{"id":262581,"date":"2008-07-01T04:00:00","date_gmt":"2008-07-01T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/policyoptions.irpp.org\/issues\/a-conversation-with-the-premier-of-quebec-interview\/"},"modified":"2025-10-07T20:07:43","modified_gmt":"2025-10-08T00:07:43","slug":"a-conversation-with-the-premier-of-quebec-interview","status":"publish","type":"issues","link":"https:\/\/policyoptions.irpp.org\/fr\/2008\/07\/a-conversation-with-the-premier-of-quebec-interview\/","title":{"rendered":"Entretien exclusif avec le premier ministre du Qu\u00e9bec"},"content":{"rendered":"

OPTIONS POLITIQUES : Monsieur le Premier Ministre, merci d\u2019avoir accept\u00e9 de nous rencontrer. Comme vous le savez, ce num\u00e9ro sp\u00e9cial d\u2019Options politiques<\/em>\u00a0porte sur le 400e<\/sup> anniversaire de la ville de Qu\u00e9bec. Qu\u2019est-ce que \u00e7a veut dire pour vous, l\u2019importance de Qu\u00e9bec, la ville de Qu\u00e9bec comme berceau du Canada fran\u00e7ais et en Am\u00e9rique du Nord ?<\/p>\n

LE PREMIER MINISTRE JEAN CHAREST : C\u2019est un symbole important, la ville de Qu\u00e9bec. C\u2019est le berceau de la francophonie en Am\u00e9rique du Nord. Y sont pass\u00e9s, pour venir habiter l\u2019Am\u00e9rique du Nord, les Irlandais, les \u00c9cossais\u2026<\/p>\n

OP : \u00c7a fait que c\u2019est \u00e9galement l\u2019anniversaire de Charest !<\/p>\n

JEAN CHAREST : (Rires)\u2026 Oui ! C\u2019est mon 50e<\/sup>\u2026 et mon 10e<\/sup>\u00a0\u00e0 la t\u00eate du PLQ, partag\u00e9 en parts \u00e9gales, cinq ans \u00e0 l\u2019opposition, cinq ans au gouvernement, alors il y a beaucoup de sym\u00e9trie.<\/p>\n

OP : Il y a quelques semaines, le premier ministre Harper a suscit\u00e9 la controverse, pour ne pas dire plus, lorsqu\u2019il a affirm\u00e9 que la fondation de Qu\u00e9bec en 1608 marquait l\u2019acte de naissance du Canada, au moins du Canada fran\u00e7ais. Et la visite de la gouverneure g\u00e9n\u00e9rale en France a \u00e9galement \u00e9t\u00e9 controvers\u00e9e pour les m\u00eames raisons. Quelles sont vos r\u00e9flexions l\u00e0-dessus ?<\/p>\n

JEAN CHAREST : \u00c7a nous a fait sourire parce qu\u2019il y avait beaucoup de rh\u00e9torique dans les r\u00e9actions aux propos de M. Harper. Or, ce qu\u2019il a dit est un fait historique, une \u00e9vidence, c\u2019est-\u00e0-dire que l\u2019histoire du Canada commence \u00e0 un certain moment. D\u2019ailleurs, \u00e7a commence m\u00eame avant 1608 si on retourne \u00e0 Jacques Cartier. Et, donc, il n\u2019a rien dit qui, aux oreilles de quiconque, pourrait offusquer la trame historique du Canada.<\/p>\n

Maintenant, ceux qui cherchent \u00e0 le pr\u00e9senter autrement cherchent \u00e0 instrumentaliser l\u2019histoire \u00e0 leur avantage et pour servir une cause. Mais moi, j\u2019ai parfaitement compris ce qu\u2019il voulait dire, et je pense que les Qu\u00e9b\u00e9cois aussi ont parfaitement compris ce qu\u2019il entendait par l\u00e0.<\/p>\n

Par contre, l\u2019histoire, la r\u00e9f\u00e9rence historique, est encore plus importante si on remonte \u00e0 l\u2019Acte de Qu\u00e9bec en 1774. L\u00e0, les souverainistes passent vite l\u00e0-dessus parce qu\u2019ils veulent aller \u00e0 1867 ; ils aiment bien parler du rapport Durham et de l\u2019Acte d\u2019Union, qui n\u2019a pas \u00e9t\u00e9 un succ\u00e8s, qui n\u2019a pas fonctionn\u00e9. Mais l\u2019Acte de Qu\u00e9bec\u2026<\/p>\n

OP : \u2026 qui, justement, a permis de garantir la survie du fait fran\u00e7ais en Am\u00e9rique du Nord.<\/p>\n

JEAN CHAREST : \u2026 oui ! Et nos lois, et notre religion. \u00c7a, c\u2019est un acte fondateur de ce que nous sommes aujourd\u2019hui, \u00e0 la fois Qu\u00e9b\u00e9cois et Canadiens.<\/p>\n

