The Bloc Québécois wants to relaunch the debate on whether Canada, and especially Quebec, belongs to the British monarchy. With the first days of mourning over, following the death of Queen Elizabeth II, Bloc Québécois leader Yves-François Blanchet called for reflection on “subjection to a power that Quebecers, as a people, have no never chosen.
In an open letter published on the digital platforms of the To have to, Mr. Blanchet salutes the “huge” and “sensational” role of the late queen in history. This should not, however, “overshadow the duty to question ourselves” on the institution “of divine right” which has since been eclipsed by “others, democratic and wanting to separate the State from the Church”, writes the Bloc leader.
Mr. Blanchet evokes the secularism of Quebec and Canada, the British sovereign and head of state of Canada being also the head of the Anglican Church. A dichotomy he describes as “astonishing[e] “. He also cites a Léger poll from January 2021, in the wake of the resignation of Governor General Julie Payette, accused of having maintained a toxic climate at Rideau Hall, which indicated that 74% of Quebecers would like the abolition of the monarchy.
The Canadian Constitution, however, protects the executive power of the British Crown. And to get rid of it, the provinces would have to agree unanimously, recalls Philippe Lagassé, professor at Carleton University and expert in the Westminster parliamentary system. However, the provinces would surely not all agree, he predicts, and the Aboriginal communities are not all of the same opinion either, he notes.
The Bloc leader rejects the “legal argument” and reiterates that Quebec did not adhere to the Constitution forty years ago. “Perhaps we should only consider our independence more in order to obtain, in this respect also, what is desirable and desired”, argues Mr. Blanchet.
More complicated than elsewhere
The debate on the monarchy will certainly be revived in various Commonwealth countries. But Professor Lagassé explained, in an interview following the death of Queen Elizabeth II last week, that their Constitution makes it easier to cut ties with the British crown.
Some Caribbean countries only need to change one law. Australia’s constitutional amendment processes are also much simpler.
The simplicity of their debates and decisions cannot therefore be transposed to Canada.
“Here, we need a modification to the Constitution which is almost impossible”, noted Mr. Lagassé recently. “That complicates things enormously. »