(Ottawa) Bloc leader Jean-Denis Garon discusses the reason for his upcoming departure: the work-family balance of elected officials
Posted at 2:03 a.m.
Updated at 7:00 a.m.
Since he announced that he would not seek a new mandate at the end of August, MP Jean-Denis Garon has not had the slightest regret. However, he loves this work.
But he had to choose between his political career and the well-being of his family, like provincial Liberal MP Marwah Rizqy. And no adjustment could have made him change his mind.
“What is difficult is having the choice between two good situations,” admits the elected representative of the Bloc Québécois in an interview.
I left a job that I love, that I think I perform well in, because I think family life is important.
Jean-Denis Garon, Member of Parliament for Mirabel
He receives us in his office on Parliament Hill, which he will leave after the next federal election. He and his partner are expecting their first child in November.
“Of course, sometimes it’s heartbreaking to be asked why you’re leaving,” he admits. But the most fundamental thing is that I am a sovereignist. I think there are great things coming. I think that you don’t necessarily have to be an MP to be an activist. Then I’m going to want to attend the first years of the little one. It’s really important to me. »
He gave himself time to reflect during the summer season and ultimately decided to return to university life.
The weight of the back and forth
Jean-Denis Garon had put aside his career as an economics professor at the School of Management Sciences at the University of Quebec at Montreal in 2021 to be elected as a Bloc Québécois MP in the Mirabel riding. He first stood out as an Infoman lookalike, then as an incisive parliamentarian. His decision is carefully considered.
“Work-family balance when you are an MP, it happens, but it will always be a particular work-family balance because you have responsibilities that go beyond yourself,” explains the 41-year-old elected official. You have urgency, you have Parliament, you have distance. »
So, it’s inevitable that the spouse will end up paying in one way or another. It’s inevitable. From a professional point of view, from a personal point of view, from a mental point of view. I think we have some deep reflections to make on this.
Jean-Denis Garon, Member of Parliament for Mirabel
Life as a federal MP requires regular travel back and forth between Ottawa and your constituency. When the House of Commons is in session, elected officials generally leave the capital on Friday and return on Sunday or Monday morning..
Unlike the National Assembly, where there are three question periods per week, from Tuesday to Thursday, there are five in the House of Commons, from Monday to Friday.
Added to this are parliamentary committee meetings to study bills and constituency work. The House of Commons allows participation in committees and remote votes, but the fact remains that it is a demanding life, torn between two places… but at the same time rewarding.
Your MP is a bit like 911. You hope you never have to deal with it.
Jean-Denis Garon, Member of Parliament for Mirabel
“When you deal with your MP, it’s because you’re in trouble, there’s a rush, then you’re in distress, you’re separated from a member of your family, you’re afraid for someone, list- he. We deal with situations like this on a daily basis. Then a person in distress writes to you on Friday, they write to you on Sunday, on Saturday. Sometimes there are urgent things. It’s part of the job. »
He cites the example of concerned citizens of Oka who write to him when they hear of firearms being discharged on the Mohawk territory of Kanesatake on weekends, or the efforts he made a few weeks ago to get a citizen out of his constituency stuck in Lebanon during Israeli bombings.
The elected official then increased his calls to try to find him a safe passage out of the country.
“You cannot decide that you are not doing your job with a citizen in distress because you took Fridays off or because you cook on Monday. »
“For me, it’s among the files where I felt the most useful,” he confides.
“There is a lot of gratitude”
He remembers two notable moments from his three years as an elected official: the lifting by Ottawa of the airport easement which prevented the construction of the Synergie Mirabel seniors’ residence project, and the adoption by the House of Commons of Bill C-290 to protect whistleblowers.
“I was surprised to see how grateful people were for simple things like that,” he says.
“You receive a lot of insults when you are an MP, but there is a lot of gratitude, really a lot. »
He now hopes that the Senate will have enough time to adopt C-290 before the next election campaign begins, otherwise “it would be a major missed opportunity.” And he is preparing for the upcoming arrival of his newborn.
