The debate focused on three themes: an economy under pressure, our taxes and services and Quebec\u2019s future.<\/p>\n
Here are a few takeaways. There are two more debates to come; one at Noovo Wednesday evening and the final debate sponsored by Radio-Canada Sept. 23.<\/p>\n
The leaders<\/p>\n
Each leader arrived with own particular objectives and it was clear Fr\u00e9chette tried to use the debate to put plenty of distance between herself and the eight years of CAQ government.<\/p>\n
She said off the top that she wanted to speak \u201cdirectly\u201d to Quebecers seeking change.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am not Fran\u00e7ois Legault,\u201d she said. \u201cI am Christine Fr\u00e9chette and I arrive with my own way of doing things.\u201d<\/p>\n
But she rapidly found herself on the defensive when debate host Paul Larocque asked if she had an estimate on the number of potential jobs that could be lost in the roaring tariff war with the United States.<\/p>\n
While Legault at one point said the trade war could cost Quebec as many as 100,000 jobs<\/a>, Fr\u00e9chette was unable to give a number. At the end of the section she conceded the government had 60 companies under surveillance.<\/p>\n Leading in the polls, St-Pierre Plamondon was supposed to be the main target of attacks in the debate, but the fact there were five leaders on the TVA set made it harder for his opponents to gang up on him.<\/p>\n He managed to land a few key jabs, mainly at Fr\u00e9chette, and keep his cool despite his reputation of having a short fuse under questioning.<\/p>\n \u201cDo we really want 12 years of the CAQ,\u201d St-Pierre Plamondon said at one point? \u201cThe real camp of change is the PQ.\u201d<\/p>\n Milliard faced a dual challenge: getting himself better known to Quebecers at the same time as showing he has what it takes to fill the premier\u2019s shoes.<\/p>\n He insisted he was the only true federalist among the candidates, a statement designed to woo wayward Liberals tempted to vote for the CAQ back over to the Liberals.<\/p>\n \u201cYes Quebecers need stability, but the CAQ in no way represents the change Quebecers need,\u201d Milliard said. \u201cWhat we need more of is to work more with the rest of the Canadian federation.\u201d<\/p>\n He said the CAQ\u2019s management of the economy has been a disaster.<\/p>\n \u201cI can tell you the Liberals are the party of the economy,\u201d he said, landing a key line for his party.<\/p>\n Bolstered by his experience in the 2022 election debate, Duhaime came across as cool, delivering some of the best lines of the debate. He said if elected Oct. 5 he would be the \u201cguard dog\u201d of Quebec\u2019s taxpayers.<\/p>\n He honed in on the QS plan to create state-run grocery stories to reduce the cost of living.<\/p>\n \u201cFrankly, I don\u2019t see bureaucrats putting out tomatoes in the grocery store,\u201d Duhaime said, saying the last thing Quebec needs is Cuban style stores.<\/p>\n Ghazal, however, stuck to her policy of staying upbeat and promising to do more for regular Quebecers.<\/p>\n \u201cWhile the others want to weaken the state, I want to reinforce it,\u201d Ghazal said.<\/p>\n The future of Quebec<\/p>\n Always a hot topic in any Quebec leaders debate, sparks flew on the theme of the future of Quebec, with Fr\u00e9chette on the defensive off the top when host Larocque asked, if there was another referendum in Quebec, whether would she lead the No side.<\/p>\n As she has in the campaign, Fr\u00e9chette sidestepped the question<\/a>, insisting the CAQ is a coalition of people who have voted Yes and those who vote no. What they have in common today is \u201cno interest\u201d in a referendum.<\/p>\n That prompted St-Pierre Plamondon to fire back that what he\u2019s hearing sounds like former Prime Minister Jean Chr\u00e9tien or former Quebec leader Philippe Couillard talking. <\/p>\n \u201cThe eight years of CAQ their autonomist doctrine rhymes with one thing, the decline of Quebec,\u201d St-Pierre Plamondon said.<\/p>\n Seizing the opening, Milliard fired back at Fr\u00e9chette that Quebecers deserve an answer. <\/p>\n \u201cAre you in favour or not of the sovereignty of Quebec? he asked Fr\u00e9chette point blank. \u201cIt\u2019s been weeks that you have been trying to change the subject.<\/p>\n \u201cMr. St-Pierre Plamondon was very clear. He said even says if he forms a minority (government) he will seek support to hold a referendum. Why can\u2019t you answer this question? It\u2019s disgraceful.\u201d<\/p>\n Duhaime waded in, saying there is noting the two old parties (Liberal or PQ) would like better than to get the Yes and No referendum campaign buses rolling like the old days.<\/p>\n \u201cIf I have the balance of power, I will lock the doors and the buses will stay in the garage,\u201d Duhaime said.<\/p>\n \u201cI am not hiding anything,\u201d St-Pierre Plamondon answered. \u201cIt\u2019s clear I am for independence. I don\u2019t accept that our people experience the decline Canada imposes on us.\u201d<\/p>\n Milliard later, however, noted that St-Pierre Plamondon did not once use the word referendum<\/a> during the debate. <\/p>\n St-Pierre Plamondon did, however, say in the debate that if the PQ takes power Oct. 5 he will \u201ccooperate\u201d with the federal government.<\/p>\n But Fr\u00e9chette had another line of attack up her sleeve: reminding Quebecers of the existence of the PQ\u2019s big playbook<\/a> for independence.<\/p>\n \u201cWe see their priority is to create a new Quebec money, to create a Quebec army and, get this, a Quebec space agency. I would like to say to Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon, return to earth.<\/p>\n \u201cWhile he works on rockets, I will work on health. We will work full time for Quebecers.\u201d<\/p>\n Language<\/p>\n When the question of language came up towards the end of the debate, Fr\u00e9chette repeated her leadership race and campaign promise to extend the Charter of the French Language to adult and vocational education, a move that will result in 27,000 students migrating to the francophone system.<\/p>\n She repeated that Quebecers can count on a CAQ government to make use of the Constitution\u2019s notwithstanding clause to protect the Charter of the French Language.<\/p>\n She then went on the attack, challenging Milliard to say whether he would invoke the clause. He responded saying the Liberals have a better and more ambitious language policy than the CAQ<\/a> has, with plans to invest $380 million in shorting up French.<\/p>\n \u201cI am the son of a French teacher,\u201d Milliard told Fr\u00e9chette. \u201cDo you sincerely think there is one person in this room who does not want to protect French?\u201d<\/p>\n He challenged Fr\u00e9chette to show how all the CAQ\u2019s language laws had improved the status of French in Quebec.<\/p>\n \u201cI will use the notwithstanding clause if I need to use it, after consultation. The notwithstanding clause is not the magic solution to everything; it\u2019s how we save French, how do we improve the mastery of French.<\/p>\n \u201cAll you have proposed is coercive and negative.\u201d<\/p>\n
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