Last November, the Conservative Party of Quebec (PCQ) held its first convention since the election of Eric Duhaime as leader. And frankly, if we trust the proposals adopted by its members, it is difficult to understand how we can associate the party or its leader with the extreme right, as does the editorial writer in chief of Press in his text of December 5.1
Indeed, because of its social policies, the PCQ could qualify itself more as “progressive-conservative” or “classic liberal”.
Of course, the PCQ defines the role of the state in a way that is viscerally repugnant to anyone for whom everything has to be designed, produced and distributed by the union-government mammoth. The “Quebec model”, after all, has disproportionate and blind faith in the state as an employer.
Unlike the current government, which is rather interventionist in all matters, the PCQ calls for more competition in the means of distributing social services rather than supporting hyper-unionized monopolies. It favors direct redistribution to citizens, who are then more free to make their own choices.
With its 38,000 members, the PCQ is now the party with the most. Having channeled the discontent around an endless state of emergency, can we honestly speak of extreme right-wing populism when we observe that elsewhere, such a state of emergency no longer exists?
Perhaps we can do so based on immigration guidelines, then? However, the head of the PCQ offered to increase or decrease immigration according to the needs of the labor market. We are far from the populism of Eric Zemmour, no?
These themes that divide
Stéphanie Grammond is worried about the themes that divide our societies: identity anxiety, Islamophobia, protectionism. But quite frankly, if I had to associate these themes with a party, it would be that of the Coalition d’avenir Québec (CAQ) led by François Legault.
This government has made these themes its first priority since day 1 of coming to power. Aside from the pandemic episode, see the results of the CAQ: lower immigration thresholds, law 21 on secularism (the intention of which was visibly to calm the fears of Quebecers towards radical Islam), bill 96 on the official language of Quebec.
What does Eric Duhaime think of these bills? Be in perfect agreement with André Pratte’s opinion letter of May 16 2, where the latter deplores that a whole series of fundamental rights are denied. From the far right?
As for protectionism, note the signature of the Legault government in terms of cultural, economic and identity protectionism.
So I come back to it. Identity anxiety, Islamophobia, protectionism. This is the results of the CAQ of François Legault, make no mistake about it.
Stéphanie Grammond says that it is “worrying to note that the PCQ ranks second in the polls, with 18% of the voting intentions in the Quebec region”. Why, then ? Isn’t it better to hear those voices trying to participate in democracy? Would we prefer that they add to cynicism, to democratic stalling, to the contempt of the intellectual and media classes?
I still dare to believe that it is not.