The Minister of Municipal Affairs, Andrée Laforest, plans to table a bill on Wednesday to better “protect elected officials” and fight against intimidation against them.
This bill should allow municipal elected officials to practice their profession “without hindrance”. In recent months, the municipal world has urged the government to act to help it better protect mayors and councilors against intimidation.
At the end of February, Mme Laforest had suggested that punitive measures could be imposed on people who intimidate elected officials. “We are really going to cover everything well” with future legislative measures, the minister said.
The minister announced on this occasion the creation of a new psychological help line for elected officials experiencing distress. An announcement that came just days after the resignation of the mayor of Gatineau, France Bélisle, who complained of having been intimidated since her election in 2021.
Elected officials, however, demanded that the government do more and require all mayors and councilors to add mandatory training on the subject of bullying.
In recent months, many elected officials, including many women, have reported a toxic climate in city halls and on social networks.
Nearly three-quarters of municipal elected officials (74%) say they have been victims of intimidation in the context of their work according to a survey conducted by the Union of Municipalities of Quebec (UMQ).
Minister Laforest’s bill must take the form of an “omnibus”, that is to say it will address other subjects affecting the municipal world.
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