Dominique Anglade emphasizes that Quebec needs the Liberal Party of Quebec (PLQ) “more than ever”.

She responded Friday to Coalition avenir Québec leader François Legault, who said the day before after the leaders’ debate that the PLQ no longer had a right to exist.

Mr Legault had argued during the debate that the PLQ had “lost the monopoly of being against sovereignty”.

“Our party is proposing more autonomy within Canada and I believe that the Liberal Party has no right to exist because of that,” he replied to an English-speaking journalist.

“It’s a prime minister who’s overwhelmed,” replies Ms Anglade, who recalls that as late as 2022, Mr Legault was still recruiting several candidates “who want to achieve sovereignty”.

“What we are offering to Quebecers is a real alternative not only from an economic perspective, but also from an inclusion perspective,” she said.

For them, François Legault is “denial” when he addresses labor shortages by speaking of workers who are “happy”.

“Have you met many workers who are very happy right now?

“Nurses are exhausted, teachers can’t take it anymore, (…) people leave the profession, entrepreneurs really work more because they can’t hire employees,” she illustrated.

The Liberal leader also said she was “stunned” by the outgoing prime minister’s statement that the “problem at Joliette hospital has been solved”.

Mr Legault argued at the leaders’ debate on Thursday that the measures taken since Joyce Echaquan’s death had made it possible to rectify the situation.

“It trivializes the whole problem of systemic racism, it trivializes the relationship with indigenous people,” Ms Anglade protested.

PLQ-QS confrontation

The leader of the PLQ was the target of several attacks during the debate, including by Québec solidaire (QS) spokeswoman Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois, who has repeatedly criticized her record as opposition leader.

The latter also campaigned in Ms. Anglade’s stronghold of Saint-Henri-Sainte-Anne in southwest Montreal on Friday, urging disenchanted Liberals to vote QS.

“Mr. Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois wants to remain in opposition; I aspire to replace François Legault,” replied Ms. Anglade, interposed by the media.

In her opinion, Quebecers should avoid supporting Mr. Nadeau-Dubois’ party because of “the whole question of taxes that he is asking citizens”.

Close battles between PLQ and QS are expected in several Montreal counties.