OP : La d\u00e9claration du pr\u00e9sident Sarkozy, son discours \u00e0 B\u00e9ny-sur-Mer, o\u00f9 il affirmait que la France aimait le Canada autant que le Qu\u00e9bec, qu\u2019elle aimait les deux ensemble, a \u00e9galement suscit\u00e9 la controverse\u2026 Est-ce que ce discours marque un changement par rapport \u00e0 la politique de non-ing\u00e9rence et de non-indiff\u00e9rence pr\u00e9conis\u00e9e par la France depuis 30 ans ?<\/p>\n

JEAN CHAREST : Dans le jargon diplomatique fran\u00e7ais, ils appellent \u00e7a la politique du nini. Deux n\u00e9gations cons\u00e9cutives. Mais moi, la d\u00e9claration de M. Sarkozy ne m\u2019a pas \u00e9tonn\u00e9, parce que je suis all\u00e9 au cimeti\u00e8re de B\u00e9ny-sur-Mer\u2026<\/p>\n

OP : Tr\u00e8s \u00e9mouvant.<\/p>\n

JEAN CHAREST : Oui. Comment peut-on ne pas dire merci au Canada quand on foule le sol o\u00f9 sont enterr\u00e9s 2 000 soldats canadiens qui y ont laiss\u00e9 leur vie pour lib\u00e9rer la France ? Comment peut-on ne pas comprendre ?<\/p>\n

Et l\u2019autre dimension de cette visite de la gouverneure g\u00e9n\u00e9rale qui est tr\u00e8s int\u00e9ressante, c\u2019est de voir les Fran\u00e7ais r\u00e9affirmer leur amiti\u00e9 avec le Qu\u00e9bec sans pour autant annihiler le Canada. Ce n\u2019est pas \u00e0 nous \u00e0 demander\u2026 c\u2019est un manque de maturit\u00e9, c\u2019est de l\u2019enfantillage que de demander aux Fran\u00e7ais de ne pas avoir de relations avec le Canada alors qu\u2019on se rappelait ce jour d\u2019armistice qui \u00e9voque le d\u00e9barquement de Normandie.<\/p>\n

Et la politique de non-ing\u00e9rence\/non-indiff\u00e9rence qu\u2019Alain Peyrefitte avait livr\u00e9e pour Giscard d\u2019Estaing \u00e9tait une politique qui arrivait dans le contexte de la mont\u00e9e du nationalisme qu\u00e9b\u00e9cois et de la tenue \u00e9ventuelle d\u2019un r\u00e9f\u00e9rendum. Or, le r\u00e9f\u00e9rendum ne fait plus partie de notre plan politique. Mme Marois, les souverainistes ont eux-m\u00eames \u00e9vacu\u00e9 l\u2019id\u00e9e de faire un r\u00e9f\u00e9rendum dans le prochain mandat et pour l\u2019avenir. Alors, \u00e7a ne peut pas \u00eatre que \u00e7a, la relation que la France a avec le Qu\u00e9bec. Vous savez, \u00e7a ne peut pas \u00eatre bas\u00e9 sur la non-ing\u00e9rence\/non-indiff\u00e9rence. La relation, elle est mature, elle est multidimensionnelle, et l\u00e0, elle doit se d\u00e9ployer dans tous les domaines. Et le pr\u00e9sident de la R\u00e9publique se prononcera l\u00e0-dessus. Et la relation que le Qu\u00e9bec a avec la France n\u2019est pas \u00e0 l\u2019exclusion du reste du Canada. On ne demande pas \u00e0 la France de n\u2019avoir des yeux que pour nous ; on veut que la France puisse avoir avec le Qu\u00e9bec une relation mature, enti\u00e8re, et c\u2019est ce que nous avons actuellement, et M. Sarkozy aura l\u2019occasion de c\u00e9l\u00e9brer \u00e7a lorsqu\u2019il viendra au Qu\u00e9bec.<\/p>\n

POLICY OPTIONS : And what about the importance of the French language in terms of the survival of Canada as a distinct society, if I can call it that, in North America? Number one. Number two, the importance of the French language, dating from the foundation of Quebec in 1608, for what Mr. Bourassa used to call the cultural security of this island of one language in a sea of English in North America. He used to say 2 percent of North America is le fait fran\u00e7ais in Canada, of which 80 percent at least is in Quebec, and he always felt very responsible for that.<\/p>\n

JEAN CHAREST : Well, it is a very real responsibility for the premier of Quebec, not only to protect our language, but to assure and guarantee its future. And that\u2019s a responsibility I carry, and one that I feel every day when I\u2019m in this job. So in that respect, our story is a very beautiful story, and it\u2019s a story we\u2019re telling of the survival and of a language and a culture. It\u2019s our story in Quebec, and it\u2019s also the story of Canada. And it does give Canada a signature internationally; it gives it its personality. It\u2019s what allows Canada to have a broader influence in the world, and we underestimate the influence it has and how it allows us to have access to all sorts of forums that otherwise we would not have access to. And it gives us a recognition throughout the world as a country that is enlightened by the fact that it has two official languages. And in that respect, it\u2019s something we\u00a0should never lose.<\/p>\n

