The Parti Québécois (PQ) announced on Wednesday its intention to table a bill in the national assembly to obtain the publication of documents concerning the financing of the 'NO' camp during the 1995 referendum campaign.
Matane-Matapédia MNA Pascal Bérubé pointed out that two motions were adopted by the national assembly to obtain the documents relating to the Grenier Commission. He said that the chief electoral officer (DGEQ) subsequently failed to follow up on these motions.
One of the two motions was adopted last June. In its wording, Minister responsible for Democratic Institutions Jean-François Roberge requested that the DGEQ disclose the documents and testimony of the Grenier Commission, which was tasked with investigating the financing of the NO camp. The Grenier Commission report, produced by the DGEQ, was tabled in 2007.
The result of the 1995 referendum on sovereignty was very close, and the sovereignist camp often accused its NO opponents of circumventing the rules on referendum campaign spending. The NO side won with 50.58 per cent of the vote against 49.42 per cent for the YES side.
Bérubé asserts that the testimonies and documents will enable Quebecers to know the truth about these expenses.
For him, the chief electoral officer's reluctance to make the Grenier Commission documents public is inexplicable and, in his opinion, leaves the national assembly no choice but to opt for legislation.
"At the Grenier Commission, nearly a hundred testimonies and more than 4,500 documents were submitted as evidence, but they are subject to a non-broadcasting, non-disclosure and non-publication order with no time limit," the PQ MNA said.
Retired judge Bernard Grenier justified his order by saying that he was sensitive to the warnings expressed by some about the risk of damaging the reputations, after several years, of people who had worked for the NO cause in good faith.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Aug. 9, 2023.
