QUEBEC \u2014 An independent Quebec would have its own small army the size of Denmark\u2019s and a ministry of defence. It would also seek to become a member of NATO and NORAD, while inviting Canadian soldiers living on Quebec soil to join the new force.<\/p>\n
The military commitments are included in a new 524-page Parti Qu\u00e9b\u00e9cois blueprint document for an independent Quebec, Le Livre bleu sur l\u2019ind\u00e9pendance.<\/p>\n
Besides the military, the document republishes previously written chapters covering issues of citizenship, borders, passports, currency and the finances of the new country, which would break all ties with the monarchy and be a republic.<\/p>\n
The republic would have a president to fulfil the legal and ceremonial role of the current lieutenant-governor.\u00a0The president would live in Quebec City\u2019s Citadelle, which is currently the secondary official residence of the Governor General of Canada.<\/p>\n
![\"Parti](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/0624-city-pq_303884256.jpg\")
Parti Qu\u00e9b\u00e9cois Leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon speaks about the party\u2019s blue book on independence in Montreal on Tuesday, June 23, 2026. He was joined by Jocelyn Caron, left, editor of Livre Bleu, and Terrebonne MNA Catherine Gentilcore. Tim Snow \/ Montreal Gazette<\/p>\n
Quebec would, nevertheless, seek a free-trade agreement with the rest of Canada and not erect any form of border checkpoints to ensure the unfettered\u00a0movement of people, goods and capital.<\/p>\n
And a sovereign Quebec would ensure that the English-speaking community retains control of its schools and institutions and has access to health and social services and the courts in English.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe anglophone\u00a0community has the right to preserve, maintain and ensure progress in its identity and its institutions,\u201d the document states.<\/p>\n
Years in the works and tapping into dozens of experts, the document was formally adopted Monday evening at a virtual meeting of the party\u2019s national council.<\/p>\n
First promised by PQ Leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon<\/a> in 2023, until now the party\u2019s approach to questions of independence has been to make chapters public one at a time.<\/p>\n To date, the party has presented its vision for a Quebec currency<\/a> \u2014 a process that could take 10 years \u2014 and passports. Quebecers would be allowed to keep their Canadian passports<\/a> if they choose.<\/p>\n The version pubished Monday is virtually complete with the exception of a chapter on relations with Indigenous Peoples. The PQ has submitted a proposed text to those communities in a bid to open a dialogue first.<\/p>\n As for the rest, St-Pierre Plamondon said the blue book will answer many questions about independence \u2014 particularly for younger Quebecers who were not born during the previous two referendums.<\/p>\n \u201cNever in the history of Quebec has there been such a detailed, researched document on the question of Quebec as a country,\u201d St-Pierre Plamondon told reporters Tuesday at a news conference.<\/p>\n \u201cAs an organization, we made a commitment (to produce this document). I am extremely proud of the result.\u201d<\/p>\n He conceded publishing such a detailed document opens up many questions.<\/p>\n \u201cSome will say the blue book is a risk because someone could criticize Page 376 of the 500,\u201d St-Pierre Plamondon said.<\/p>\n \u201cI respond saying this blue book is not only necessary in terms of the credibility of our actions, but it is above all a starting point of a dialogue with the population; on what it means to be in your own country, what it means to decide on your own.\u201d<\/p>\n St-Pierre Plamondon, nevertheless, described the book as a \u201cfirst version,\u201d and it can evolve depending on the context and new questions.<\/p>\n It does provide some additional insight on St-Pierre Plamondon\u2019s plan to hold a third referendum on independence<\/a> within a first mandate should the PQ take power in the fall election.<\/p>\n St-Pierre Plamondon has already conceded the idea of a referendum scares many Quebecers given the world economic climate and has suggested he would wait until the end of a four-year mandate<\/a> to hold it after U.S. President Donald Trump is out of office.<\/p>\n In the document, the PQ pledges again to hold a referendum or \u201cconsultation\u201d in a first mandate<\/a>. The document promises a \u201cclear\u201d question that would be made public well before the actual vote.<\/p>\n The document does not include the actual wording of the question, but as was the case in the 1980 and 1995 referendums, it would be submitted to the approval of the National Assembly.<\/p>\n It would be written by a committee of constitutional experts.