the Bloc is ready to defend French language rights outside of Quebec.
“He’s doing that for his home audience,” said Daniel Béland, political scientist and director of the McGill Institute for the Study of Canada. “He’s sending the message to his supporters.
“You can tell people, ‘Look, I’m going even outside of Quebec to show support for francophones because this is something that you should do as a francophone Quebecer.'”
He pointed out that the Bloc was the Liberal Party’s only real rival in Quebec in the last two federal election campaigns.
“Language is a key political issue in Quebec,” Béland said, “and the Liberals have to understand that they need to … emphasize the idea that they want to protect French … not just in Quebec but outside of Quebec.”
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau meets with Bloc Quebecois leader Yves-Francois Blanchet on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Nov. 13, 2019. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press)
Though recent polls show the Conservatives gaining ground nationally at the Liberals’ expense, that hasn’t been a factor yet in Quebec, where Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appears to be in a dead heat with Blanchet.
In June, Abacus Data found some 30 per cent of Quebec voters would cast their ballots for the Liberals, putting them in a virtual tie with the Bloc at 32 per cent.
“Perhaps his ultimate goal is to make the Bloc more palatable to Canadians outside of Quebec,” said Abacus CEO David Coletto.
“If we’re in a perpetual minority government situation, if the Bloc is going to be seen as able to achieve things and work with whichever parties are in power, maybe it needs a better reputation outside of Quebec.”
But if Blanchet’s goal is to convince the Liberals he’s making a play for New Brunswick, that message may not be getting through, said a former staffer at the Prime Minister’s Office.
“I would be surprised if any of the three other parties are paying much attention to this or find it troubling, problematic,” said Jonathan Kalles, who used to work for Trudeau as a Quebec adviser.
Quebec Premier Francois Legault, left, congratulates Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau on his federal election victory in September 2021. (Graham Hughes/The Canadian Press)
Kalles said Blanchet may be trying to redefine himself beyond echoing the political messages of Quebec Premier François Legault in Ottawa.
“François Legault has been having basically a détente with the Liberal government in Ottawa over the last number of months,” he said. “They’re not right now in a particularly antagonistic moment.
“[Blanchet] wants to play a role as the leading voice of the Quebec separatists, of Quebec nationalists, of defenders of the French language.”
The Prime Minister’s Office declined to comment for this story.
The last Bloc leader to visit New Brunswick was Gilles Duceppe in 2010.
Quebec legislature member Youri Chassin has announced he’s leaving the Coalition Avenir Québec government to sit as an Independent.
He announced the decision shortly after writing an open letter criticizing Premier François Legault’s government for abandoning its principles of smaller government.
In the letter published in Le Journal de Montréal and Le Journal de Québec, Chassin accused the party of falling back on what he called the old formula of throwing money at problems instead of looking to do things differently.
Chassin says public services are more fragile than ever, despite rising spending that pushed the province to a record $11-billion deficit projected in the last budget.
He is the second CAQ member to leave the party in a little more than one week, after economy and energy minister Pierre Fitzgibbon announced Sept. 4 he would leave because he lost motivation to do his job.
Chassin says he has no intention of joining another party and will instead sit as an Independent until the end of his term.
He has represented the Saint-Jérôme riding since the CAQ rose to power in 2018, but has not served in cabinet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
MONTREAL – NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh says he will not be taking advice from Pierre Poilievre after the Conservative leader challenged him to bring down government.
“I say directly to Pierre Poilievre: I’m not going to listen to you,” said Singh on Wednesday, accusing Poilievre of wanting to take away dental-care coverage from Canadians, among other things.
“I’m not going to listen to your advice. You want to destroy people’s lives, I want to build up a brighter future.”
Earlier in the day, Poilievre challenged Singh to commit to voting non-confidence in the government, saying his party will force a vote in the House of Commons “at the earliest possibly opportunity.”
“I’m asking Jagmeet Singh and the NDP to commit unequivocally before Monday’s byelections: will they vote non-confidence to bring down the costly coalition and trigger a carbon tax election, or will Jagmeet Singh sell out Canadians again?” Poilievre said.
“It’s put up or shut up time for the NDP.”
While Singh rejected the idea he would ever listen to Poilievre, he did not say how the NDP would vote on a non-confidence motion.
“I’ve said on any vote, we’re going to look at the vote and we’ll make our decision. I’m not going to say our decision ahead of time,” he said.
Singh’s top adviser said on Tuesday the NDP leader is not particularly eager to trigger an election, even as the Conservatives challenge him to do just that.
Anne McGrath, Singh’s principal secretary, says there will be more volatility in Parliament and the odds of an early election have risen.
“I don’t think he is anxious to launch one, or chomping at the bit to have one, but it can happen,” she said in an interview.
New Democrat MPs are in a second day of meetings in Montreal as they nail down a plan for how to navigate the minority Parliament this fall.
The caucus retreat comes one week after Singh announced the party has left the supply-and-confidence agreement with the governing Liberals.
It’s also taking place in the very city where New Democrats are hoping to pick up a seat on Monday, when voters go to the polls in Montreal’s LaSalle—Émard—Verdun. A second byelection is being held that day in the Winnipeg riding of Elmwood—Transcona, where the NDP is hoping to hold onto a seat the Conservatives are also vying for.
While New Democrats are seeking to distance themselves from the Liberals, they don’t appear ready to trigger a general election.
Singh signalled on Tuesday that he will have more to say Wednesday about the party’s strategy for the upcoming sitting.
He is hoping to convince Canadians that his party can defeat the federal Conservatives, who have been riding high in the polls over the last year.
Singh has attacked Poilievre as someone who would bring back Harper-style cuts to programs that Canadians rely on, including the national dental-care program that was part of the supply-and-confidence agreement.
The Canadian Press has asked Poilievre’s office whether the Conservative leader intends to keep the program in place, if he forms government after the next election.
With the return of Parliament just days away, the NDP is also keeping in mind how other parties will look to capitalize on the new makeup of the House of Commons.
The Bloc Québécois has already indicated that it’s written up a list of demands for the Liberals in exchange for support on votes.
The next federal election must take place by October 2025 at the latest.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante is defending her decision to turn off comments on her social media accounts — with an announcement on social media.
She posted screenshots to X this morning of vulgar names she’s been called on the platform, and says comments on her posts for months have been dominated by insults, to the point that she decided to block them.
Montreal’s Opposition leader and the Canadian Civil Liberties Association have criticized Plante for limiting freedom of expression by restricting comments on her X and Instagram accounts.
They say elected officials who use social media should be willing to hear from constituents on those platforms.
However, Plante says some people may believe there is a fundamental right to call someone offensive names and to normalize violence online, but she disagrees.
Her statement on X is closed to comments.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2024.
