No one has ever accused Denis Coderre of erring on the side of subtlety. With it, what you see is what you get. The message from someone who behaves as if he were already the leader of the Liberal Party of Quebec is of a simplicity that borders on simplism. The Separatist Hydra is back and its mission is to fight it. To hell with renewal, he adopted the slogan of the No camp in 1980: “No thanks! »
In Quebec, where he was passing through on Wednesday, many chose to laugh about it. And the liberals, who seem to see his possible coronation as a necessary evil, are struggling to hide their discomfort. However, he saw snow, and his prediction is not far-fetched: “For the next election, it’s going to be the federalist-separatist axis, that’s clear. »
The leader of the Parti Québécois, Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, said he was “surprised to see the federalist argument so frozen in the 1980s,” but why should we be surprised? You don’t change a winning recipe. Without the fear of the economic and financial consequences of independence, it would have been accomplished a long time ago.
The former mayor of Montreal and the leader of the PQ seemed delighted to meet in the corridors of the National Assembly. A little more and they would have kissed. These two could become the world’s best enemies and bring good fortune to each other.
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The former PQ members who converted to the autonomy of the Coalition Avenir Québec when the path to independence seemed blocked are now trying to convince themselves that they will not have to choose their side since there will be no referendum . “Honestly, as a society, we have issues that are much more important and priority than another referendum on sovereignty,” declared Bernard Drainville.
For years, however, he argued fervently — as Mr. Legault had done before him — that only independence would allow Quebec to face it.
Fortunately, “if the trend continues”, neither Mr. Drainville nor his ex-PQ colleagues Benoit Charrette or Jean-François Roberge will have to debate their conscience. The way things are going, the three risk being beaten in their respective constituencies, according to projections from the Qc125 site. Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon joked about the role of “co-spokesperson” for the No camp that Prime Minister Legault would play, but he would no longer be there either.
We must not skip steps, but the arrival of Mr. Coderre could drag the entire Legault government into a debate that it would certainly prefer to avoid. Whether he likes it or not, as long as the polls identify the PQ as the other probable choice, the holding of a referendum will emerge as the main question of the next elections. A question that leaves no room for neutrality, nor even for lukewarmness.
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According to the deputy in solidarity with Jean-Lesage and former leader of National Option, Sol Zanetti, the resumption of the debate can only favor the Yes. One thing is certain, it will have the effect of accentuating polarization. If the CAQ cannot afford to let Mr. Coderre establish himself as the standard-bearer of the federalists, Québec solidaire must also absolutely avoid the PQ becoming the “flagship” of independence again.
Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois has never hidden his disinterest in federal-provincial squabbles. “These ritualized quarrels with Ottawa sell copies, but it is illusory to think that they will lead to a revival of independence,” he wrote in the essay written by a group of supportive deputies under the title What binds us.
Wednesday, in the National Assembly, however, its deputies seemed to find the subject very relevant. Initially, Guillaume Cliche-Rivard (Saint-Henri–Sainte-Anne) asked that Quebec replace Ottawa in granting work permits to asylum seekers. Vincent Marissal followed by demanding the repatriation of the sums that Ottawa plans to invest in Quebec in a pan-Canadian dental insurance program.
The rise of the PQ seems to have stimulated independence fervor in QS. Last week, Ruba Ghazal (Mercier) launched a campaign called New Quebec, which aims to convince the young generation to embrace the sovereignist cause.
It is to be hoped that despite their attachment to Canada, the progressive federalists who form the majority of QS voters will not resign themselves to voting for a party led by Denis Coderre, who does not hide his intention to bring the PLQ to swerve to the right.