Mark Carney says ‘non merci’ to a French-Language debate

Article content

OTTAWA — Liberal Leader Mark Carney lost the first French-language debate before it even started.

The Liberal Party of Canada announced its leader will not participate in the all-important French language TVA debate, raising yet another question about his ability to speak to francophones across the country and especially in Quebec.

The most-watched French-language network in Quebec organizes a parallel event to the French and English-language debates organized by the Leaders’ Debates Commission, both of which Carney will still attend.

Article content

But the TVA debate has become a must-see event during every election.

For example, former Conservative leader Andrew Scheer’s performance in this debate in 2019 was widely panned, while Justin Trudeau’s Liberals were able to regain momentum and win a second term.

However, TVA announced a few days ago that it was asking the four main political parties to contribute $75,000 each to participate, due to a lack of funding. Now, the absence of a single party means the debate won’t go ahead.

The Bloc Québécois quickly signed the contract and expressed willingness to participate, even though it raised ethical questions. All political parties were reluctant to pay to debate. Pierre Poilievre’s Conservative Party, however, announced its participation.

Poilievre even challenged Carney to do the same.

“Why not? Yes, yes,” Carney told reporters on Monday. He emphasized that he wanted to participate in the debates with all political parties, including the Green Party. TVA, however, only invited the Liberals, Conservatives, the Bloc Québécois, and the NDP.

A few hours later, his team announced that he would not debate on TVA. No Liberal party means there won’t be a debate.

Article content

Article content

“Mr. Carney… looks forward to participating in the Leaders’ Debate Commission debates, which were confirmed today for April 16 and 17 in Montreal,” said Liberal party spokesperson Guillaume Bertrand.

The party did not explain why he would not participate. A source, speaking on background, said there was a reluctance to pay for the event.

“The Liberal leader claims to have the strength and courage to confront Donald Trump, but he doesn’t even have the courage to come and speak to Quebecers. He disqualifies himself, and Quebecers will pass judgment without appeal,” said Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet.

The NDP deputy leader Alexandre Boulerice said it was “very insulting to Quebec” and that “no matter what excuse he gives, the truth is that Mark Carney prefers to hide and not answer questions in French.”

However, his absence could highlight his difficulties with the French language.

The only time Carney debated in French was during the Liberal leadership race, where he showed his limitations, accidentally saying that he was “in agreement with Hamas.”

Article content

Then, at a press conference in Iqaluit last week, he didn’t understand a French-speaking journalist’s question about his potential conflicts of interest.

A growing number of voices, including those from opposition parties, are pointing out that Mr. Carney has not been “tested” in French and in Quebec, where he enjoys exceptional support in the polls.

According to a recent National Post-Léger poll, the Liberals have 40 per cent support in the province, and Léger executive vice-president Andrew Enns described the Liberal growth in Quebec as “astronomical.”

“Quebecers are quite willing to forgive someone who makes certain mistakes or hesitations in French, but they must feel that there is a real interest in speaking French and in being interested in Quebec issues,” said Antonine Yaccarini, a political analyst and former contributor to the Parti Québécois and the Coalition Avenir Québec.

For example, Carney adopted the slogan of Quebec’s Quiet Revolution, “Maître chez nous,” in his speeches.

However, the new Prime Minister doesn’t give many interviews in French.

Article content

He has, for instance, abolished the title “minister for official languages,” raising many criticisms among the francophone minority.

“The fact that we have a minister responsible for official languages listed, I think that’s a sign of respect, it shows that people are aware that there is a whole section of the population, and that Canada is made up of two official languages,” said Liane Roy, the president of the Federation of Francophone and Acadian Communities of Canada.

And then, there is the elbows-up campaign with Mike Myers, where the famous Canadian actor gives his support to Carney. There is no reference to Quebec in the videos and the Liberal Party put French subtitles for the French version.

The expression “elbows-up” means nothing in French. The Liberal Party declined to comment on whether a French-language advertising campaign targeting Quebec, like Pierre Poilievre’s, was underway.

“What is unfortunate is that Quebec is so rich in cultural references and figurative expression, it is difficult to believe that the Liberal Party’s communications could not ultimately have chosen an expression that would have had the same effect in French while respecting their theme that they are trying to develop around hockey,” says Catapulte Communication’s public affairs strategist Cedrik Verreault.

Article content

Verreault underlines that the Liberals’ path to victory is inevitably linked to Quebec and so if the party doesn’t give more attention to Quebecers, maybe they’ll pivot to the Bloc Québécois.

“We have an accumulation of several things that raise a yellow flag,” Yaccarini added.

If he only declined the invitation to the TVA debate, that would be one thing. But the accumulation of small details could upset Quebecers, who are the most volatile voters in the country.

“Right now, there is obviously a phenomenon of Canadian patriotism and Canadian unity that means that the specific issues of Quebec are somewhat eclipsed in all of this,” said Yaccarini.

“But these issues and these Quebec specificities have not disappeared forever.”

National Post
atrepanier@postmedia.com

Get more deep-dive National Post political coverage and analysis in your inbox with the Political Hack newsletter, where Ottawa bureau chief Stuart Thomson and political analyst Tasha Kheiriddin get at what’s really going on behind the scenes on Parliament Hill every Wednesday and Friday, exclusively for subscribers. Sign up here.

Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark nationalpost.com and sign up for our newsletters here.

Article content