Clouds gathered over the meeting of the prime ministers Francois Legault and Justin Trudeau scheduled for Friday in Montreal, literally and figuratively. The rare head-to-head was postponed due to rainfall, which was not exceptional from Montreal.

On Wednesday, François Legault had indicated in a press conference in Quebec that two main topics would be discussed at this meeting: French and health transfers. Regarding the French language, he wanted Justin Trudeau to send “a clear message” to government-chartered companies like Air Canada so that they comply with the French Language Charter, as required by Law 96 on the Official and Common Language of Quebec. However, Liberal MP Marc Garneau expressed Canadian orthodoxy on the matter on Tuesday. “That would be a big mistake for us […] Leaving Quebec the field open to do whatever it wants to do in terms of the Quebec language. »

A pressing issue for François Legault is immigration, most notably the Roxham Road, through which 36,000 asylum seekers have entered the country since the beginning of the year. He also recalled the increase in health transfers requested by the 13 provincial and territorial prime ministers, which he stressed was unanimous. On these two issues, too, the CAQ government is not about to win its case.

In this regard, the Trudeau government, through its health minister, Jean-Yves Duclos, continues to blow hot and cold. As in the past, Ottawa is attempting to undermine the provinces’ illusory united front by suggesting that talks are being held with some of them.

The Trudeau government began by asking the provinces, including Quebec, to submit their data to which the legal government does not object, as this data is public. But the reality is that Ottawa wants a federal “health plan” that moves down the path toward supervisory federalism. Sending unconditional health transfers to the provinces “is not a health plan,” complained Jean-Yves Duclos.

It should be remembered that there is not a single healthcare system in Canada, as some claim, but healthcare systems in each of the provinces, which, although based on the same main principles set out in the Canadian Healthcare Act, have their own distinctive features.

For her part, new Secretary of State for Immigration, Franciscation and Integration, Christine Fréchette, met for the first time with her federal counterpart Sean Fraser on Monday to demand that the Trudeau government solve the Roxham Road problem. She also called for Ottawa to cover the costs of support and welfare services taken over from Quebec and to pay allowances to asylum seekers waiting for work permits so they can attend French classes. wasted effort. Currently, 90% of these migrants who enter the country irregularly remain in Quebec, which is obliged to receive them under the Canada-Quebec Immigration Agreement. Ottawa has the good game.

Justin Trudeau believes Quebec can easily accommodate 112,000 immigrants, all French speakers. However, the immigration threshold reflects only part of the reality. According to data just released by the Quebec Institute of Statistics, there are currently 290,000 non-permanent residents in Quebec, temporary workers and foreign students whose admissions are largely regulated by Ottawa, an administration that the Legault government must take care of.

These are major disputes that deserve serious discussion. A simple snow shower has moved them. So we’ll have to wait for the skies to clear up, both literally and figuratively.

To see in the video