PO : In October, Quebec will be hosting, for the first time since 1987, Le Sommet de la Francophonie. And in a speech in Montreal in June, you said it represented perhaps an alignment of the stars in terms of the opportunities for bilateral agreements between Canada\/ Quebec and France, particularly with regard to recognition of professions between Quebec and France. Do you want to elaborate on that ?<\/p>\n

JEAN CHAREST : Well, it\u2019s an exceptional alignment of the planets because we will be hosting the 12th Francophone Summit in Quebec City in October. It\u2019ll be the first time that President Sarkozy will visit Quebec and Canada as President of the Republic. He will hold a bilateral with Quebec, he will do a bilateral with Canada, he will do the Francophone Summit and he will also be, as of July 1, the chair of the European Union. So he will be doing four different meetings in one single visit. And for us, it coincides with the 400th anniversary of the foundation of Quebec City, and so we look at this as a moment in time where we are going to define our relationship for the future. Not only will the 400th anniversary be about the past 400 years, we want it to be very much turned towards the future. And to accomplish that, we\u2019re going to do a number of things that are very forward-looking. I proposed to Mr. Sarkozy that we negotiate a bilateral agreement on the recognition of diplomas and professional qualifications.<\/p>\n

We would be the first in the world to do this, and it will create a new space of mobility for our respective citizens. All of this is because our future economy is going to depend on brain power and access to the best brains in the world. And what we\u2019re going to do is a bit counterintuitive : we\u2019re going to open up our economy so that we can allow these people to move back and forth and do what they do best\u00a0\u2014 add value to our economy.<\/p>\n

And the second major project is the negotiation of a transatlantic\u00a0accord between the European\u00a0Union and Canada. And here\u00a0we\u2019re being very opportunistic. The European Union established a policy of negotiating bilateral agreements with emerging economies. And we\u2019ve said to Europe : \u201dWell, why not us ?\u201d And we\u2019ve said this to Europe in an environment where Chancellor MerkeI was the chair of the European Union and wants a rapprochement with the United States.<\/p>\n

Well, our argument with the Europeans, by the way, is to say, \u201cWell, listen, if you want to reinforce the transatlantic relationship, the place to start if you wanted to get on the fast track is Canada.\u201d The Americans are going to be stalled for another year and a half until they settle their election campaign and the new administration settles in.<\/p>\n

There will always be a lot of anxiety within the European Union about the relationship with the United States, but in Canada, in Quebec in particular, our values are so close to those of Europe in terms of our view of our society, on health care, on culture. This is a unique opportunity for them to set foot in North America, and set foot in the richest market in the world, so the two richest markets in the world would have an opportunity to meet.<\/p>\n

PO : So Canada as a kind of a platform to stage 1 of an agreement between the EU and NAFTA ?<\/p>\n

JEAN CHAREST : The EU and NAFTA, if that\u2019s what the EU wants, and if that\u2019s what\u2019s the three NAFTA countries want.<\/p>\n

PO : Because our market is 33 million people, and America is 300 million and 20 percent of the world\u2019s economy.<\/p>\n

JEAN CHAREST : Exactly ! And Mexico is 100 million people. Mexico already has a transatlantic accord with the European Union, by the way, and the only other American country that does is Chile, a South American country. So it\u2019s a very good fix. And for the European Union, it makes a lot of sense because they\u2019ll be able to establish the matrix.<\/p>\n

PO : What kind of conversations have you had with Mr. Harper about this? Because international trade is clearly a federal responsibility, although there are obviously provincial jurisdictions involved.<\/p>\n

JEAN CHAREST : Well, as integration evolves, it\u2019s more and more penetrating, it falls more and more within areas of provincial jurisdiction. I\u2019ve had many conversations over this with Mr. Harper and he\u2019s been very supportive. We\u2019ve worked as a team on this. I\u2019m very happy with the leadership the federal government has shown on this. He took it up with Chancellor Merkel a year ago at the Canada-European Union Summit. They ordered the studies that needed to be done before a decision was made on whether we negotiate. And so the federal government has shown and the Prime Minister personally has shown a great deal of leadership on this.<\/p>\n

Now to arrive at the type of agreement we want, provincial governments must be involved because we\u2019re going to be discussing areas of provincial jurisdiction, which includes procurement, government procurement, the recognition of diplomas, and also harmonization of all sorts of regulations on products. Also investment will be part of it. So the provinces must be on board, and they are on board.<\/p>\n

OP : Justement, vous parlez de la f\u00e9d\u00e9ration et de son fonctionnement. Vous \u00eates le p\u00e8re fondateur du Conseil de la f\u00e9d\u00e9ration, une id\u00e9e que vous avez propos\u00e9e dans la campagne de 2003. Cinq ans apr\u00e8s sa cr\u00e9ation, quel bilan tracez-vous ?<\/p>\n

