'Deeply disturbing' that Legault asked police to dismantle McGill encampment: opposition parties
Quebec Premier François Legault is facing criticism from opposition parties for asking police to dismantle the pro-Palestinian encampment on the McGill University campus.
Despite the premier's remarks and a recent closed-door meeting between the protesters and the school's administration, the group says it has no plans to leave their encampment.
Protesters are starting to call it a "tiny city." Tents are still pitched, there's a library and wooden sidewalks. Going into its second week, it seems Premier François Legault's calls have been ignored.
Last Thursday, the premier asked Montreal police (SPVM) to shut down the camp and on Tuesday, he stood by his words.
"I've said what I want to say. Now, it's up to McGill management and SPVM to choose the appropriate means and times to ensure that the law is respected," he told reporters in Quebec City.
But opposition parties say Legault shouldn't have said anything at all.
"Separation of power is important. It's not a decoration. The right to protest is important in a democratic society and it's deeply disturbing to see Mr. Legault intervening in that situation," said Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois, Québec solidaire's co-spokesperson.
'Legault needs to respect the rule of law'
Others say that the fact that there was no police intervention shows the province's institutions are working correctly, especially after a judge rejected an injunction to remove the encampment.
"François Legault was irrelevant trying to give orders to the SPVM. François Legault needs to respect the rule of law," said Quebec Liberal Party interim leader Marc Tanguay.
"It's not to the premier to just tell the police what to do while there's a judgment," said Parti Québécois leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon. "And you can agree or disagree with the judgment, but it's a judgment."
Protesters say there was no progress after a private meeting with the university on Monday but Montreal Mayor Valerie Plante says it's important to keep having those discussions.
"The SPVM will continue to monitor, of course, because we want to make sure it's peaceful," the mayor said Tuesday.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Drive one of these vehicles? You may pay 37 per cent more than average insurance costs due to thefts
As the number of auto theft incidents rises in Canada, so have insurance premiums for drivers, even the ones whose vehicles aren't stolen.
'I'm not wealthy': Ontario senior shocked she owes $40,000 in capital gains after gifting land
An Ontario senior who wanted to help her daughter and grandson eventually own homes one day decided to give them two lots on her property as a gift—but she didn’t know it would eventually cost her tens of thousands of dollars.
NDP want Liberals to scrap proposed election date change that could secure pensions for many MPs
The federal New Democrats want to amend the Liberal government's electoral reform legislation to scrap the proposal to push back the vote by a week and consequently secure pensions for dozens of MPs, CTV News has learned.
Largest vaccine production plant in Canada opens in Toronto
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is announcing the opening of a major vaccine production plant in Toronto today — part of Canada's efforts to build up the domestic biomanufacturing sector in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.
These are the world's 20 best cities for foodies, according to Time Out
Some travellers pick a city break based on the destination’s cultural offerings. Others eye up cities with buzzy nightlife or opt for a destination hosting a festival or event. But for many vacationers, the most exciting part of any trip is the food.
Video shows driver in Toronto frantically getting out of car being pushed by truck
A CP24 camera caught the moment a driver frantically got out of her car as it was being dragged by a truck on Avenue Road Wednesday afternoon.
Israeli centrist party proposes vote to dissolve parliament
Israeli war cabinet minister Benny Gantz's centrist party proposed on Thursday holding a parliamentary vote on dissolving the parliament, but it was unclear whether he had enough support to bring about an early election.
Exorbitant fees get Gazans out with no help from Ottawa
The comforting sound of giggling grandchildren has chased away the cloud of anxiety that has loomed over Mohammed and Intisar Nofal's home for the past seven months.
BMO services restored following outage from data centre fire alarm, the bank says
Bank of Montreal clients saw services restored Thursday morning after an overnight, false fire alarm caused outages, the bank says.