(Quebec) Paul St-Pierre Plamondon believes he has confounded the skeptics by managing to stay at the top of the polls while placing sovereignty at the forefront. Despite the scandals, the PQ leader does not want to “change too much” and “become cynical”.
“We talked about independence, we were attacked throughout the session, then in the end, we ended the session with exactly the same support,” rejoiced the leader of the Parti Québécois. Paul St-Pierre Plamondon took stock of the parliamentary session on Friday, on the last day of work.
First in the polls, the Parti Québécois entered the majority zone in January by obtaining 32% of voting intentions. The latest Léger poll, published this week in the Quebecor media, gives him exactly the same performance. Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon refuses to speak of stagnation, and instead sees his results as the “consolidation” of support for his training.
“We were at the start of the session […] the analyzes were: there are too few of them, so it will be difficult for them to remain relevant and audible. If they continue to talk about independence, they will lose points. Then the other thing was: Too high, too fast. The increasing attacks will eventually cause the support to crumble. None of these hypotheses materialized,” he illustrated.
He even emphasizes having “gained influence” by saying he managed to get the Legault government to move on the issue of screen time among young people and on the issue of temporary immigration.
His popularity was reflected in the increase in “attacks” from his adversaries, lamented Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon. He himself was stung a few times during the last session.
Notably when he pretended to “open his veins” at the Salon bleu during an exchange with François Legault. He also left a parliamentary commissioner in a hurry, exasperated with the Prime Minister’s responses. The CAQ accused him of being biased.
“I was told that all the time: you have to build yourself a shell, a shell. […] What does it mean to build a shell if you become a little cynical in this ultra-partisan contest? I prefer to be as authentic and then as consistent as possible, knowing that it’s not always pleasant,” he said. “I prefer to be sensitive, but not to be cynical,” added Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon.
Furthermore, Paul St-Pierre Plamondon indicated Friday that he will present his response to the Initiative of the Century, a Canadian pressure group which promotes sustained growth in immigration to Canada, at the end of the ‘summer. It was initially planned to present the document –– in which the Parti Québécois will present its new immigration targets – by the end of the parliamentary session.
“We have a document that is 98% ready, but we do not want to publish a document that would be obsolete as of Monday’s meeting [between François Legault and Justin Trudeau], if ever, if ever there were an announcement that changes the situation,” said Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon.