The vote was prompted by Prime Minister Mark Carney\u2019s comments<\/a> the day before, when he quoted the federal Clarity Act that outlines several factors Canada\u2019s House of Commons must consider in determining whether a vote for secession is valid.<\/p>\n Even though there is no referendum right now and most Quebecers don\u2019t want one<\/a>, our elected officials \u2014 including the Liberals \u2014 saw fit to unanimously pound their chests and tell the rest of Canada to butt out.\u00a0<\/p>\n Our MNAs need to be reminded that Quebec has a detailed and substantial pre-nup with Canada, and a divorce would not be simple. Canada would have a lot to say, which is precisely why both previous Quebec referendums couched long complicated questions in language referring to proposed economic agreements and partnerships with Canada.<\/p>\n The Clarity Act has that name for a reason, and Quebec politicians are playing a dangerous game with the future of the province and our economic well-being by distracting from real consequences with feigned indignation and\/or hubris.\u00a0<\/p>\n This past week\u2019s announcement of $10 billion in federal funds<\/a> in infrastructure spending on projects that had been earmarked for Quebec \u2014 \u201ceven more\u201d than its fair share, according to Premier Christine Fr\u00e9chette \u2014 should illustrate how ludicrous was the National Assembly vote that gave the middle finger to Canada.\u00a0<\/p>\n Also ringing hollow this week was Fr\u00e9chette\u2019s sudden pledge of a \u201cdifferent tone\u201d with anglophones<\/a>.\u00a0It would be nice to give her the benefit of the doubt, but it seems more than evident that her comments \u2014 before a Montreal business audience \u2014 were a ploy to help land the new NATO bank for Quebec. Montreal is competing against other Canadian cities for the job-lucrative institution.\u00a0<\/p>\n Fr\u00e9chette strangely portrayed Quebec\u2019s bid as proof that her government values anglophones and highlighted the importance of the community in Montreal and \u201cthe availability of English-language health and education services.\u201d Interesting, after her government has done so much to diminish the community and its institutions and even complains about hearing too much English in the streets<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Upon becoming premier, and in her inaugural address, Fr\u00e9chette never extended any olive branch to the community, unlike her predecessors. Even Fran\u00e7ois Legault had done so.\u00a0<\/p>\n A \u201cdifferent tone\u201d? Are we that naive? Legault, too, had been diplomatic in tone, but it\u2019s actions that matter. <\/p>\n Fr\u00e9chette, who supported her government\u2019s previous measures undermining the anglophone community, is now prepared to do even more harm by transferring 27,000 students<\/a> from English-language adult-education and vocational programs into the French system. She also intends to adopt her government\u2019s proposed Quebec constitution<\/a> that further threatens anglophones\u2019 rights by enshrining the doctrine of collective rights (tyranny of the majority).\u00a0 \u00a0<\/p>\n \t\tEditor\u2019s Picks\t<\/p>\n Uttering a couple of complimentary phrases and using the anglophone community as an implement to try to land a major project is tantamount to smiling in your face while stabbing you in the back.\u00a0<\/p>\n Also this week, Quebec politicians of all stripes condemned a racist rally in Shawinigan<\/a> calling for a return to a \u201cwhite Quebec.\u201d While the unanimous denunciation was heartening to see, it remains that much of our political class has embraced legislation that marginalizes les autres \u2014 notably immigrants and religious minorities \u2014 and support pre-emptively invoking the notwithstanding clause to override and effectively shred our charters of rights and freedoms. There seems to be little awareness that, with such measures, inequality is normalized, which risks fanning the flames of intolerance and emboldening marginal racists.<\/p>\n In an election year, politics typically get uglier and even more polarized. The hypocrisy we\u2019ve seen so far does not bode well for a constructive campaign with solutions to real issues.<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/0606-oped-col-libman.jpg\")
Premier Christine Fr\u00e9chette\u2019s sudden pledge to strike a \u201cdifferent tone\u201d with anglophones rings hollow, writes Robert Libman. Francis Vachon \/ Postmedia<\/p>\n
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