Several CAQ members have approached the PQ, reveals Paul St-Pierre Plamondon

Several CAQ members of the National Assembly of Québec have been in talks with the Parti Québécois (PQ) about the possibility of joining its ranks, Paul St-Pierre Plamondon revealed on Wednesday.

“There are more who want to jump ship than you think,” the PQ leader said at a press conference at the National Assembly, reiterating that he had no intention of recruiting CAQ members ahead of the next election.

The three opposition parties in Quebec City responded to former CAQ MNA Isabelle Poulet being kicked out of the party.

On Tuesday, Laporte MNA Isabelle Poulet was expelled from the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ)   for holding discussions with the Quebec Liberal Party (QLP).

On Wednesday, Poulet published the text she had planned to read on Tuesday morning when she called a press conference to discuss her political future.

The text reveals that the elected representative intended to announce that she was leaving the CAQ caucus, saying she disagreed with the way Health Minister Christian Dubé had handled the doctors’ file.

However, the press briefing was cancelled at the last minute, so Poulet was never able to read her statement. After a final meeting with Premier François Legault, she was expelled from the CAQ caucus on Tuesday evening.

Poulet maintains that the public’s confidence in the CAQ at the end of the pandemic has eroded.

“The status quo is no longer possible. The health care system must be reformed. But I cannot support the proposed solution,” she wrote in a speech published Wednesday morning on Facebook. 

“This reform has been poorly conceived and poorly communicated.”

Legault is under fire for the new legislation, which he forced through the national assembly late last month. The law ties part of physicians’ remuneration to performance targets, and threatens steep fines for those who use pressure tactics to boycott the changes. Doctors argue it muzzles them and could drive physicians out of Quebec.

One of Legault’s ministers, Lionel Carmant, has already quit the caucus after expressing doubts about the bill. 

Ahead of Poulet’s meeting with Legault, Quebec Liberal Leader Pablo Rodriguez told reporters she had approached his party multiple times about crossing the floor, beginning in August, before the new bill was tabled. Poulet’s riding on Montreal’s South Shore used to be a Liberal stronghold, but Rodriguez said he had “other plans” for the seat. 

She asserts that the party’s values and political priorities no longer correspond to her convictions, and maintains that the adoption of Bill 2 under closure crystallized her disappointment.

“I regret having voted for it. I no longer share the health minister’s vision. The bond of trust has been broken,” she writes.

However, the member for Laporte had defended Bill 2 when it was passed just over a week ago.

“We are convinced that the changes already in place, with this reform, will improve the care provided to the population. We are motivated to continue our work to ensure a health care system worthy of our citizens.

Madam Speaker, we will not give up,“ she said at the time.

While she agreed with the principle of reforming the way doctors are paid, Poulet now says she cannot ”endorse the proposed remedy.”

On Tuesday, Legault said he wants to restart talks with the province’s doctors about the terms of the bill. 

Including Poulet, nine members of the CAQ caucus have quit or been kicked out since the last election in 2022. Poulet will now sit as an Independent member of the legislature.

–This report by La Presse Canadienne was translated by CityNews