(Quebec) The Minister of Higher Education, Danielle McCann, promises to amend Bill 32 which tells universities how to protect academic freedom in order to “rally everyone”.
Posted at 12:35 p.m.
“If it is necessary to improve the bill, we will certainly do so. But on the principle of protecting academic freedom and ending self-censorship, we are adamant: there will be no compromise,” said Ms.me McCann on Tuesday as she faces criticism from academia that denounces parts of the bill.
Among the problematic elements, article 6 of bill 32 was frequently cited as an example on this first day of public hearings in parliament. This article provides, among other things, that the Minister of Higher Education may “order” universities to provide any element that she indicates to protect academic freedom.
In the morning, the Quebec Student Union (UEQ) opposed it, recalling that it was quite simply against the adoption of a law. The National Federation of Quebec Teachers (FNEEQ-CSN) supports the government’s legislative approach, but refuses to see the state intervene so directly in the management of universities.
For Liberal MP Hélène David, former vice-rector at the University of Montreal, “this bill is of the greatest importance, [car] it’s like reopening the Canadian constitution, nothing less”.
“Each word counts, each absence of a word has serious consequences, each measure has its share of issues. […] It will be a balancing act. […] Listen, reflect, dialogue, find the best compromises. Otherwise, it is towards a total failure that we are heading, ”she warned on Tuesday. Alexandre Leduc, of Québec solidaire, for his part affirmed that the first version of the project does not deserve the passing mark.
The stakes will be high for Minister McCann if she wishes to enthusiastically pass her Bill 32 by the end of the parliamentary session, in a month. Some stakeholders, including rectors, would rather see Quebec letting the bill die on the order paper.
The FNEEQ also recalled on Tuesday that the protection of academic freedom is not limited to the content that is taught in class. The union, which represents lecturers, is proposing, among other things, that the Minister legislate on the question of the duty of loyalty to their employer, so that the teaching staff can be free to criticize at any time the university in which they teach, precisely in the name of academic freedom.