(Quebec) The Liberal Party of Quebec (PLQ) is showing a sign of openness: it will not impose “conditions sine qua non like holding consultations to adopt a bill by the holidays making the oath to the king optional.
“If the government wants to consult, well, we will consult, but we will not set any conditions sine qua non said interim Liberal leader Marc Tanguay on Wednesday. The Liberal leader also added that the “oath to the king is outdated”.
It’s a change of tone for the Liberal troops. The day before, Mr. Tanguay argued that his party wanted to “minimally” hear from constitutionalists on the issue. “We are going to do our job, we are not going to rush it. We want hearings and we will first learn about the bill that will be tabled,” said Mr. Tanguay on Tuesday.
On Wednesday, Marc Tanguay rather indicated that his training was ready to work “quickly” so that a bill making the oath to the king optional, as the Legault government intends to table, is adopted by the holidays. “We will wait for the bill to be tabled. But we’re going to want to work quickly, yes, with regard to adoption. We will see what the government will propose, ”supported the interim chief.
The three deputies of the Parti Québécois still refuse to take the oath to the king, even if it prevents them from sitting in the Blue Room. On Tuesday, the House leader of the government, Simon Jolin-Barrette, said he wanted his bill to be “passed before Christmas” with the consent of the other parties; the short two-week parliamentary session will end on December 9.
Québec solidaire also intends to present its own legislative text on Thursday – it had already tabled a bill to this effect during the previous legislature. After refusing to do so on the day of their swearing-in ceremony, his Québec solidaire deputies finally took the oath to the king last week, in private, in order to be able to sit in the House this week.
The Parti Québécois on Tuesday asked the new President of the National Assembly, Nathalie Roy, to review the decision of her predecessor, François Paradis, who gave the formal order to the Sergeant-at-Arms to expel from the Blue Room the deputies who are not fully sworn in. The three PQ elected officials announced Tuesday that they would appear in the House on Thursday.