As the 21st Canada-EU summit is set to open Thursday in Montreal, a standoff continues between Prime Minister Mark Carney and Quebec Premier Paul St-Pierre Plamondon over Quebec’s role at the event.
St-Pierre Plamondon has insisted on addressing international delegates, while Carney has denied him speaking time, leaving the premier’s attendance at the summit in limbo.
The disagreement has made headlines since Tuesday, as St-Pierre Plamondon has accused the federal government of attempting to muzzle him.
Carney countered by saying that the premier had chosen to leave an empty chair “yet again” — alluding to St-Pierre Plamondon’s absence from Monday’s meeting between Canada’s premiers and Indigenous leaders.
Arriving at the National Assembly in Quebec City on Wednesday morning for a private meeting with Quebec Conservative Leader Éric Duhaime, the new premier urged Carney to reverse his decision.
“It’s never too late to do the right thing,” St-Pierre Plamondon said.
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To bolster his case, the Parti Québécois leader has leaned on the Gérin-Lajoie doctrine, which asserts Quebec’s right to defend its provincial jurisdictions and interests on the international stage.
On Wednesday, he added that Quebec’s negative trade balance with the European Union makes it vital for the province to have a seat at the table to correct course.
St-Pierre Plamondon noted that while he is seeking a “productive relationship” with the federal government, it must also be based on mutual respect.
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“However, it is disrespectful not to give a place to the Quebec premier at an event in Quebec where Quebec’s economic interests are being negotiated,” St-Pierre Plamondon added.
Carney told reporters in Ottawa on Wednesday that his office offered St-Pierre Plamondon the honour of welcoming the president of the European Commission to Montreal, and that he hopes the Quebec premier will reconsider his decision to sit out the event.
“I myself invited him to dinner, at my table, with [the president],” Carney said. “In my view, this is a great opportunity, a very useful opportunity to have conversations and build relationships for him with the president of the European Union.”
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Meanwhile in Quebec City, Duhaime took aim at federal Industry Minister Mélanie Joly’s argument that “geopolitics is under federal jurisdiction” — a comment she made to justify Carney’s decision not to allow the Quebec premier to make a speech at the event.
“I read the Constitution three times yesterday before going to bed, and I haven’t seen that anywhere,” Duhaime said, criticizing the Carney government’s “dominant” and “toxic” federalism.
However, Duhaime noted that the Quebec premier should still participate in the event in order to advance Quebecers’ interests.
“You never win by leaving an empty chair and sulking in a corner,” Duhaime said.
