CAQ scraps controversial Quebec constitution bill
Posted June 11, 2026 12:21 pm.
Last Updated June 11, 2026 2:03 pm.
On the eve of the National Assembly’s adjournment, the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) government has abandoned its efforts to pass its controversial Quebec constitution bill.
The decision not to impose a gag order to force its passage rests with House Leader François Bonnardel and Premier Christine Fréchette, Justice Minister Simon-Barrette explained on Thursday.
Faced with obstruction by the Liberal Party and Québec Solidaire (QS) in the parliamentary committee, he announced that he was abandoning his ambitious Bill 1, which covered a very broad range of issues.
“If it weren’t for the timing and partisanship surrounding the end of the session, this bill would have been passed, because there is nothing in the text—absolutely nothing—that is problematic, especially following the consultations,” he stated during a press scrum after question period.
The parliamentary committee that was scheduled to meet on Thursday to review the many articles of the constitution still awaiting adoption would therefore not continue its work.
Jolin-Barrette declined to say he was disappointed by the turn of events, but instead emphasized that he was “proud” to have taken this bill “as far as possible.”
He said he remained “optimistic” and that this was “a step in the history of the Quebec nation.”
His opponents, Liberal Party MNA André A. Morin and QS MNA Haroun Bouazzi, were instead pleased to have blocked the CAQ’s proposal.
–This report by La Presse Canadienne was translated by CityNews
