Legault admits that Dubé’s resignation is “another tough blow to take”
Posted December 19, 2025 8:23 am.
Last Updated December 19, 2025 1:26 pm.
Premier François Legault acknowledges that the resignation of his Health Minister, Christian Dubé, is “another tough blow to take,” but he defends his intervention in negotiations with doctors, arguing that the time had come to reach an agreement.
Dubé resigned dramatically on Thursday, slamming the door on the Coalition Avenir Québec caucus in the process, notably because of the way negotiations with general practitioners had unfolded.
Dubé lamented that the agreement in principle reached with the Fédération des médecins omnipraticiens du Québec (FMOQ) “essentially maintains the status quo on the governance issues” that his Bill 2 sought to reform.
On Friday morning, Legault turned to social media to react to Dubé’s departure from his government. “I respect his decision and I have accepted his resignation,” he wrote.
Legault, however, staunchly defended his decision to have personally “taken back control” of negotiations with doctors.
“As premier, I judged that we had gone far enough and that it was time to reach an agreement with doctors to avoid further damaging the health system,” he argued.
The agreement in principle reached with the FMOQ, which still needs to be ratified by general practitioners, abandoned entire sections of Dubé’s controversial Bill 2.
However, according to Legault, in the context of tense negotiations with doctors, the government had to focus on the “important changes that needed to be made to improve services to citizens.”
Not hiding the fact that the departure of Dubé, a heavyweight in his government, is “another blow that is hard to take”, Legault stated that such situations come with the role of premier.
“When you are premier, the interests of Quebec and Quebecers must come first,” he declared.
Dubé indicated that he will remain the independent MNA for La Prairie. He had already announced that he would not be running in the next election in 2026.
–This report by La Presse Canadienne was translated by CityNews
