(Quebec) Former Liberal Minister of Justice Marc Bellemare will address activists of the Conservative Party of Quebec (PCQ) who will meet in national council in Victoriaville on Saturday.
Posted at 7:51 a.m.
Patrice Bergeron
The Canadian Press
Former elected officials from other political parties should also be present, suggested PCQ spokesperson Cédric Lapointe during an interview with The Canadian Press.
Me Bellemare will advocate for tougher penalties against offenders, said Mr. Lapointe.
He intends to address the issue of minimum sentences for domestic and sexual violence, as well as the abolition of house detention.
It will also be about the Jordan ruling and the reform of prison financing, it was specified.
The PCQ is holding its national council in Victoriaville because a complementary election could be called there soon and it believes it has a chance of winning.
The seat of Arthabaska could indeed become free in the near future.
This is because the current MP, Éric Lefebvre, an independent excluded from the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ), announced last April his intention to make the leap into federal politics under the banner of Pierre’s Conservative Party of Canada (PCC). Poilievre.
So when the federal elections are called, a supplementary election will have to be held in Arthabaska.
Arthabaska is rather fertile ground for conservative ideas: the riding association has more than 1,400 members, according to PCQ data.
A very recent Segma poll commissioned by the Parti Québécois (PQ) would place it first in the race, with 30%, but the PCQ follows closely, at 26%, and the CAQ at 23%. Québec solidaire (QS) would obtain 11% of the votes and the Liberal Party (PLQ) 7%.
The PCQ would thus aim to finally make its entry into the National Assembly and its leader Éric Duhaime does not rule out the possibility of running for office himself, the party spokesperson suggested.
PHOTO EDOUARD PLANTE-FRÉCHETTE, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Eric Duhaime
In the 2022 general election, conservative candidate Tarek Henoud came second with more than 11,000 votes, but Mr. Lefebvre won almost double.
Marc Bellemare became known at another time for his crusade against “no fault”, the no-fault plan established by the Société d’assurance automobile du Québec (SAAQ): it covers all Quebecers who are victims of a road accident, whether they are responsible or not.
Elected Liberal MP in 2003 and appointed Minister of Justice by Jean Charest, he resigned in 2004.
Furthermore, his allegations will notably be at the origin of the Bastarache commission in 2010-2011.
He had suggested that he had been the subject of pressure from influential members of the PLQ for the appointment of judges and that he had been at the center of influence peddling.
Judge Michel Bastarache finally questioned Mr. Bellemare’s version. He concluded that the minister had not been subjected to “colossal pressure”, but that the system “opens the door to the possibility of favoritism in the choice of candidates”.
The method of appointing judges was subsequently reformed.
