No poutine for the Queen

Posted on December 10th, 2007 Jack No comments  Print This Post

Canadian Prime Minister Steven Harper will not invite Queen Elisabeth II to Quebec’s quatercentenary birthday party, according to Le Devoir:

The Canadian government refuses to invite Queen Elisabeth II to the 400th anniversary of Quebec’s founding in 2008 for fear of of provoking the anger of certain francophone inhabitants opposed to the royalty, La Presse reported yesterday. (translation mine)

The Conservatives have an interesting relationship with Quebec swing voters. At any given federal election, the Bloc Québecois wins most seats, but a handful are roughly in play between the Liberal Party of Canada (LPC) and Conservative Party of Canada (CPC). Protest votes in pro-Ottawa ridings have put the CPC (and its PC predecessor) over the top twice in recent history: 1984 and 2006.

In 1987, PM Brian Mulroney (PC) negotiated the failed Meech Lake Accord, which would have extended Quebec veto power and constitutional status as a “distinct society.” In the following year, his party won 63 of Quebec’s 75 ridings. (The Bloc was not yet on the scene.)

Last year, the ten CPC pick-ups in Quebec bolstered Harper’s 21-seat margin in the Commons. The challenge now is to consolidate gains. Symbols must matter with this slice of the electorate. After all, the scandal that drove the Liberals from power involved their using tax dollars to hang Canadian flags up around Quebec. Snubbing the Queen is a good way to reinforce the CPC-LPC distinction. Unlike Meech Lake, though, this move probably won’t push confederal glue to its limit.