JEAN CHAREST : Moi, je vois \u00e7a comme un beau succ\u00e8s. D\u2019abord, parce que \u00e7a a permis aux provinces et aux territoires de recentrer leur action sur les domaines de coop\u00e9ration mutuelle. Et jamais on n\u2019a tant parl\u00e9 de commerce interprovincial et de mobilit\u00e9 de la main-d\u2019\u0153uvre que nous le faisons actuellement. Depuis la cr\u00e9ation de la f\u00e9d\u00e9ration, on n\u2019en a jamais autant parl\u00e9. Et \u00e7a, c\u2019est parce que c\u2019est le r\u00e9sultat d\u2019un choix d\u00e9lib\u00e9r\u00e9 des provinces et territoires de se concentrer sur les enjeux qui touchent l\u2019interprovincialisme, c\u2019est-\u00e0-dire des enjeux qui sont de nos comp\u00e9tences et qui font l\u2019objet de relations entre nous. Le TILMA a \u00e9t\u00e9 n\u00e9goci\u00e9 entre l\u2019Alberta et la Colombie-Britannique, les provinces de l\u2019Ouest se rencontrent, les provinces de l\u2019Est, et l\u2019Ontario et le Qu\u00e9bec se sont rencontr\u00e9s pour la toute premi\u00e8re fois pour un conseil des ministres conjoint.<\/p>\n

Cela t\u00e9moigne de notre rapprochement, en plus du fait qu\u2019on a un projet de lib\u00e9ralisation de notre march\u00e9, de notre main-d\u2019\u0153uvre, pour le 1er avril 2009 au plus tard, on s\u2019est fix\u00e9 un objectif de signer l\u2019entente. On s\u2019est fix\u00e9 cinq objectifs, en fait, dans le domaine du commerce int\u00e9rieur, que nous poursuivons ensemble. Alors sur ce plan-l\u00e0, \u00e7a fonctionne bien. Le conseil a aussi permis la naissance du f\u00e9d\u00e9ralisme asym\u00e9trique dans la n\u00e9gociation de l\u2019entente de 2004 sur la sant\u00e9.<\/p>\n

Pour le Qu\u00e9bec, \u00e7a nous a permis de faire la d\u00e9monstration aux Qu\u00e9b\u00e9cois que le f\u00e9d\u00e9ralisme n\u2019\u00e9tait pas uniquement la relation bipolaire entre Qu\u00e9bec et Ottawa ; que le f\u00e9d\u00e9ralisme qu\u00e9b\u00e9cois et canadien se vit aussi avec les voisins avec qui nous partageons beaucoup sur le plan \u00e9conomique et social. Alors, c\u2019est un beau succ\u00e8s ; j\u2019en suis tr\u00e8s fier.<\/p>\n

OP : Mais le f\u00e9d\u00e9ralisme asym\u00e9trique n\u2019\u00e9tait m\u00eame pas invent\u00e9 lors de l\u2019accord sur la sant\u00e9. C\u2019est dans les articles 93 et 133 de la Constitution.<\/p>\n

JEANCHAREST : Oui ! Et on lui a donn\u00e9 une expression, pour la premi\u00e8re fois, qui a \u00e9t\u00e9 reprise, en passant, dans une entente sur les relations internationales et la cr\u00e9ation de la place du Qu\u00e9bec dans les d\u00e9l\u00e9gations canadiennes \u00e0 l\u2019UNESCO, qui a \u00e9t\u00e9 reprise dans une entente qu\u2019on a faite avec le gouvernement f\u00e9d\u00e9ral sur les services\u00a0de garde. Enfin, c\u2019est un concept auquel on a donn\u00e9 vie et qui nous permet de mieux vivre notre syst\u00e8me f\u00e9d\u00e9ral, de mieux pratiquer notre f\u00e9d\u00e9ralisme.<\/p>\n

OP : Alors, quelle est votre appr\u00e9ciation des rapports actuels entre les provinces dont les int\u00e9r\u00eats sont peut-\u00eatre plus diff\u00e9rents que jamais ? Entre, par exemple, l\u2019Alberta avec ses int\u00e9r\u00eats dans le champ p\u00e9trolier ; l\u2019Ontario et le Qu\u00e9bec avec leurs secteurs manufacturiers ; Terre-Neuve qui est maintenant une province riche\u2026<\/p>\n

JEAN CHAREST : Je vous dirais que les int\u00e9r\u00eats peuvent certes diverger, ce qui est tout \u00e0 fait normal, mais que nos relations n\u2019ont jamais \u00e9t\u00e9 aussi bonnes. Les relations sont tr\u00e8s bonnes. Et moi, je travaille beaucoup avec mes coll\u00e8gues des provinces. J\u2019arrive d\u2019une conf\u00e9rence avec Gary Doer du Manitoba. Il n\u2019est pas physiquement \u00e0 c\u00f4t\u00e9 de chez nous, mais c\u2019est quelqu\u2019un avec qui on a une tr\u00e8s bonne relation.<\/p>\n

