Quebec Premier Francois Legault has had enough of the Trudeau government and is calling on the Bloc-Quebecois to vote with the federal Conservatives next Wednesday to trigger an early election.
In a statement given to reporters at the National Assembly on Thursday morning, Legault asked the provincial Parti-Quebecois to pressure its “comrades” in the Bloc Quebecois to vote with the Conservatives on Wednesday to trigger an early election.
“I’m asking Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon to have the courage to ask his Bloc Québécois comrade to back down, not to support the Trudeau government next week, to defend the interests of Quebecers and the Quebec nation,” Legault said in French. “Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon has a duty to stand up, to be brave and to challenge Mr. Blanchet.”
Last week, after the NDP announced an official end to the NDP-Liberal coalition, the leader of the Bloc-Quebecois, Yves-Francois Blanchet, positioned his party to form a coalition with the Liberal party to keep them in power in exchange for “gains” for Quebec.
Blanchet said he wanted Quebec to have more control over immigration and increased funding for seniors pensions.
In response to the indirect request, Blanchet told Legault that the answer was still no.
“It remains no. I am neither Conservative nor Liberal… I am the leader of the Bloc Québécois. I serve Quebecers, not the Liberals, according to my own judgment,” Blanchet said.
Blanchet said on Wednesday that the Bloc will not support The Conservative’s Sept. 24 motion, which states, “The House has no confidence in the Prime Minister and the government.”
“The Conservatives’ motion does not at all address Justin Trudeau’s failure on immigration,” Blanchet said. “I happily assume that if and when the Bloc dislodges the Liberals, Mr. Legault will support the Bloc Québécois.”
Blanchet indicated that he will be keeping an eye on a National Assembly of Quebec motion, which would urge Quebec officials in the House of Commons only to vote confidence in the government if it “respects Quebec’s areas of jurisdictions.”
In another statement Thursday afternoon, Blanchet said the BQ may help trigger an election in the next few weeks.
“Part of what we (Legault and Blanchet) both want is the same. We want more powers for Quebec and immigration because only Quebec should manage and administrate this issue for Quebecers,” Blanchet said. “If (Legault) is patient a few weeks, maybe Santa Claus will come and give him an election.”
In a statement, Plamondon responded to Legault’s request. The PQ Leader said he would not pressure Blanchet as the Conservatives haven’t committed to giving Quebec full powers over immigration to the province.
“These are federal immigration policies that have been imposed on us, and that clearly exceed our reception capacity. Faced with this, (Legault) is telling us, under his breath, that the solution to (his) seven-year failure is Pierre Polièvre,” Plamondon said in French.
Plamondon said the Liberals and the Conservatives have “the same posture” regarding immigration.
“It’s a regime that’s hostile to us, whether it’s the Liberals or the Conservatives, and that’s why we’re advocating getting out of it, and that’s also what the Bloc is advocating,” Plamondon said.
Conservative House Leader Andrew Scheer said that each party who votes non-confidence in the current government with Conservatives can explain their own reasons for supporting the motion.
“We put forward a very simple motion that just expressed that fact every political party can think about the failures of this Trudeau Government and the suffering that it has caused on Canadians,” Scheer said in a statement to reporters Thursday. “It’s a clear statement of nonconfidence, and any political party who votes in favour of our motion can explain why they have no last confidence in the government.”
Scheer said any party who votes against their motion can alternatively explain to Canadians why they continue to keep the “corrupt and out of touch” Liberal government in power.
The Conservative party cannot succeed in its non-confidence vote without the support of the NDP and the Bloc Quebecois caucuses.