Sparks fly over immigration at leaders’ debate
Legault spreading fear with his party’s proposals, Couillard says
François Legault went on the offensive in Thursday ’s leaders’ debate, pouncing on a Liberal candidate’s inflammatory remarks about the Coalition Avenir Québec’s immigration policies to accuse Philippe Couillard of portraying his party as intolerant.
But Liberal Leader Philippe Couillard pulled his own fast one on the CAQ leader, blasting him for failing to show up at a joint news conference of Quebec players standing up for the supply management system.
In a lively and animated twohour debate between the four candidates on Radio-Canada, sparks flew over the CAQ’s controversial plan to impose French and values tests on new arrivals and lower the level of immigration by 20 per cent.
As the evening was winding down, Legault tried to surprise Couillard by referring to remarks made by the Liberal candidate in the riding of Taillon, Mohammed Barhone, who recently delivered a speech in which he said the CAQ’s policies amount of “immigrant cleaning.”
Barhone also said the CAQ’s policy will be to not provide services to a woman wearing a hijab.
“Will you apologize and force that candidate out of the race,” Legault said, waving his finger at Couillard, who rapidly said the candidate has apologized.
But Legault wouldn’t let it go. “You tolerated this like you tolerated Carlos Leitão (the Liberal finance minister) who said we in the CAQ were racist.”
“You know why people react like this,” responded Couillard. “You scare them. Don’t open the door to expulsions.”
“Quebecers are fed up with your moralizing,” Legault answered.
“When you say expulsion, we’re not talking about expelling citizens. We’re talking about expelling people who are not yet citizens.”
And so it went in a debate that arrived just in time. Many feel the campaign leading to the Oct. 1 vote
You propose a ... reduction in wait times, but there isn’t a damn cent for this in your financial plan.
is stagnating and the event, viewed by more than a million Quebecers, was seen as a way to break the logjam.
The leaders didn’t disappoint, kicking around the issues of the day and each other, too.
In a twist for a Quebec election, which used to be dominated by the old sovereignty-federalism debate, the vast part of the evening was focused on ideas and the kind of government the parties are offering taxpayers.
“Clarity, different points of view, we’re moving forward,” host Patrice Roy said as the debate passed the midway point.
The predicted gang-up on Legault, who leads in the polls, was muted by the fact there were four candidates. He emerged largely unscathed, while Couillard found himself constantly under attack over his government’s austerity agenda and the $1 billion handed to the province’s medical specialists.
If two did shine, it was the duo of Parti Québécois Leader JeanFrançois Lisée and Québec solidaire co-spokesperson Manon Massé. Lisée aggressively stood his ground, not allowing Legault and Couillard to grab all the spotlight, while Massé used her trademark no-nonsense way of talking to bring her opponents down a notch.
The tone was set from the start when the first of eight citizens asked a question about the quality of care in the province’s long term public care senior homes.
Immediately, the Liberal past and it’s health and social services record roared to life as a theme, with Lisée launching an attack following reports of a resident being forced to sleep in their wheelchair.
“You never showed any compassion,” Lisée fired across at Couillard.
“You don’t have the monopoly on compassion,” responded Couillard.
Legault also ripped Couillard saying his record on senior care is “shameful.”
And there was no love lost between the candidates when it came to emergency wait times, with Legault saying Couillard, when he was health minister in the Charest government, was supposed to solve the problem.
The CAQ’s promise to bring wait times to 90 minutes on average (from 140 minutes now) over four years was greeted with much skepticism.
“Explain how you will do it,” Couillard said to Legault.
“You propose a ... reduction in wait times, but there isn’t a damn cent for this in your financial plan,” added Massé.
Couillard reminded Legault that it was when he was a PQ health minister who signed a letter with Quebec’s doctors in 2002 pledging to level the playing field between salaries in Quebec and the other provinces.
Pouncing, Lisée asked Legault why Quebec’s doctors’ salaries should be based on those in Ontario.
“We live in a capitalist system,” Legault said. “It seems like you live on another planet.”
But Lisée fired back, “it’s not (Ontario Premier) Doug Ford who sets the salaries of Quebec doctors.”
This sparked a debate over who cut the most with Couillard trotting out an old video clip of Legault where he appeared to say cutting in education makes sense.
“I never said that,” Legault fired back, noting it was Couillard’s government that cut staffing for children for learning disabilities.
Thursday’s debate was the first of three. On Monday the leaders meet for a televised English debate. Then they do it all over again in French on the TVA network next Thursday, Sept 20.