Au total, je retiens deux choses : notre Conseil de la f\u00e9d\u00e9ration nous rappelle qu\u2019on a plus en commun que de choses qui nous diff\u00e9rencient, d\u2019une part ; et que, d\u2019autre part, nos relations \u00e0 nous sur le plan\u00a0humain, sur le plan social sont f\u00e9condes.<\/p>\n

D\u2019ailleurs, on a re\u00e7u un tr\u00e8s beau compliment : notre Conseil de la f\u00e9d\u00e9ration a \u00e9t\u00e9 copi\u00e9 par les \u00c9tats australiens. Quelques premiers ministres australiens sont venus ici, pour voir comment on fonctionnait, puis, ils ont choisi de copier ce que nous faisons. C\u2019est un compliment que nous prenons avec beaucoup de modestie, mais \u00e7a prouve que c\u2019est un mod\u00e8le qui s\u2019importe\u2026 qui s\u2019exporte.<\/p>\n

OP : Prenons un exemple pragmatique comme l\u2019\u00e9lectricit\u00e9 dont l\u2019Ontario a besoin. Vous \u00eates en train de construire une nouvelle interconnexion Qu\u00e9bec\/Ontario, en plus de la fameuse question du Lower Churchill avec Terre-Neuve, une question \u00e9pineuse, qui existe depuis maintenant presque 40 ans ; les Terre-Neuviens sentent qu\u2019ils ont eu un mauvais \u00ab deal \u00bb l\u00e0-dedans, et les relations entre les deux provinces s\u2019en ressentent depuis le temps de MM. Smallwood et Peckford. Quelle est votre \u00e9valuation de ce dossier-l\u00e0 ? What would be your sense of that file ?<\/p>\n

JEAN CHAREST : Well, in the case of Lower Churchill, it remains a question that\u2019s unresolved, to the point that we haven\u2019t be able to get to the next stage, which would have been a development at Lower Churchill.<\/p>\n

PO : Four thousand megawatts.<\/p>\n

JEAN CHAREST : I would have liked to have been able to develop and work with Newfoundland and Labrador on Lower Churchill, but they decided ” and that\u2019s their right to do that ” to go into a process of trying to determine what would be the best way to develop it, and we\u2019re fine with that. But the relationship with Newfoundland and Labrador has been very good. We\u2019re now building a 1,200 megawatt line, an interconnection between Ontario and Quebec. We\u2019re going to sell them clean, renewable hydroelectricity. If I want to export energy, but I have a choice between exporting to the United States or a fellow Canadian neighbour, I\u2019m going to sell it to a Canadian neighbour. And so in that respect, on the energy side, Quebec is a world leader in the area of renewable resources, and we want to share what we have with other provinces and work with them. So we haven\u2019t resolved all the issues, but on the other hand, you can see that there\u2019s real progress in terms of us\u00a0working together.<\/p>\n

PO : In terms of your most important interprovincial partner, obviously Ontario ” both economically and in terms of geography ” you had this meeting of the two cabinets in early June at the Ch\u00e2teau Frontenac, site of historic summits in the past between Churchill, Roosevelt and King, and Mulroney and Reagan, as you know because you were a member of that government. I wonder what your sense is of a headline such as the one in the Toronto Star the following day, with the picture of you and Dalton McGuinty with your arms wrapped around one another and the headline in war type, \u201cBrothers in Arms,\u201d as if there\u2019s a kind of compact to declare war on Ottawa over the declaration on the environment. I\u2019ve sensed a little bit of overplay in that.<\/p>\n

JEAN CHAREST : Yes there is, because we want to work together and we\u2019re not working against Ottawa. We are working together on what both of us feel is going to be one of the biggest issues of our generation and of our time, and we anticipate that the North American environment, the political environment, is going to change very rapidly with the election of the new president, and we want to prepare for what will be a cap and trade system that we\u2019re all going to be living under in a very near future.<\/p>\n

Now, in our federal system of government, we don\u2019t always agree with the federal government. And when we don\u2019t agree, I don\u2019t think we should be shy about saying it and managing those issues in a mature way, which we do. But we\u2019re not at war with the federal government. We\u2019re only recognizing what has always been our reality, is that we need to work more closely together if we\u2019re going to get more out of our economy, if we\u2019re going to better serve our people, whether it\u2019s environmental management or whether it\u2019s transport, for example, where we\u2019re going to do a lot of very good things together, that\u2019s what we\u2019re going to be focusing on.<\/p>\n

