The reactions of the political class to the tragedy which killed two people and injured six, in Laval, have multiplied since Wednesday morning. The Premier of Quebec, François Legault, confirmed that he would go to the scene of the tragedy on Thursday, accompanied by the leaders of the main opposition parties.
“As a father, I am shaken,” he said from the National Assembly on Wednesday morning.
I will be going to Laval tomorrow, accompanied by the leaders of the opposition parties, to offer my full support to the families and staff affected by this terrible tragedy.
— Francois Legault (@francoislegault) February 8, 2023
At the Blue Room, the President of the National Assembly, Nathalie Roy, dedicated the usual “moment of meditation” to the victims and their loved ones. The three leaders of the opposition have meanwhile said wholeheartedly with the people affected by the accident. “Today, we have parliamentary work to do, but you will understand that the heart is not there,” said PQ elected Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, who himself has two young children.
“It’s misunderstanding. It’s anger too, ”launched the latter leaving the Chamber. “There’s no parent who wants to hear the phrase, ‘Come to daycare, something bad is going on’. Then there are parents who heard that this morning, ”lamented the co-spokesperson for Québec solidaire, Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois.
“All my support for parents in these difficult times, reacted Stéphane Boyer, the mayor of Laval, in the morning, before going to the scene. Laval is wholeheartedly with you and will be there for you. »
Liberal MP Virginie Dufour, a former municipal councilor in Sainte-Rose, had difficulty explaining the tragedy. “These are my neighbors, she launched in the corridors of the National Assembly. I know the industry very, very well. For me, it is incomprehensible. »
Minute of Silence in Ottawa
The House of Commons observed a moment of silence on Wednesday afternoon, after which Mr. Trudeau thanked those who rushed to the scene of the tragedy the first “to help and secure”, starting with the first responders.
He reiterated that the Canadian government will be there “for them [les individus happés par le choc] in the days, months and years to come as they grieve unimaginably.
Father-of-three Mr Trudeau agreed that “nothing can erase the pain and grief that these families and this community are going through now”. He expressed his solidarity and that of his team members – who are “devastated”, he mentioned – “with the families in Laval who are going through incredibly difficult times”. “We hope everyone is okay. […] I can’t imagine what these parents are going through,” he said during a scrum in the halls of parliament.
The leaders of all opposition parties in Ottawa also expressed their solidarity with the families of the victims. “I think that, for the moment, what the situation requires is a lot of compassion, a lot of empathy for the people of Laval,” commented Yves-François Blanchet, leader of the Bloc Québécois.
Separately, management at the CN Tower in Toronto tweeted that the tower’s lights would be turned off “for five minutes at the start of each hour in honor of the victims of the Laval bus crash and of their families”.
Quebec ministers dispatched
A few minutes before question period in Quebec City, a trio of ministers — including Public Security Minister François Bonnardel, Family Minister Suzanne Roy, and Minister responsible for the Laval region, Christopher Skeete — confirmed that he would go to the scene of the tragedy, alongside Mr. Boyer.
Once there, in the early afternoon, Ms. Roy said that all the parents of the children in the daycare center targeted by the attack will be offered a place in a daycare service on Thursday.
“We are obviously wholeheartedly with the parents, the children traumatized by this event and the Laval community,” said Mr. Skeete, who is also the deputy for Sainte-Rose.
The Minister responsible for Social Services, Lionel Carmant, did not want to “jump to conclusions” about the psychological state of the driver. “I fear stigmatizing mental health issues. But it is certain that we have been working from the beginning to increase access to mental health services,” he said.
Other political figures showed their support for the victims, including the mayor of Montreal, Valérie Plante, who called the tragedy a “terrible incident”, and the mayor of Quebec, Bruno Marchand. ” What a nightmare ! All our thoughts are directed to Laval,” he said.