<\/p>\n In conformity with Quebec\u2019s own laws and international precedents, a majority of 50 per cent plus one<\/a> would be considered sufficient to secede from Canada, the document says.<\/p>\n Unlike the 1995 referendum, the PQ proposes no particular form of \u201csovereignty association\u201d with the rest of Canada.<\/p>\n Quoting international precedents, Quebec would maintain its existing borders, describing people who believe Quebec could be partitioned as scaremongers. The document, however, does concede there is a legal dispute over the current border with Newfoundland and Labrador.<\/p>\n Conceding little can be done to alter the border because it was decided by the London Privy Council in 1927, the document says a sovereign Quebec would seek financial compensation over what it says is a long-standing injustice.<\/p>\n To ensure the integrity of its borders, Quebec, before the referendum, would adopt a law\u00a0\u201cconsecrating,\u201d\u00a0its existing borders so they could not be altered. The Maritime borders would be\u00a0negotiated with the federal government.<\/p>\n To ensure a legitimate referendum process, international observers would be invited to witness the process. A tactical cell would be created in co-operation with the S\u00fbret\u00e9 du Qu\u00e9bec to counter any foreign interference, direct or indirect, in the process.<\/p>\n \u201cThe future of Quebec concerns only Quebecers,\u201d the document states.<\/p>\n As for the existence of the federal Clarity Act, which states the federal government would have a say in the process, the blue book argues the law is only an \u201cinitial negotiation position\u201d of Ottawa in the event of a Yes vote.<\/p>\n The blue book forecasts a maximum two-year\u00a0transition period for Quebec to move from the status of province to country. The PQ promises an\u00a0\u201corderly\u00a0and fair\u201d\u00a0transition.<\/p>\n In that time the PQ government would undertake the\u00a0\u201cbiggest\u00a0exercise\u00a0in the reduction of bureaucracy ever seen.\u201d<\/p>\n On Tuesday, St-Pierre Plamondon said, based on his calculations, 77 per cent of the 230 federal organizations active in Quebec would be abolished or merged into Quebec\u2019s public sector.<\/p>\n The PQ thus forecasts\u00a0total savings of between $13 billion and $16 billion in administrative expenses linked to the federal government. Employees who want to continue\u00a0working\u00a0for the federal government would be allowed to do so in the event Quebec became a\u00a0country.<\/p>\n It is also in the same transition period that Quebec would start work on a new provisional constitution entrenching the\u00a0principles of secularism and the protection of the French language.<\/p>\n But it is the chapter on the military that is new. Once Quebec declares independence, Canadian soldiers present on Quebec soil would be invited to join the new Quebec army.<\/p>\n They would not be obliged to join, but those who did would pledge allegiance to the new republic.<\/p>\n Quebec would also launch negotiations with Ottawa as part of a debt-sharing exercise in which it would take possession of the military installations at Valcartier, Bagotville and the Quebec Citadelle.<\/p>\n Quebec would assume the infrastructure costs as part of its negotiations over the national debt. The same principle would be applied to air force F-35 fighter jets.<\/p>\n Quebec would draw inspiration for its military from such small countries as Sweden and Denmark, the latter having about 20,000 troops.\u00a0<\/p>\n There are about 20,000 Canadian soldiers currently serving in Quebec. As per the suggestions of NATO, the new Quebec republic would aim to invest five per cent of its GDP in military spending by 2035.<\/p>\n The military would have an internal and external role. It would be called upon to\u00a0preserve\u00a0the integrity of Quebec\u2019s territory and\u00a0protect the new country from any military threats, internal or external.<\/p>\n It would also act to help Quebecers in the event of natural catastrophes.<\/p>\n An independent Quebec would also continue to pay a share of the upkeep of international war memorials such as the Vimy Ridge site because Quebec\u00a0soldiers are buried there.<\/p>\n There was a first reaction to the document from Quebec Liberal leader Charles Milliard.<\/p>\n \u201cThey took the time to write (this book) we are going to take the time to read it,\u201d Milliard said on social media. \u201cOne thing is clear: this document confirms that sovereignty remains the only\u00a0priority of the PQ for the next election.<\/p>\n \u201cThis choice, which does not correspond to the will of the majority of Quebecers, belongs to them and will be submitted\u00a0to the judgment of voters.\u201d<\/p>\n The other political parties have not yet reacted.<\/p>\n