Controversial article on abortion rights to be removed from Quebec constitution bill

Justice Minister Simon Jolin-Barrette yields to pressure and removes the controversial article on abortion rights from his draft Quebec constitution.

In an open letter published Friday in Le Journal de Montréal, Jolin-Barrette emphasizes that the decision to remove the article in question “was not an easy one to make.”

However, he affirms that the government’s goal has always been to “defend women’s freedom of choice” and that, to be consistent with itself, it must take note of the fears expressed by women.

“In light of the extensive consultations surrounding Bill 1, the Quebec Constitutional Act, 2025, we have decided to withdraw section 29,” the minister writes.

“Our intention has always been to defend women’s freedom of choice. And if we want to be consistent with ourselves, we must respect that,” he adds.

Jolin-Barrette wanted to enshrine in Quebec’s future constitution that “the state protects women’s freedom to have an abortion.”

Mounting pressure

Pressure continued to mount on the minister to withdraw Article 29 from his draft constitution.

According to legal experts and women’s groups, enshrining abortion in a future constitution could open the door to restrictions on this right.

Several groups took advantage of the public consultations on Bill 1 to ask the minister to back down.

Jess Legault, general coordinator of the Quebec Federation for Family Planning (FQPN), said the reversal is only a partial win.

“The fact that one article has been removed feels like a small victory, but the battle is still to be led ahead,” she said.

She also warned that constitutionalizing the right could have had unintended consequences.

“Having abortion rights enshrined in the constitution might seem like a good idea, but it actually opens the door to future amendments and restrictions,” Legault said.

Abortion in Canada is already protected by multiple Supreme Court of Canada decisions. For months, critics have argued that formally enshrining the right in Quebec’s constitution would make it more vulnerable, since it could be amended by a simple majority vote in the National Assembly.

Human rights lawyer Geneviève Grey echoed that concern.

“Putting it in the law like this would weaken it. It would weaken the right to abortion because as we can see this law is changeable,” she said.

Grey was also critical of how the issue was handled politically.

“By pretending that (Jolin-Barrette) is going to discuss abortion rights and then sort of saying, ‘okay, I’ll put them in, I’ll take them out.’ It’s all a cheap electoral ploy to win votes,” she said.

The issue even made its way into the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) leadership race. Earlier this week, candidate Christine Fréchette said she was considering removing Article 29 from the draft constitution due to a lack of support.

On Thursday, her rival in the race, Bernard Drainville, let the cat out of the bag by stating that Jolin-Barrette was going to make an announcement and that he was “very comfortable with the position” that was going to be announced.

It should be noted that Martine Biron, when she was minister of status of women, also wanted to legislate to protect abortion rights, but she faced similar criticism. She ultimately gave up on her endeavor.

‘Quebec is not immune’

Despite his retreat, the justice minister says he is still concerned about the erosion of abortion rights in Quebec.

In his letter, he cites “the U.S. Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade (which) set back American women’s rights by fifty years,” as well as the tightening of abortion laws in Hungary.

“The current protection of abortion rights in Canada is based on case law that, while sufficient to protect women’s freedom of choice thus far, is not infallible. This case law is fragmented and does not explicitly recognize a right to abortion. It could be overturned, just as it was in the United States,” the minister argues.

“I remain convinced, like many others, that Quebec is not immune to the possibility that women’s rights will one day be called into question. I sincerely hope that day never comes,” he added.

Legault pushed back on that argument.

“It’s what he’s been saying all along. And no other pro-choice lawyer agrees with him,” she said.

“We have to remember that the Supreme Court of Canada has ruled five times in favor of abortion since 1988.”

Last October, The Canadian Press obtained a copy of a poll commissioned by the CAQ indicating that 77 per cent of respondents were in favor of Quebec legislating to protect the right to abortion. This percentage rose to 83 per cent for women.

‘Better late than never’

On Friday, Fréchette welcomed her colleague’s decision. “In recent days, we have heard several groups express their concerns about Section 29. These concerns deserved to be heard and taken into consideration,” she wrote on social media.

Opposition parties in Quebec City all welcomed Jolin-Barrette’s reversal.

“After seeing the unanimous opposition to him and his plan to include the right to abortion in the constitution, the minister finally backed down, and we breathe a huge sigh of relief. Women’s reproductive autonomy belongs exclusively to them, and we must never question it or allow it to be subject to legal challenges. It is non-negotiable,” said Liberal MNA Brigitte Garceau.

“Better late than never,” said Solidarity spokesperson Sol Zanetti. Although he welcomes the justice minister’s reversal, he maintains that there are many “problematic” elements in the draft constitution.

“There are things in there, such as the weakening of checks and balances and the rule of law, that are extremely serious. And we’re going to have to talk about them, because for us, this bill must be withdrawn completely,” he said at a press conference at the National Assembly.

“If the minister had consulted beforehand rather than drafting his bill in secret, we could have avoided this unfortunate episode, which has caused so much concern,” said PQ member Pascal Paradis.

The Order of Nurses also welcomed the minister’s decision to back down. “Removing section 29 is the best way to preserve stability and focus efforts on providing women with the care they really need,” said Luc Mathieu, president of the order.

However, the Order says removing the clause is only a first step. Mathieu added that improving access must include expanding services across the province.

“That’s one thing. Then, supporting the development of new service points where pregnancy terminations can be performed and offering abortion services at all stages of pregnancy to all people seeking care,” he said.

Legault said that months of debate over the constitution delayed more concrete improvements.

“If we hadn’t been distracted by the constitution over the past four months, we could have been participating actively in putting those measures into place,” she said.

–This report by La Presse Canadienne was translated by CityNews