Ramping up its offensive against Ottawa, Quebec Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Alexandre Cloutier said the new commission — which has a budget of $1.5 million — will roam the province to hear how the reforms are affecting Quebecers' day-to-day lives.
He denied the operation is a ploy to wage war with the federal government and stir up the sovereignty cause.
But Cloutier said it won't be the only commission the Parti Québécois government will set up now that it has adopted its promised "sovereignty governance," plan.
The plan is necessary because, contrary to promises by the Conservatives to practise open federalism, a policy of "domineering federalism," has emerged where Ottawa adopts policies without consulting anyone or evaluating the impact on the provinces, Cloutier said.
"If the federal government takes actions that are contrary to the interests of Quebec, we will not sit with our arms crossed, adopt a motion in the National Assembly and send it up to Ottawa by mail in the hopes of getting an answer," Cloutier said at a news conference flanked by Labour and Employment Minister Agnès Maltais.
"We want to go beyond that and we are giving ourselves new tools in the form of this national examination commission.
"Our objective is not to wage war, but find solutions to help people and respond to their needs. We don't want to raise the level of hostility. We want to defend Quebecers and workers."
Quebec has been fighting Ottawa's plan for weeks, with the National Assembly twice adopting motions condemning the reforms that Quebec says hurt here worse then elsewhere.
About 40 per cent of Canada's seasonal workers live in Quebec. Under the reform, some workers could lose benefits if they do not accept jobs within an hour's drive of their residence.
Others may be obliged to take less pay than they had before.
Cloutier said the commission reflects Quebec's new governance policy of "slowing and combating," interference by the federal government, assuming all the powers Quebec currently has including pushing the legal limits imposed by the constitution and, lastly, acquiring new powers.
But Cloutier's commission is off to a rocky start, beginning with the fact it is co-chaired by two top sovereignist figures, former Bloc Québécois leader Gilles Duceppe and former PQ cabinet minister Rita Dionne-Marsolais.
The co-chairs will be assisted by Yves Boudreau, a former deputy-minister responsible for Emploi Québec, and Michel Bédard, chief actuary of the federal employment insurance program from 1991-2003.
Cloutier noted that normally, Duceppe and Marsolais would be paid $1,100 a day by Quebec for their work.
But Cloutier said Duceppe has voluntarily renounced half the pay because he is already receiving a federal pension. Marsolais has done the same thing, owing to her provincial pension.
Maltais insisted that despite the choice of co-chairs, the commission will be neutral.
But Quebec Liberals Kathleen Weil, the employment critic, and Laurent Lessard, the Liberal whip, accused the government of using tax dollars to pay themselves a roaming "separatist caravan."
Instead of proposing constructive criticism and working with other provinces to fight reforms, Weil said, Quebec is doing everything it can to aggravate relations.
In Ottawa, federal Transport Minister Denis Lebel also accused Quebec of trying to pick a fight.
"Our government is working to create more jobs for Canadians," Lebel said. "We are not interested in old fights.
"The Marois government has a sovereignty plan and we have an Economic Action Plan to create jobs and growth everywhere in Canada."
Original Article
Source: montrealgazette.com
Author: PHILIP AUTHIER
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