Parti Québécois says it won’t hold referendum on sovereignty while Trump is president

If elected to form a government, the Parti Québécois says it would not call a referendum on sovereignty until at least 2029. 

PQ Leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon announced the news on Tuesday morning as Quebec political parties gear up for an election campaign that is expected to begin before the end of August.

In a statement posted on social media, St-Pierre Plamondon said that a PQ government would not put the sovereignty question to a vote as long as U.S. President Donald Trump is in the White House. 

But he stressed that his party still plans to call a referendum on whether Quebec should separate from Canada in its first mandate.

St-Pierre Plamondon said an issue as crucial as the future of Quebec requires a clear and serene debate, which should not be disrupted by American politics or surprise announcements coming from the U.S. president.

St-Pierre Plamondon also says the unpredictable nature of the Trump administration could harm the referendum process as well as the quality of a debate about Quebec's future.

The PQ leader believes he is disarming his opponents’ argument that this would be the worst time to elect a separatist government because of Trump.

The Coalition Avenir Québec and the Quebec Liberals pushed back against St-Pierre Plamondon's latest promise, saying it will add to political and economic uncertainty. 

Speaking to journalists in Montreal, Quebec Premier Christine Fréchette said it would be "worse" to hold a referendum at the end of a mandate. 

"If you organize a referendum at the beginning of a PQ mandate, at least after a year or two, you're set, you know if it's a yes or a no," she said. 

St-Pierre Plamondon is recognizing that Quebec is under economic and political pressure due to trade tensions with its southern neighbour, she said, and that a referendum would add a "thick layer" of unpredictability. She added her electoral campaign will focus on the cost of living.

Liberal Leader Charles Milliard said in a statement that the PQ is admitting that its referendum promise is "too risky" without abandoning it. 

"He’s right about one thing: it is risky. But what’s risky today will still be risky after Donald Trump," said Milliard. 

He said Quebec should be building alliances within Canada, "not choosing the best moment to cut them.”

Quebec's leftist sovereigntist party, Québec solidaire, maintains that Quebec should become a country. But parliamentary leader Ruba Ghazal promised her party would hold extensive consultations, including with First Nations and Inuit, to first build social acceptability. 

Ghazal said she finds it "concerning" that support for independence has stagnated, with about a third of Quebecers saying they would vote yes in a referendum. She added that, regardless of who is at the legislature, it's up to Quebecers to decide on sovereignty. 

"Our independence project should not depend on the Trumps of the world," she said. "This is the new normal, and we don't know who will replace Trump." 

St-Pierre Plamondon insisted he wants to run a campaign based on proposals to help Quebecers, including tackling the housing crisis and cost of living, rather than on what he calls “redundant and fruitless fearmongering.” 

“In any case, the fact remains that, given Quebec’s current state, a government called upon to clean up the mess left by the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) will have plenty of challenges and tasks to tackle right from the start of its term," St-Pierre Plamondon wrote.

The PQ has been leading in recent public opinion polls ahead of a general election in Quebec that must be held by Oct. 5.