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Newly elected Quebec Premier Christine Fr\u00e9chette meets with Prime Minister Mark Carney in his office on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on April 17, 2026. Blair Gable \/ Postmedia<\/p>\nLess than 48 hours after becoming premier, Christine Fr\u00e9chette travelled to Ottawa on Friday with a message for Prime Minister Mark Carney: Don\u2019t limit the Constitution\u2019s notwithstanding clause.<\/p>\n
Ottawa \u201cshould not touch the notwithstanding clause \u2014\u00a0it\u2019s an important tool for Quebec, for our nation,\u201d she told reporters as she arrived at Parliament Hill.<\/p>\n
Newly elected Quebec Premier Christine Fr\u00e9chette meets with Prime Minister Mark Carney in his office on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on April 17, 2026. Blair Gable \/ Postmedia<\/p>\n
After her meeting, Fr\u00e9chette said Carney assured her that he has \u201cno intention of amending or placing limits\u201d on the clause.<\/p>\n
The constitutional override allows governments to temporarily shield laws from court challenges based on certain fundamental freedoms protected by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, including freedom of expression and religion.<\/p>\n
The meeting between Fr\u00e9chette and Carney had been announced a day earlier. Hours before it was to take place, however, comments by federal Justice Minister Sean Fraser threatened to derail the encounter.<\/p>\n
Fraser told the CBC he has \u201csignificant concerns\u201d about provinces using the clause \u201cto adopt laws that, in my view, do violate or could violate the rights of Canadians.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said the federal government is \u201cgoing to do what we can to protect the Constitution and protect the ability of Canadians to live freely in this country with the full protection that the Charter is intended to provide.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Fraser said he would wait to see what the Supreme Court of Canada says when it rules on a challenge to Quebec\u2019s secularism law, known as Bill 21.<\/p>\n
Quebec invoked the notwithstanding clause to shield that law, which bars government workers in positions of power from wearing religious symbols.<\/p>\n
At hearings on Bill 21<\/a> in March, Ottawa urged the top court to clarify limits on the clause, warning it should not give legislatures \u201cunlimited\u201d powers.<\/p>\n On social media before arriving in Ottawa, Fr\u00e9chette said she had \u201ctaken note of Fraser\u2019s intention to legally regulate the use of the notwithstanding clause.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n She added: \u201cThe answer is \u2018No! Absolutely not!\u2019 I will fight tooth and nail to defend the use of this clause.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThis important tool allows us to pass laws that protect our nation and that the majority of Quebecers want \u2014 notably on the French language, culture, secularism, and our values, particularly regarding equality between men and women. As a nationalist, I will do everything to preserve it.\u201d<\/p>\n Later, standing next to Carney ahead of their meeting, Fr\u00e9chette said she was ready to co-operate with the federal government as she did when she was immigration and economy minister under former premier Fran\u00e7ois Legault.<\/p>\n \u201cOf course, this must be done in a way that respects the Quebec nation and our jurisdiction,\u201d she said, adding Quebec must protect its \u201cidentity, language and economy.\u201d<\/p>\n Carney made brief remarks, saying he looked forward to discussing issues such as immigration and housing.<\/p>\n Quebec Justice Minister Simon Jolin-Barrette also weighed in on the notwithstanding clause.<\/p>\n The clause \u201cis part of the Constitution, whether the federal government likes it or not,\u201d he wrote on social media.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIt has been invoked 72 times by Quebec since 1982. If Ottawa wants to bypass the Constitution to limit the democratic powers of the federated states, they will find us in their path.\u201d<\/p>\n ariga@postmedia.com<\/a><\/p>\n \t\tEditor\u2019s Picks\t<\/p>\n
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