If they persist in refusing the oath of allegiance to the king, the elected members of the Parti Québécois (PQ) will not be able to sit when the parliamentary session begins at the end of November.
This was indicated on Tuesday by CAQ MP Simon Jolin-Barrette, about an hour before his swearing-in in Parliament. The motion proposed the day before by PQ leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon to sit without pledging allegiance to the British Crown would not have the desired effect, he said. “A motion does not have the force of law,” said Mr. Jolin-Barrette.
“It does not please us more than anyone to take the oath to Charles III, but it is currently provided for by the Constitution. So, the elected members of the Coalition avenir Québec will take the oath to the king, ”said the former parliamentary leader in a press scrum.
In a missive sent last Thursday to the leader of the PQ, the secretary general of the National Assembly, Siegfried Peters, had specified his intentions vis-à-vis the elected representatives of the sovereignist party, who have been insisting since October 3 that they will avoid pronounce the oath of allegiance to the King of Canada, yet required to sit.
“Until the law evolves, if necessary, I must enforce the one that is in force,” he wrote, suggesting that he would deprive elected PQ members of their seats.
Further details will follow.
To see in video