A few weeks ago, the Ghislain Dufour Business Forum launched its activities for the year 2025 by welcoming the leader of the Bloc Québécois and member of Parliament for Beloeil-Chambly, Mr. Yves-François Blanchet. Presented by André Bouthillier, Executive Vice President at NATIONAL Public Relations, our guest first evoked the volatility of the current political context, both in the country and with our American neighbours, to illustrate the magnitude of the challenges that have emerged in the Canadian political universe in just under a month. It is enough to mention the resignation of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, the race for the leadership of the Liberal Party of Canada, or, obviously, the threat of economic retaliation by American President Donald Trump, not to mention a hypothetical annexation of Canadian territory to that of the United States.
In this regard, Mr. Blanchet describes the creation of a 51st American state from Canadian territory as a "fable." According to him, such a move would favour the Democrats more than the Republicans because of the political affinities of Canadians. But, says the Bloc Québécois leader, President Trump is in office for four years and we must adapt to this reality. That is why he wishes to hold a general election as soon as possible so that the Canadian government has all the necessary latitude to adopt measures that will allow it to retaliate against any eventual imposition by Washington of tariffs penalizing the purchase of Canadian products and services.
Moreover, Mr. Blanchet finds the idea of threatening the United States with economic retaliation based on electricity and oil far-fetched, while Quebec—which has just concluded an agreement on hydroelectric development with Newfoundland and Labrador—is striving to sell more energy to the northeastern states. According to Mr. Blanchet, negotiations will necessarily take place and it is important to avoid Quebec stepping on toes with clients interested in clean electricity.
As for the issue of the permeability of the Canada-U.S. border, Mr. Blanchet believes that Canada's role is to ensure that no one enters our territory illegally and not to police the border to prevent illegal entries into the United States. The Bloc Québécois leader believes, however, that there could be better tripartite coordination between Canada, the United States and Mexico to curb the entry of drugs into their respective territories.
Mr. Blanchet believes that there should be a revision of the trade agreement linking Canada, the United States and Mexico (CUSMA) and that Quebec's representation during these negotiations should reflect the economic weight of the province so that its interests are adequately represented. The Bloc Québécois leader added that the unprecedented situation currently being experienced should prompt Quebec to further process its primary resources rather than letting other entities benefit from them.
Generous with his time, Mr. Blanchet was happy to answer questions from Forum members during a lively exchange moderated by Julien Provencher-Proulx, Director of Public Affairs and Corporate Communications at NATIONAL. Mirabel Paquette, Partner and Senior Vice President, Corporate Communications at NATIONAL and coordinator of the Ghislain Dufour Business Forum, thanked Mr. Blanchet for his generous presentation, which was highly appreciated by the many guests present.
From left to right: André Bouthillier, Executive Vice-President at NATIONAL Public Relations, Mirabel Paquette, Partner and Senior Vice-President, Corporate Communications at NATIONAL and coordinator of the Ghislain Dufour Business Forum, our guest Yves-François Blanchet, and Julien Provencher-Proulx, Director of Public Affairs and Corporate Communications at NATIONAL.
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The Ghislain Dufour Business Forum allows business people to meet and engage in dialogue with Quebec and Canadian political and business figures, political advisors or high-level public administrators on an apolitical and non-partisan basis. For more information, visit the event page.
