Parti Québécois Leader André Boisclair is accusing the federal Conservative government of blackmailing Quebec by interfering in the provincial election campaign.
On Wednesday, Prime Minister Stephen Harper told the House of Commons he hoped to negotiate a promised new deal on open federalism with a federalist government in Quebec.
PQ Leader André Boisclair makes a point during a luncheon speech Wednesday.
(Paul Chiasson/Canadian Press)
Later on, Harper's Quebec lieutenant, Lawrence Cannon, said those negotiations, as outlined in the 2007 budget, would not go ahead unless a federalist party was elected in Quebec.
"We'll see what happens on election night. But it takes federalists to reform federalism," he told reporters on Wednesday.
At a PQ rally in Laval later that night, Boisclair called that blackmail of the lowest order.
He said the prime minister has no business interfering in the Quebec election campaign.
Boisclair sharpened his attack on Harper during a Thursday lunch-hour interview with Radio-Canada. "It's blackmail, it's unacceptable, and it's an attack on Quebec democracy," he said, demanding that his opponents condemn the statements.
"It's worse than [former prime minister] Jean Chrétien's strategies. Even Jean Chrétien would have never said that."
Liberal Leader Jean Charest was milder with his critique but still drew a line in the sand. "It's not Mr. Harper who will decide [Quebec's future] Monday. It's Quebecers who will decide who will form the next government of Quebec. We have to respect that, and me, what I can tell you, is that a Liberal government will continue to fight for what it wants."
ADQ Leader Mario Dumont reproached Harper for his gamble but also sees an opportunity. "We have an election here in Quebec, and we want to leave the prime minister outside of it all," he said on Thursday. "[But] we see this as a door that's opening so that an open federalism can really become advantageous for Quebecers."
A sovereign Quebec govt. can still negotiate: Duceppe
Bloc Québécois Leader Gilles Duceppe, who has kept a fairly low profile during the Quebec election campaign, slammed his opponent in the House of Commons.
"If he wants a federalist as premier, I can see that it's his right. But that he wants to choose the premier, then he's exaggerating. But that he says, me, I only negotiate on Quebec's interests with people I've chosen … that is totally unacceptable," Duceppe told Radio-Canada.
He added that Ottawa and Quebec can still negotiate even if the latter is run by a sovereigntist government. When René Lévésque was Quebec's premier and Pierre Elliott Trudeau was prime minister, both men had constructive talks on income tax point transfers, despite being on opposite ends of the political spectrum, Duceppe said.
With files from the Canadian PressRelated
| Party | Elected | Leading | Total | Vote Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LIB | 48 | 0 | 48 | 33.08% |
| ADQ | 41 | 0 | 41 | 30.80% |
| PQ | 36 | 0 | 36 | 28.32% |
| QS | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3.65% |
| GRN | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3.89% |
| OTH | 0 | 0 | 0 | .26% |
| Last Update:March 27, 12:52:21 AM EDT | ||||
Quebec Votes 2007 Headlines »
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