Charest affair: Legault does not rule out an apology

QUEBEC CITY -

Premier Francois Legault said Wednesday he is not ruling out an apology to his Liberal predecessor Jean Charest, who was awarded $385,000 in damages from the Quebec government Tuesday.

The former premier won his case in Superior Court against the government and anti-corruption squad UPAC for unlawful disclosure of personal information during investigations.

In a statement released Wednesday morning, Charest recalled that he had originally asked for an apology to settle the matter.

"That request for an apology was never acknowledged..." he wrote with three ellipses on his Twitter feed.

"That's why I was forced to go to court."

He also wants the Office of Independent Investigations and the Director of Criminal and Penal Prosecutions (DPCP) to "follow up on the criminal acts" of UPAC, in other words, to lay charges.

In a short news scrum Wednesday morning, Legault first washed his hands of the matter by blaming the previous Liberal government, which had appointed then UPAC Commissioner Robert Lafrenière.

"Do I have to apologize on behalf of the government? I'm not ruling that out, but we'll look into it," he siad.

Interim Liberal leader Marc Tanguay believes the whole affair has hurt the Liberal brand: "UPAC has questions to ask itself and has a credibility challenge," he said.

In 2021 Geneviève Guilbault, then Minister of Public Security, brandished the book PLQ inc. in the Salon bleu, raising the ire of the former Liberal premier.

The book focused on allegations of illegal financing within the PLQ.

The Liberal leader believes that Guilbault should not have brandished the book and that she should apologize.

The Quebec Superior Court's decision comes in the context of Charest's lawsuit against the government for illegal disclosure of his personal information during a UPAC investigation.

Tanguay does not believe the story contributed to the party's defeat in the last election, but that "it did not help" his party.

LISTEN on CJAD 800 Radio: How much money was awarded to Jean Charest?

QUEBEC SOLIDAIRE

Quebec Solidaire would not say whether Charest deserved an apology from UPAC.

"I'm not disputing the validity of the judgment. If UPAC wants to apologize, it should be to Quebecers for having failed to accomplish its mission,'' argued QS parliamentary leader Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois. "I don't see why the current government should apologize."

PARTI QUEBECOIS

The Parti Québécois (PQ) chose to be more cautious. Matane-Matapédia MNA Pascal Bérubé suggested that Charest's lawyers might be listening carefully to what elected officials were saying in parliament on Wednesday morning.

As to whether Charest is now cleared of any allegations or suspicions, Bérubé replied: "He is not guilty, I am obliged to say that."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on April 5, 2023.