William Watson: What Ottawa should give Quebec is benign neglect

Skip to Content News Archives Economy Defence Energy Oil & Gas Renewables Electric Vehicles Mining Commodities Agriculture Real Estate Mortgages Mortgage Rates Finance Banking Insurance Fintech Cryptocurrency Defence Work Wealth Smart Money Wealth Management Investor Personal Finance Family Finance Retirement Taxes High Net Worth FP Comment Executive Women Puzzmo Newsletters Financial Times Business Essentials More Innovation Information Technology FP500 Podcasts Small Business Lives Told Tails Told Shopping Financial Post Store Obituaries Place a Notice Advertising Advertising With Us Advertising Solutions Postmedia Ad Manager Sponsorship Requests Classifieds Place a Classifieds ad Working Profile Settings My Subscriptions My Offers Newsletters Customer Service FAQ News Economy Energy Mining Real Estate Finance Defence Work Wealth Investor FP Comment Executive Women Puzzmo Newsletters Financial Times Business Essentials This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.HomeFP CommentWilliam Watson: What Ottawa should give Quebec is benign neglectMore special treatment will only encourage inter-regional jealousy. Good government is what all Canadians want. Focus on giving them thatLast updated 12 minutes ago Quebecers will be less inclined to desert a ship if Mark Carney finally stops it from taking on water. Photo by ANDREJ IVANOV/AFP via Getty ImagesThe traditional definition of a Canadian optimist is someone who thinks things could be worse. Well, “could have been worse” is a good response to Monday’s Quebec election result. After eight years of turbulence from a premier whose claim to business fame was co-founding a charter airline, voters were ready for a change in government.THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLYSubscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.Exclusive articles from Barbara Shecter, Joe O'Connor, Gabriel Friedman, and others.Daily content from Financial Times, the world's leading global business publication.Unlimited online access to read articles from Financial Post, National Post and 15 news sites across Canada with one account.National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword.SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLESSubscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.Exclusive articles from Barbara Shecter, Joe O'Connor, Gabriel Friedman and others.Daily content from Financial Times, the world's leading global business publication.Unlimited online access to read articles from Financial Post, National Post and 15 news sites across Canada with one account.National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword.REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLESCreate an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.Access articles from across Canada with one account.Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments.Enjoy additional articles per month.Get email updates from your favourite authors.THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK.Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.Access articles from across Canada with one accountShare your thoughts and join the conversation in the commentsEnjoy additional articles per monthGet email updates from your favourite authorsSign In or Create an AccountThe Liberals, the main federalist party, were regarded as too English to take over, though the election changed that. They now have seats where English-speakers are as rare as Leafs fans. The Conservatives, the other federalist party, didn’t have any elected members at all, though the election has changed that, too: they now have 19 members. The commentariat is very concerned that the Conservatives have no parliamentary experience. Well, good! Quebecers have been governed by very experienced politicians for many years now and there’s little evidence we’re better off for it.This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.That left the Parti Québécois, which is officially separatist, except when U.S. President Donald Trump is in office. It seems you don’t want to try to go it alone as a country when the external environment is uncertain. When Trump is gone, however, and the world is once again calm, serene and perfectly predictable, it will be safe for a small new country. But the PQ has been in government before and being a separatist isn’t so scandalous here as in the rest of the country, so the PQ it is — though mainly for the change.Get the latest headlines, breaking news and columns.By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc.A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder.The next issue of Top Stories will soon be in your inbox.We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try againEven so, it only got 28 per cent of the vote, hardly a resounding mandate, while the other separatist party, Québec Solidaire, saw its vote decline by three points. True, the PQ was up 13 points from the last election. But the Liberals were up 10 and the Conservatives, eight. The tide doesn’t really seem to be running separatism’s way.On the other hand, separatists are in control of the government again and doubtless will start spending tax dollars to promote independence with studies, conferences, ad campaigns and so on. And they’ll pick fights with the federal government.This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.The first will be over the office of the Lieutenant Governor (LG) — which in Canada, commentators take note, we pronounce “leftenant governor,” which actually derives from the Old French, in which U was V. LG is a wasteful office, according to the the new PQ premier, Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, often referred to as PSPP. And he finds it humiliating to have to swear allegiance to the King of England.Except that he’s the King of Canada, as our Constitution, which we ourselves devised and approved and can change if we wish, makes clear. If you respect the rule of law, you respect the Constitution. If you don’t respect the rule of law, that’s useful information for potential investors, both foreign and domestic.Yes, the office of Lieutenant Governor involves some expense: for salary, administration and entertainment. PSPP wants to re-purpose the money to help the homeless. You might think opening up the official residence for the use of homeless people would make great TV — except that there hasn’t been an official residence since 1997.Quebec’s expenses related to the LG are a tad over $1 million a year. The number of homeless Quebecers is about 12,000. So each presumably can look forward to an annual cheque for a little over $83. Except that PSPP plans to bring all the homelessness stakeholders together to come up with a plan. Renting a location, devising a communications strategy, printing documents, paying transportation, funding civil society attendees: poof, there goes the $1 million.This advertisement has not loaded yet.This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.When I was young and immature I was a republican, too. But the older I get the better I think it is we have an office above prime minister or premier to remind our leaders, if only on ceremonial occasions, that the state is bigger than they are. If Quebec did away with the LG, it’s a slam dunk we’d replace him or her (currently her: Manon Jeannotte) with a president, whether elected or appointed. It’s also a slam dunk that to assure the dignity of the president of Quebec, that office’s budget would have to be many millions of dollars and an official residence would have to be found. Or built. On a scale proportioned to the self-importance of the position.Pundits say we shouldn’t panic over the election of separatists and I agree. Besides, when is panic ever a good strategy? On the other hand, we’re told the prime minister should assemble a special advisory panel to keep him abreast of events in Quebec. Excuse me? He has 44 Quebecers in his caucus. The new PQ government only has 59 in its. What are Quebec Liberal MPs? Potted plants?Mark Carney himself says it’s a time for bold action. Why? If he responds to the election result with new pro-Quebec initiatives, that merely encourages separatism elsewhere. If he pre-emptively transfers more powers to Quebec, well, how bare can the federal government be stripped? If he ignores further predations against English-speakers in Quebec, well, we’re used to being ignored.This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.Carney should do what Canadians elected him to do: provide good government. It wasn’t good government to block new Alberta pipelines or flood Quebec with refugees, as the previous cohort of Liberals did. It’s not good government to waste upwards of $100 billion on a high-speed train for Central Canada’s movers-and-shakers.Balance the budget. Cut spending and red tape. Lower taxes. Get the economy moving. Quebecers and other Canadians will be less inclined to desert a ship that finally stops taking on water.This advertisement has not loaded yet.Notice for the Postmedia NetworkThis website uses cookies to personalize your content (including ads), and allows us to analyze our traffic. Read more about cookies here. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.