(Ottawa) The government of Justin Trudeau tabled a bill on Thursday that will prevent the number of seats for Quebec in the House of Commons from going from 78 to 77, but the Bloc Québécois is unhappy since other provinces will still see an increase in their deputies.
Updated yesterday at 7:03 p.m.
Bill C-14 provides that no province will be able to suffer a reduction in its number of seats by means of a “grandfather clause”, explained the Quebec lieutenant of the Liberals, Pablo Rodriguez, in an interview with La Canadian Press.
“In the future, Quebec will be able to increase its population at the level of immigration (or) at the level of birth and there (the province) will be able to increase its number of seats”, said the one who worked on this project of legislation sponsored by the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, Dominic LeBlanc.
Bill C-14 does not prevent Ontario and British Columbia from gaining one seat and Alberta from receiving three more, as provided for in Elections Canada’s redistricting plan tabled in the last fall. The total number of seats is expected to increase from 338 to 342.
The Bloc Québécois therefore criticizes the Liberals for reducing Quebec’s political weight, especially since they voted to reject any such scenario by supporting a motion passed in the Commons.
“You don’t need to have a doctorate in mathematics to know that when you have 78 seats out of 338, your percentage, your relative weight, is stronger than if you go to 78 deputies out of (more) seats! “Launched the leader in the House of Bloc Québécois, Alain Therrien, in a press scrum.
He added a layer of it during question period. “Basically there, it’s not that they stall us in the bath. They just make the water rise very quietly, ”he quipped.
Mr. Rodriguez replied that, on the contrary, the Liberals are proposing a solution “today, immediately, to guarantee the political weight of Quebec”.
“Me, as a Quebec lieutenant, from day one, I put my fist on the table and said ‘No way! Quebec will not lose a seat”. We worked on it and we found a way to do it,” said the Minister in an interview.
The number of seats is adjusted by the Chief Electoral Officer every 10 years and takes demographics into account. This time, Quebec would be the only province to lose a seat unless C-14 passes.
Disagreements over approach
The Bloc Québécois introduced its own bill to maintain Quebec’s representation at a minimum of 25%.
“The only way for Quebec to protect its political weight is to have a calculation that is established as a percentage. It is essential,” insisted Mr. Therrien.
But in the eyes of the Liberals, such a proposal would require triggering a round of constitutional negotiations since they believe that the consent of seven provinces with 50% of the votes is required.
“The Bloc Québécois, all it wants to do is open the Constitution and engage in bickering. That’s just good for the ripped shirt industry! “, pestered Mr. Rodriguez in the House.
He then told The Canadian Press that he relied on the advice of Privy Council officials as well as experts on election law and the Constitution.
Asked about the need to reopen the Constitution, Mr. Therrien rather asserted that the House of Commons has free rein to decide on a threshold of 25% representation allocated to Quebec.