(Quebec) The National Assembly must “modernize” to allow elected officials a better work-family balance, demand the Parti Québécois and Québec solidaire.
“I am ready to have discussions on how we can better organize parliamentary life to remove obstacles to engagement,” said PQ MP Pascal Bérubé at a press briefing on Wednesday.
Following the announced departure of Liberal MP Marwah Rizqy in 2026, Mr. Bérubé believes that the Coalition Avenir Québec should relaunch its parliamentary reform project.
The question of remote voting, for example, is obvious. In the spring, the National Assembly adopted a bill allowing municipal elected officials to participate remotely in council meetings, while provincial elected officials do not themselves have this right. In parliamentary committees, guests already testify remotely, for example. Why not elected officials?
The CAQ parliamentary leader, Simon Jolin-Barrette, said Tuesday that he was in favor of remote voting. But for this to happen, says Mr. Bérubé, we must accelerate the pace. “It can be done consensually. If we start the work now, we could arrive with post-2026 changes which will be known in advance, that would be my wish,” he explained.
Its objective: to convince young parents already elected to the National Assembly to stay in politics, and to be able to attract candidates.
“One of the main issues, I’ve been an MP for 17 years, is the distance, it’s getting to Quebec. It weighs heavily on parents, women and men, dads and moms who have to leave their homes very early on Monday evening or Tuesday morning to earn an evening. It’s clear that this is one of the questions that candidates ask us when we approach them,” he said.
Behind the times
At Québec solidaire, the same type of reflection is underway. “The announced departure of Marwah Rizqy saddens me a lot. Marwah loves her job, she is an excellent MP. This is extremely unfortunate for democracy. The National Assembly is an institution behind the times,” commented MP Christine Labrie.
“Everything has to be put on the table, we have to think about that. Being deprived of talented elected officials like that is a problem. In a healthy democracy, we need to have diverse representation, that requires parity, different generations, and that requires young parents in the National Assembly. If we have work circumstances that make it extremely difficult, well we have a problem,” said M.me Labrie.
“I invite reflection to continue. We are due to have this discussion,” she added.
During the day, his party tabled a motion asking that the National Assembly undertake discussions to establish parental leave for elected officials, but did not have the consent of the Coalition Avenir Québec to adopt it.