QUEBEC CITY – Quebec Premier-designate Paul St-Pierre Plamondon says he’ll be updating his list of problem minorities after networks declared The Parti Québécois will form government with the support of at least one of the other opposition parties.
“When TVA Nouvelles said it was going to be a minority parliament, I was shocked because I thought that’s the worst kind of government,” Plamondon said. “But then they explained it means we get to be the government. Finally, a minority that isn’t leading to the erosion of the Quebec identity.”
The Parti Québécois has faced criticism during the campaign over perceptions that much of its rhetoric and many of its policies unfairly target minorities.
“They say just because we want to say who goes to English CEGEPs, radically reduce immigration, come up with more places Muslim women can’t wear hijabs, and poke around Montreal area schools for acceptable levels of state-determined Québécois identity, that we’re racist,” Plamondon said.
“I reject this,” he continued. “We are not prejudiced. We ran a classically nativist, European-style populist campaign under a moderate veneer of civic nationalism. Learn the difference. Besides, if I had a problem with minorities, then why does Gen Z call me the white Aziz Ansari?”
The incoming premier did admit that his promise not to hold a referendum for as long as Donald Trump remains President of the United is something of a moot point as he will not have the votes to pass any legislation for such a vote.
The new make up of the National Assembly will have the PQ with the most seats, the Liberals as official opposition and the Parti Conservateur du Québec and the left wing Québec Solidaire with significant numbers of seats themselves. The parties will have to work together to pass legislation which could mean more cooperation and social stability for the duration of the new government.
“Unless I pull a Carney and get a bunch of Conservatives to cross the floor,” he said. “Then we’d have the votes to get a referendum before Christmas. I can see no downsides to this plan.”
