The leader of the Liberal Party of Quebec (PLQ), Dominique Anglade, believes that she cannot come to the defense of the Western Quebec school board, which hired a veiled teacher despite the law 21 on the secularism of the ‘State.
“She does not respect the law. I will never endorse [les choix de] someone who does not obey the laws. Never, ”she replied when The duty asked him if the school board had made a mistake in hiring Fatemeh Anvari at a Chelsea primary school. Mme Anglade took part in an editorial interview on Tuesday during which she was called upon to define her position on secularism.
The Liberal leader refused to say what she will do with this issue if she is brought to power in 2022. If the Supreme Court were to invalidate parts of Bill 21, “we will advise at that time”, s’ is she content to answer. “I think it has to pass the test of the courts and after that, we will look at what remains, at the end of the day, and where we are. I think that’s the democratic approach to take. I’m not going to make a proposal upstream, ”she also said.
Mme Anglade recalled that the Liberals voted against the adoption of Bill 21, in particular because the legislative text was adopted under gag order and because it relies too heavily on the notwithstanding clause, in their opinion. The party also opposed the ban on religious symbols among teachers.
For these reasons, she says the Liberals understand “the reactions” of those who take offense at Mr.me Anvari, penalized for wearing the veil. “We were saying that it was going too far,” she recalled. But there is a law that must be obeyed. “
For an “open secularism”
Gathered in congress two weeks ago, PLQ activists adopted a resolution to support “the demands of English-speaking Quebecers in relation to the protection of the independence and autonomy of English-language school boards”.
The decision, taken without provoking the slightest debate, is modeled on the position of the English-Montreal School Board in the context of the challenge to Bill 21. It defends the “exclusive right” of the English-speaking minority in Quebec “ to manage and control [ses] schools ”.
To meet the demands of his activists, Mr.me Shouldn’t Anglade side with the protesters of the law? “The members are free to express themselves, and it is up to me, at that time, to recall the positions of the party,” she replied. “There were 120 proposals that were brought [en congrès] and in the 120, there are some who will be part of the electoral platform and there are some… that is part of the discussions we are going to have for the future, ”she continued.
One thing is certain, Mme Anglade does not “want two Quebec” and advocates “a secularism that is open”. She believes that the Prime Minister, François Legault, has amalgamated support for the nationalism he advocates with support for some of his bills.
With Bill 21 and the bill on the French language, “it is: ‘we put a derogatory clause and if you are against, you are against Quebec”, “she summed up. In April, Mr. Legault had declared that his liberal opponent refused to “defend Quebec values” by letting the courts decide the fate of the Law on the secularism of the state.
“I think we have the right to question this kind of thing and that nationalism is not expressed only in the manner of François Legault. He can express himself [de] open, inclusive way. We can ensure that all our values are integrated and that we do not have this withdrawal, this unique way of thinking, ”she said.
Conquering the progressive Caquists
In view of the next election, the Liberal leader is counting on the membership of the progressives who supported the Coalition Avenir Québec in 2018. Her party estimates that this fringe represents a quarter of Caquist voters, and that their support could advance the PLQ of 14 points in the polls.
Mme Anglade also believes that Quebecers will have had enough of a “paternalistic government, which likes to tell people what to do, how to vote, which does not like to be questioned, called into question”. “That is something I was already seeing at the time,” she says of Mr. Legault, whom she worked with when she was president of the CAQ, from 2012 to 2013.
I think that we have the right to question this kind of thing and that nationalism is not expressed only in the manner of François Legault.
The head of the PLQ says she is betting on a completely different approach to that of the current government in immigration. She wants to “support people” and “invest in their integration”, while keeping the thresholds around 55,000 immigrants per year.
In the environment, she intends to inspire behavior change by leading by example. “You can’t just say it’s going to cost the individual more. Basically, the stakes are not there: 55% of what we consume are hydrocarbons, ”said the elected official.
“So before we talk about individuals, let’s talk about what the government controls, what it is willing to impose itself to achieve results. Why am I paying[rais si] I see that we are building a third link at ten billion dollars, houses for the elderly who have nothing to do with and a bridge at Île-aux-Tourtes [sans] reserved lanes? She asks.