Days before the 30th anniversary of 1980 referendum, a poll suggests the majority of Quebecers feel the sovereignty debate is settled.
Fifty-eight percent of respondents said the debate over sovereignty is no longer relevant, while 26 percent feel the issue of Quebec independence is more important than ever.
Only 14 percent of those polled believe that Quebec can become independent within the next 30 years.
"People who believe that all the issues related with sovereignty are still relevant today, it's a small minority," said Andre Giguere of CROP.
The poll found that nearly the same number of people who feel the sovereignty debate is no longer relevant (57 per cent) also believe the French language is less secure than it was three decades ago.
"This English that is threatening the French language is not the English of the Plains of Abraham," said Giguere.
Quebec's first referendum on independence was on May 20, 1980. It was followed by another referendum on October 30, 1995.
The CROP web poll was commissioned by l'Idee federale, a federalist think tank based in Quebec.
One thousand people responded to the survey.
"They broke down into four equal groups -- sovereignists, federalists, people who believe they are sort of both, and people who believe they are neither," said CTV Montreal reporter Caroline van Vlaardingen.
As for what it means, political analyst and former politician Jean Lapierre says the fight for an independent Quebec was a battle for an earlier generation.
"Nobody wants to talk about it," said Lapierre. "We've got other priorities in our lives, and this is not the flavour of the month."
However Lapierre says a similar poll done for a sovereignist group showed almost opposite results, indicating that after decades of battle, two camps are not willing to let the issue go without a fight.