PO : Mr. Harper has spoken often of Arctic sovereignty in terms of claiming Canada\u2019s territorial sovereignty in the North, the development of these immense energy fields that will open up as with melting of Arctic sea ice, developing naval capacity and putting bases in the North, and working with the Inuit and the Aboriginal peoples. And you, in a speech in Montreal in June at the Conf\u00e9rence de Montr\u00e9al, opened an interesting parenthesis where you talked, not for the first time but certainly the first in a setting like that, of the importance of northern development for Quebec. I\u2019m wondering if this is an area where you and Mr. Harper could find common ground ?<\/p>\n

JEAN CHAREST : Well I think we have a common inspiration, and that\u2019s John Diefenbaker and his \u201dRoads to the North.\u201d I always thought Diefenbaker was very inspiring in what he had done in the North. And when I was federal minister of the environment and travelled north, there were still memories of how Diefenbaker was able to single out the North as being a great part of our country and our mythology. And I believe that. I believe that for northern Quebec, which has a big chunk of Arctic territory. I\u2019ve been to the Arctic, to northern Quebec, many times, and in our view there\u2019s an opportunity here to develop our energy resources, mining, transport, tourism and, most importantly, to do it with Native people, with the Inuit and our First Nations, who must be part of this. And so I see a great opportunity for us ; I couldn\u2019t agree more with Prime Minister Harper on developing Canada\u2019s North. And we have to occupy this territory. I know there will be issues of sovereignty that will be raised in regard to who owns this part of the world. And from my perspective, the sooner we can occupy it, the sooner we can develop it, the better.<\/p>\n

PO : How would you describe the state of your relationship with Mr. Harper at the present time ? Because in the beginning, one sensed an opening or the possibility of the kind of special relationship that Mr. Lesage and Mr. Pearson had or between Mr. Mulroney and Mr. Bourassa. And then there was this kind of divergence that you took in 2007. There was your campaign promise allocating all the fiscal imbalance money to a tax cut, which annoyed Mr. Harper, and then he annoyed you, or at least your party, by being seen on the same stage as Mr. Dumont at Rivi\u00e8re-du-Loup in December.<\/p>\n

JEAN CHAREST : Well, one important point : we did not allot all of the money of the fiscal imbalance to a tax reduction. It\u2019s one-third of it. Two-thirds of it went to health care and education, and one-third of it went to a tax reduction, only one-third. And we had for a long time planed it that way because for a long time we were not able to do that because of the fiscal imbalance. And we did that the same year where 9 out of 10 provinces reduced their taxes, including other provinces who receive equalization. So it\u2019d be very unfair to single us out in this respect, as though we had done something that was unconventional, when in fact it was exactly the contrary.<\/p>\n

That being said, my relationship with Mr. Harper is a good relationship, and I don\u2019t personalize the relationship I have with the Prime Minister. He\u2019s the third prime minister I\u2019ve been dealing with since I\u2019ve been premier, in fact. I\u2019ve had to deal with Mr. Chr\u00e9tien, Mr. Martin and now Mr. Harper. And there is a whole host of issues on which we\u2019ve been successful, issues like fiscal imbalance, the recognition of Quebec in international affairs and our participation at UNESCO, the recognition of Quebec as a nation. That was a very significant move by Mr. Harper and the federal government. We have a good relationship, but we also live in a federal system of government where on issues on which we do not see eye to eye or agree we should be able to defend our views, and not be seen as being less Canadian because we don\u2019t agree on any given issue.<\/p>\n

PO : But you\u2019re half Irish. How do you strike a balance between defending the interest of Quebec, which is your primary role as le d\u00e9fenseur des int\u00e9r\u00eats du Qu\u00e9bec, and achieving a harmonious interpersonal relationship with the Prime Minister of the day, whoever that may be ?<\/p>\n

JEAN CHAREST : You know, no single government has a monopoly on the common good. That\u2019s what the federation is about.<\/p>\n

PO : Mr. Mulroney used to say Ottawa\u2019s not the sole repository of wisdom in this federation.<\/p>\n

JEAN CHAREST : And that\u2019s true. It\u2019s very true. And so, you know, none of us have a monopoly on that, and in our federal system of government we recognize our differences and we should be able to discuss issues in a very mature way. But you know, in the end, we have so much in common. I\u2019m not concerned about that. I\u2019m not among those who try to highlight the differences, and I do have a very clear understanding of my role. I\u2019m premier of Quebec, so I\u2019m defending the interests of the people of Quebec. But I\u2019ve never seen a contradiction between being a Quebecer and a Canadian.<\/p>\n

OP : Est-ce qu\u2019on peut parler, dans les quelques minutes qui nous restent, du contexte politique ? Il y a un an, bien des gens croyaient que vous \u00e9tiez fini, que vous n\u2019\u00e9tiez pas capable de vivre dans un contexte minoritaire. Vous avez dit vous-m\u00eame, pendant le budget de crise au mois de juin 2007 : \u00ab Voil\u00e0 la preuve qu\u2019un gouvernement minoritaire ne fonctionne pas. \u00bb Un an plus tard, vous avez bondi dans les sondages. Vous parlez heureusement de la cohabitation entre vous et les partis, les formations de l\u2019opposition. Quelle est votre perception ou votre \u00e9valuation des \u00e9v\u00e9nements des 12 derniers mois o\u00f9 vous avez mont\u00e9 du sous-sol jusqu\u2019au sommet des sondages ?<\/p>\n

