English-speaking Community Will Not Abandon School Boards, QCGN Advises Premier

MONTREAL, Dec. 14, 2018 /CNW Telbec/ - Quebec's English-speaking community has absolutely no intention of heeding Premier François Legault's advice that we abandon any plans to challenge the Coalition Avenir Quebec government's scheme to abolish school boards and replace them with service centres.

Acknowledging that he and his Education Minister, Jean-François Roberge, have yet to discuss their plan with Quebec's English-speaking community, the Premier told The Gazette yesterday that he is forging ahead with the controversial reform. Premier Legault dared to forecast that once service centres are in place, our community "will realize they lost nothing."

"We disagree most emphatically," the President of the Quebec Community Groups Network, Geoffrey Chambers, stated. "The Supreme Court of Canada's ruling in Mahe v. Alberta was crystal clear.  The Court ruled that minority language communities have the right to control and manage the educational facilities in which their children are taught, to both ensure and enable that our language and culture can flourish." 

"Arsenault-Cameron v. Prince Edward Island made clear that although the Minister of Education is responsible for making educational policy, his discretion is subordinate to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms which protects the specific needs of the minority language community and confers on its representatives the exclusive right to manage minority language instruction and facilities," said Chambers. He reminded Premier Legault that the Government of Quebec cannot invoke the 'notwithstanding clause' in matters pertaining to Section 23 rights.

Read complete Press Release here: http://bit.ly/2S3p3Ci

The Quebec Community Groups Network (www.qcgn.ca) is a not-for-profit organization bringing together 59 English-language community organizations across Quebec. Its mission is to identify, explore and address strategic issues affecting the development and vitality of English-speaking Quebec and to encourage dialogue and collaboration.

SOURCE Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN)

Rita Legault, Director of Communications | [email protected], Telephone: [phone], ext. 223, cellular: 514-912-6555