We were flabbergasted. The sentence uttered by the Premier of a friendly province, like a poisoned arrow, circled our heads several times. The conversation over, Lucien Bouchard told us, to his few advisers: “Never repeat what you have just heard. We were certain, like him, that if it became known, the reputation of the author of these words would not recover.
The issue was the same as today: was the federal government going to increase its health funding? We were in February 1999. Jean Chrétien’s government had made the provinces pay for its own return to zero deficit and was now heading towards surpluses. Not us. A coalition had formed to demand an increase in transfers. Bouchard was not, at first, in the coalition. He feared that Ottawa would interfere in the jurisdiction of the provinces in health in exchange for additional funding.
The other provinces made him an offer he could not refuse. If the federal government created new programs or set new conditions, Quebec would obtain the right to opt out with compensation. Money, but with no strings attached. Bouchard could not refuse. The prime ministers talked to each other frequently. Like that day, the day before the federal-provincial meeting. The Premier of Alberta, the fiery Ralph Klein, wanted to talk to us. Klein was the Regis Labeaume of the West. Direct, talkative, colorful. Along with Ontario, Alberta was historically the strongest ally.
Bouchard activated hands-free mode. We, the Quebec separatists, were obviously always the last informed. The amount Ottawa was willing to put into health care seemed larger than expected, Klein reported. Of how many ? He said he didn’t know. But, in exchange for the promised jackpot, Ottawa wanted to sign a document called social union. Far from incorporating Quebec’s claim, it provided a legal basis for Canada’s claim: recognition of its right to spend in areas of provincial jurisdiction. A permit for interference.
Dear Ralph, said Bouchard, how do you react to the federal proposal? And Ralph to launch: “ Show me the money ! To hell with powers, what I want is money! There was not the slightest inhibition in these words, not the slightest awareness that he was thus pulverizing the entire balance of power built up over months. The phrase was made famous by the movie jerry maguirewhere Tom Cruise plays an agent of sportsmen obsessed with money rather than sports.
It was felt that Klein was likely to come to his senses, that such an unprincipled position could not survive the light of day. We made Bouchard a promise to protect the Albertan’s reputation to the grave.
The next day, when asked by reporters about his negotiation strategy, Klein thundered into the microphones: “ Show me the money ! Which released us from our vow of silence. But would the rest of the coalition hold? And bring Klein in line? How many billions had Christian promised to secure his surrender?
The president of what was not yet called the Council of the Federation was Roy Romanow from Saskatchewan. He summoned Bouchard to his hotel in Ottawa to tell him that, as a representative of the provinces, he supported the federal proposal 150%. He told her that he had spoken to the colleagues to convince them of this as well. The die was cast. Quebec was dropped, isolated.
In 1981, Romanow was Saskatchewan’s Minister of Justice and as such had negotiated the rallying of the provinces to the patriation of the Constitution, to the detriment of Quebec. As on that night in 1981, Romanow was, in 1999, Chrétien’s agent in the house of the provinces. The instrument of Quebec’s isolation.
Wouldn’t there be a single old ally ready to support us? Glen Clark of British Columbia called Bouchard to test the waters. Was another prime minister supporting him? Bouchard replied that, for the moment, there was none, but that he would be happy to have his support. The latter replied that he could not, politically, be alone in supporting Quebec. You understand. Bouchard understood very well. He led a separatist government. The enemy within.
The following day, the prime ministers were invited to 24 Sussex. Chretien served the soup. We were convinced that he had made known in advance to the other provinces the amount that they were going to collect and that we ourselves were going to know the tariff agreed by our allies of yesterday to give up their provincial virginity in the new Social Union . But we discovered, in disbelief, that neither during lunch nor before had Chretien given any figures. He had obtained the provinces’ signature on the expansion of the federal spending power without having shown the end of his wallet.
Canadian history stutters. The recent and grim round of negotiations has an air of deja vu. François Legault and company learned a posteriori that a pillar of their coalition, the Ontarian Doug Ford, had smoked the cigar in August at the chalet of Dominic Leblanc, the minister henchman of Justin Trudeau in the operation. The day after the meeting where Trudeau announced he would deliver only one-sixth of the provinces’ claim, Ford and Leblanc smoked another.
Then Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland publicly praised Ford for helping with the case. We better understand the tunes of beaten dogs and the demobilization of the members of the coalition when we integrate this central fact: Ontario was a mole of Ottawa. Canada is a casino where the house wins every time.
Father and author, Jean-François Lisée is a supporter of independence (ex-leader of the PQ), ecology, social democracy and a sense of humor!
[email protected]; blog: jflisee.org