JEAN CHAREST : Bien, je pense que le point de d\u00e9part, pour nous\u2026 en\u00a0fait, il y a quelques points de d\u00e9part importants. D\u2019abord, j\u2019ai accept\u00e9, mon parti a accept\u00e9 les r\u00e9sultats de l\u2019\u00e9lection. C\u2019\u00e9tait le choix des Qu\u00e9b\u00e9cois d\u2019avoir un gouvernement de cohabitation. Et des trois partis politiques repr\u00e9sent\u00e9s \u00e0 l\u2019Assembl\u00e9e nationale, je pense qu\u2019on est le parti qui a le mieux compris et r\u00e9agi aux messages que nous a lanc\u00e9s l\u2019\u00e9lectorat. \u00c7a, c\u2019est un point de d\u00e9part tr\u00e8s important, malgr\u00e9 notre d\u00e9ception, malgr\u00e9 la surprise d\u2019\u00eatre minoritaire et en cohabitation.<\/p>\n

Deuxi\u00e8mement, on a recentr\u00e9 nos actions au mois de septembre et on est revenu sur l\u2019\u00e9conomie, sur des enjeux dans lesquels on croit devoir mettre beaucoup d\u2019\u00e9nergie dans les prochaines ann\u00e9es pour r\u00e9ussir au Qu\u00e9bec.<\/p>\n

Et troisi\u00e8mement, on s\u2019est donn\u00e9 une vision d\u2019avenir sur laquelle on rejoint tous les Qu\u00e9b\u00e9cois : l\u2019ouverture d\u2019un nouvel espace \u00e9conomique, \u00e7a rejoint tout le monde. \u00c7a, c\u2019est des meilleurs jobs, puis une meilleure qualit\u00e9 de vie, puis une meilleure vie pour les familles du Qu\u00e9bec. C\u2019est \u00e7a que \u00e7a repr\u00e9sente. Et pour nous, les francophones de l\u2019Am\u00e9rique, notre avenir est l\u00e0, sur cette ouverture d\u2019un espace \u00e9conomique. Et l\u00e0, on y a associ\u00e9 des projets tr\u00e8s pr\u00e9cis.<\/p>\n

Alors, vous avez l\u00e0 trios \u00e9l\u00e9ments qui nous ont permis de nous rapprocher des Qu\u00e9b\u00e9cois, et on est un gouvernement \u00e0 l\u2019\u00e9coute, on a fait des compromis. Dans la premi\u00e8re partie, quand je disais qu\u2019on a accept\u00e9 le r\u00e9sultat, \u00e7a veut dire un conseil des ministres restreint, de 18 ministres, ce qui a \u00e9t\u00e9 tr\u00e8s p\u00e9nible \u00e0 faire. Je ne sais pas si on restera toujours \u00e0 18, parce que sur le plan humain, c\u2019est difficile. Le Qu\u00e9bec, c\u2019est un grand territoire ; 18 ministres, ce n\u2019est pas beaucoup de monde.<\/p>\n

OP : Et est-ce hommes-femmes est ici pour rester ?<\/p>\n

JEAN CHAREST : Oui ! Mais \u00e7a m\u2019a pris 10 ans avant d\u2019arriver \u00e0 la parit\u00e9, le premier gouvernement \u00e0 y arriver. Mais ce n\u2019est pas une parit\u00e9 symbolique ; elle est r\u00e9elle. Personnellement, pendant 10 ans, je me suis charg\u00e9 de recruter des femmes en politique, de leur faire une place, de les pr\u00e9senter dans les comt\u00e9s o\u00f9 elles allaient gagner. Quand elle s\u2019est pr\u00e9sent\u00e9e, Yolande James, elle ne se pr\u00e9sentait pas dans un comt\u00e9 o\u00f9 ses chances \u00e9taient faibles, o\u00f9 la probabilit\u00e9 \u00e9tait qu\u2019elle allait perdre. Ce n\u2019\u00e9tait pas de la symbolique ; c\u2019\u00e9tait au contraire un comt\u00e9 o\u00f9 les chances \u00e9taient tr\u00e8s bonnes.<\/p>\n

OP : \u00c7a veut dire la nomination, pas la g\u00e9n\u00e9rale.<\/p>\n

JEAN CHAREST : Non, pas la g\u00e9n\u00e9rale ! Et l\u00e0, donc, la parit\u00e9, \u00e7a fait partie des changements. Alors, on a \u00e9t\u00e9 un gouvernement tr\u00e8s, tr\u00e8s \u00e0 l\u2019\u00e9coute. Et moi, je suis parfaitement heureux l\u00e0-dedans. Je pense qu\u2019on aura trouv\u00e9 un moyen de gouverner en cohabitation, et que les Qu\u00e9b\u00e9cois aiment \u00e7a, les Qu\u00e9b\u00e9cois appr\u00e9cient le fait qu\u2019on gouverne de cette fa\u00e7on-l\u00e0.<\/p>\n

