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Bill 96 flipflop shows CAQ government unclear on its own laws, Liberals say

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Liberal MNA André Fortin wondered how everyday Quebecers could follow Bill 96 when provincial bureaucrats weren't aware of its provisions.

Published Apr 18, 2024  •  Last updated Apr 18, 2024  •  1 minute read

Liberal MNA André Fortin, seenin a file phots, says that tabling laws people can actually understand is "the very basis of government legislation and government responsibilities." Photo by Jacques Boissinot /The Canadian Press files

An after-the-fact admission by the Quebec education ministry that parents of special needs students could indeed have been dealt with in English by provincial bureaucrats shows the Legault government "has introduced legislation that its own government officials don't understand," the opposition Quebec Liberals charged on Thursday.

"So how can they expect business owners to understand it completely? How can they expect everyday Quebecers to understand it completely and meet the requirements of Bill 96?" Liberal MNA André Fortin asked during a press conference Thursday morning.

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Fortin's remarks follow an admission late Wednesday by the provincial education ministry that despite their bureaucrats saying Bill 96 compelled them to conduct an information meeting with anglophone parents of special needs students in French, the law in fact allowed some proceedings to take place "in a language other than French … when the mission of the (education ministry) requires it."

"In the present case," the ministry said, referring to the meeting in question, "the presentation could in fact have been made in English and the ministry will ensure that (in future) circumstances allowing the use of another language are specified."

Fortin said that tabling laws people can actually understand is "the very basis of government legislation and government responsibilities." He added that he hoped the controversy sparked by the incident would result in the government henceforth making sure "that everybody knows to the letter of the law what is allowed and what isn't allowed, because there are real repercussions for parents who did not deserve to go to a meeting that they didn't understand a single word of."

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  1. Allison Hanes: English be damned, even for parents of kids with special needs

  2. Allison Hanes: Now we're seeing what Bill 96 is made of

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