The leader of Quebec’s Conservative Party was campaigning in Montreal on Tuesday and reiterated his heavy opposition against the province’s controversial French language law, Bill 96.
The leader of the Parti Conservateur du Québec (PCQ), Éric Duhaime, stressed the English-speaking community in Quebec should be blamed for the decline of French throughout the province.
“The use of French in Quebec is declining, and this is an indisputable fact,” says Duhaime. “Francophones and Anglophones alike agree that the French language must be strongly protected and promoted, but this does not have to be done against the Anglophone community.”
The PCQ leader says the main reason for the decline in the use of French in Quebec is “not because French-speaking Quebecers speak less French, but because the weight of English-speaking immigrants is increasing more rapidly.”
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The PCQ says it will draw on a 2016 report titled, “A common language for all and for all,” to develop “constructive and non-coercive solutions” for language laws in the province.
Using the report as a backdrop, Duhaime says his party would focus on developing an improved inclusion program for newcomers to “ensure their inclusion and better integration into Quebec” and offer better support to immigrants in learning French.
“I don’t see how it protects French to threaten newcomers with deportation or to refuse to provide services if they don’t master French in six months,” he continued. “The official language in Quebec is French, we all agree on that. But we don’t motivate people to invest in learning French with coercive measures. This is not the right approach.”
He says Quebec needs to provide better support for immigrants who choose Quebec as their home in learning our language. “We must encourage them, not force them,” says the Conservative leader.
Duhaime isn’t shy about his clear distaste for Bill 96 — a law passed in March that has a heavy impact on health and social services for anglophones, aimed at reinforcing the status of the French in provincial legislation.
While campaigning, Duhaime has branded his party using banners with the words “Bill 96” crossed out in giant red-font prohibition symbols.
Ryan Remiorz/The Canadian Press)
Duhaime also disagrees with Premier François Legault and the CAQ’s use of the notwithstanding clause, which has the effect of exempting Bill 96 from 38 sections of the Quebec Charter of Rights and Freedoms. By doing so, the Legault government has ensured that any possibility for a citizen who believes he or she has been wronged to assert his or her rights before a court is nipped in the bud.
“It is undemocratic and as the leader of a political party, I cannot support it,” explained Duhaime.
Discours à l’Institute of Trading and Finance https://t.co/J4sDFs0c2A
— Eric Duhaime (@E_Duhaime) September 6, 2022
Duhaime says Bill 96 “exacerbates tensions,” is a source of division and “revives old quarrels of the past between Francophones and Anglophones.” The Conservative leader believes “those days are behind us,” and vows to “unite all Quebecers and realize that we are in a new era.”
The PCQ leader says Quebecers have “seen enough division” over the last two years and believes a language debate is the “last thing Quebec needs right now.”
“That’s why I’m calling on all Anglophones today: the Liberal Party has taken you for granted and let you down by supporting the Legault government’s Bill 96. Only the Conservative Party is committed to defending your historic rights and repealing Bill 96 in its first term,” concluded Duhaime.
Quebec politicians began their campaign at the end of August and have until Monday, October 3 to convince voters they’re the correct choice to lead the province.
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