PO : It seems to me that there were two major turning points in the last year, and they both relate to not only your approach but the inherent strengths of the Liberal brand. One is the economy ” one, you have the strongest economy here in 35 years, and you\u2019re taking and receiving some credit for it ” and two, there\u2019s the question of diversity and a Quebec open to the world in the context of the Bouchard-Taylor debate, with the two other parties fighting over the socalled identity vote. And in that regard, I thought that your lettre ouverte aux Qu\u00e9b\u00e9cois last October was important. And I was hearing traces of what you used to close some speeches with during campaigns, of the line that you used to take from your mother : \u201dMy mother used to say to us, \u2018Always keep a place at the table for welcome strangers.\u2019 \u201d<\/p>\n

JEAN CHAREST : And that\u2019s the story of Quebecers. There should always be a place at our table for those who want to construct Quebec, who want to build this society. And it\u2019s what gives us our strength, and I find in Quebec now a new confidence in the future and in our ability to be able to build our future with others.<\/p>\n

When I speak of opening up a new economic space, what I know and what I\u2019m trying to do is shed light, a different light on that future and I believe that if any given society is given that perspective, a different perspective allows people to rise to that occasion. So the Bouchard-Taylor\u2019s report is presented in the environment of the opening up space. And all of the sudden an immigrant isn\u2019t someone who\u2019s stealing your job, it\u2019s someone who\u2019s actually here, who\u2019s going to work to pay taxes and allow us to build a better society, a society that will be more prosperous, where people will have better jobs. So I feel very good about what we\u2019ve been able to do, and by the way, you know, what we\u2019re doing on building a new economic space with Ontario isn\u2019t something that either Madame Marois or Mr. Dumont is going to be proposing any day soon. You know, that\u2019s not going to be part of their plan for the future.<\/p>\n

OP : Finalement, M. Harper nous a dit dans un entretien publi\u00e9 au mois de f\u00e9vrier dans Options politiques, et je cite : \u00ab Je pense que le pays est bien servi quand un bon f\u00e9d\u00e9raliste est premier ministre du Qu\u00e9bec. \u00bb \u00cates-vous d\u2019accord avec \u00e7a ?<\/p>\n

JEAN CHAREST : Oui, un bon f\u00e9d\u00e9raliste, c\u2019est quelqu\u2019un qui croit beaucoup au Qu\u00e9bec.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

OPTIONS POLITIQUES : Monsieur le Premier Ministre, merci d\u2019avoir accept\u00e9 de nous rencontrer. Comme vous le savez, ce num\u00e9ro sp\u00e9cial d\u2019Options politiques\u00a0porte sur le 400e anniversaire de la ville de Qu\u00e9bec. Qu\u2019est-ce que \u00e7a veut dire pour vous, l\u2019importance de Qu\u00e9bec, la ville de Qu\u00e9bec comme berceau du Canada fran\u00e7ais et en Am\u00e9rique du Nord […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":0,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"content-type":"","ep_exclude_from_search":false,"apple_news_api_created_at":"2025-08-30T02:56:32Z","apple_news_api_id":"d588c04d-2d71-41e9-ab1f-a302bc7a5c5f","apple_news_api_modified_at":"2025-08-30T02:56:33Z","apple_news_api_revision":"AAAAAAAAAAD\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/w==","apple_news_api_share_url":"https:\/\/apple.news\/A1YjATS1xQemrH6MCvHpcXw","apple_news_cover_media_provider":"image","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_cover_video_id":0,"apple_news_cover_video_url":"","apple_news_cover_embedwebvideo_url":"","apple_news_is_hidden":"","apple_news_is_paid":"","apple_news_is_preview":"","apple_news_is_sponsored":"","apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":[],"apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false},"categories":[9358],"tags":[],"article-status":[],"irpp-category":[4295],"section":[],"irpp-tag":[],"class_list":["post-262581","issues","type-issues","status-publish","hentry","category-politique","irpp-category-politique"],"acf":[],"apple_news_notices":[],"yoast_head":"\nEntretien exclusif avec le premier ministre du Qu\u00e9bec<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/policyoptions.irpp.org\/fr\/2008\/07\/a-conversation-with-the-premier-of-quebec-interview\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"fr_FR\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Entretien exclusif avec le premier ministre du Qu\u00e9bec\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"OPTIONS POLITIQUES : Monsieur le Premier Ministre, merci d\u2019avoir accept\u00e9 de nous rencontrer. 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Comme vous le savez, ce num\u00e9ro sp\u00e9cial d\u2019Options politiques\u00a0porte sur le 400e anniversaire de la ville de Qu\u00e9bec. 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