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Quebec premier-designate Paul St-Pierre Plamondon has formally asked the province’s lieutenant-governor to stay away from his new cabinet’s swearing-in ceremony on Wednesday.
In a letter sent Monday to Lt.-Gov. Manon Jeannotte, the Parti Québécois leader stated his incoming government will not allow a representative of the British Crown to preside over the event.
“We firmly intend to abolish this monarchy in Quebec, both within our democratic institutions and in our civil society,” St-Pierre Plamondon wrote.
He makes it clear that he does not want the lieutenant-governor present, requesting that she sign the necessary appointment documents behind the scenes so the Secretary General can administer the oaths without her. Proceeding this way, the PQ leader wrote, will allow the newly appointed ministers to begin their work immediately.
“We thank you in advance for the co-operation you will demonstrate to ensure that this important day for our democracy unfolds without hindrance and with respect for the will of the elected members of the National Assembly of Quebec,” he added.
But the new government’s anti-monarchy agenda is facing an immediate legal roadblock.
One of the lawyers challenging the 2022 Quebec law that made the mandatory oath to the King optional for elected officials says his case for an emergency injunction will be heard in court Tuesday.
Lawrence David said in an email he expects a quick decision from Judge Ian Demers, but “we will 100 per cent appeal the judgment if we do not win.”
To swear or not to swear allegiance
Earlier this month, David, founder of the Public Interest Litigation Institute, filed an emergency injunction in an attempt to force the incoming Parti Québécois (PQ) government to swear allegiance to King Charles.
The injunction asks the court to immediately suspend a 2022 provincial law, known as Bill 4, that made the oath to the monarch optional for members of the National Assembly. David already filed a lawsuit in August over the same matter.
Bill 4 added a clause to the Constitution Act of 1867 stating that the oath to the monarch no longer applies to Quebec legislators.
The bill was tabled by the Coalition Avenir Québec government after facing pressure from the PQ. Several members of the PQ had refused to swear allegiance to King Charles III and were barred from sitting.
Will the PQ be barred from their seats?
The legal challenge comes on the heels of the provincial election, which handed the Parti Québécois a minority government. St-Pierre Plamondon has already stated he will once again refuse to swear allegiance to King Charles.
If the stay is granted, incoming MNAs who refuse the oath could be legally barred from taking their seats when the legislature reconvenes in mid-November.
At the heart of the lawsuit is the argument that Quebec unilaterally altered the 1867 Constitution Act without the required unanimous consent of the House of Commons, the Senate and all of the country’s provincial legislatures to abolish the mandatory oath.
It also alleges the law violates Section 3 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which guarantees the right to effective representation, because politicians who do not take the oath are not qualified to serve as an MNA.
David has warned that if the newly elected government attempts to unilaterally abolish the office of the lieutenant-governor, he is prepared to launch additional legal challenges.
