(Quebec) For François Legault, the Liberal MP for Laval-des-Rapides, Saul Polo, who speaks Spanish at home, but who works and exchanges in French in the public space, it is “an anecdote”. Opposition parties now accuse the Prime Minister of inventing a crisis for electoral purposes when he claims that Quebec could become Louisiana if he does not control all the powers in immigration.
Posted at 12:33 p.m.
Updated at 4:20 p.m.
In a militant rally of the Coalition avenir Québec (CAQ), last weekend, Mr. Legault said he wanted a “strong mandate” in the election of October 3 in order to have a balance of power. facing the federal government to repatriate all powers in immigration. Ottawa has already said it will refuse his request.
“It’s a matter of survival for our nation!” “, he thundered, adding that “it may become a matter of time before we become a Louisiana” if the federal government admits in the categories it controls, such as family reunification, a large proportion of newcomers who do not speak French at home.
This declaration has since created a shock wave which resounded on Tuesday during the discussions at the Blue Room. “There is a trend and if we do nothing, in the long term, will it take 25, 50, 60 years, there is indeed a risk that Quebec will find itself in the same situation as the other Canadian provinces and that Louisiana”, reiterated Mr. Legault, who also took advantage of his platform to recall that the CAQ will send “a new check” to taxpayers, if elected, to counter the effects of inflation.
“It’s frankly nonsense”
For the leader of the Liberal Party, Dominique Anglade, the declarations of the Prime Minister, “it’s frankly nonsense”. During question period on Tuesday, she asked him if an MP like Saul Polo, a Quebecer of Colombian origin, was an obstacle to the development of Quebec and the protection of French.
“The Leader of the Official Opposition comes to us with an anecdote, an example of a person, but she refuses […] to see that in recent years, there are fewer and fewer Quebecers who have French as their common language, or as their main language at home,” replied Mr. Legault. The Prime Minister expressed concern that the proportion of Quebecers who speak French at home has been below 80% for several years.
“I refuse to accept the label that immigration is a threat to the nation of Quebec. […] My family and I are not an anecdote. I am a product of Bill 101. A proud Quebecer who speaks French. But at home, the Prime Minister doesn’t matter if I decide to speak Spanish to my boy, it’s none of his business,” replied Mr. Polo.
“My family and I are not a threat to the survival of Quebec. I come from non-francophone immigration. Today, I live in French even though my mother tongue is Arabic and I still speak it with my parents. It’s nothing exceptional, ”added Quebec Solidarity MP Ruba Ghazal, who was born in Lebanon.
“The prime minister should be proud of that too. Anyway, I’m proud of it. I am proud to belong to a people who have confidence in them to open their arms instead of pointing fingers,” she added.
The minister responsible for the French language, Simon Jolin-Barrette, who had just passed a reform of Bill 101, later affirmed that “the deputy for Mercier (Ruba Ghazal), the deputy for Laurier-Dorion (Andrés Fontecilla) , the MP for Laval-des-Rapides (Saul Polo) and the MP for Robert-Baldwin (Carlos J. Leitão) are models” and that we must “underline their choice to choose French, to integrate in French to Quebec society.
The CAQ defends itself
In the state of Louisiana, in the southern United States, French speakers represent less than 2% of the population. Comparing this state to Quebec, as François Legault did, is “impossible and faulty”, reacted in particular Joseph Dunn, entrepreneur in cultural tourism and former director general of the Council for the Development of French in Louisiana ( CODOFIL).
“French is back. Are we at the Louisiana stadium? No. But French is back, and it is linked to the current decisions of the CAQ, ”said Parti Québécois leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon on Tuesday.
Currently, Quebec selects its economic immigrants through the Quebec-Canada agreement of 1991. François Legault has pointed out in recent weeks that the proportion of immigrants who spoke French when they arrived in Quebec has increased since his party is in power.