Quebec Liberal leader Dominique Anglade believes that vaccination has reached its limit and that a health tax will certainly not make those who have chosen not to get vaccinated change their minds.

In Longueuil, Monday, where she was campaigning alongside her candidate in Marie-Victorin, Émilie Nollet, Anglade said the effort had indeed reached the target initially set by public health.

“At the beginning, when we started vaccination, what did we say? We said that when we reach 85 per cent to 90 per cent, it will have been a great success. We are above 90 per cent today,” she said.

“At some point, you have to realize that -- I've read a lot about what public health people say about people who are not vaccinated -- it's not that (the health tax) that will make them get vaccinated. On the contrary, you risk causing a reverse effect. At the end of the day, it's just a tax on a certain number of people who are going to pay more to have access to a health care system,” she argued.

Anglade acknowledged that the resistance shown by people who are not vaccinated is hurting "people who have made an effort, who have followed the rules, who have been vaccinated, people who work in the health sector," but she reminded the audience that universal access to the health care system is a value that Quebecers hold dear.

"It's a choice we've made here in Quebec for a long time, and I'm committed to it, first and foremost,” she said.

STOP DIVIDING

She again expressed her concerns about Legault’s approach approach in terms of ethics, legal issues, enforcement and effectiveness.

"At a time when we are not trying to be more divisive, when we need to unite, I have difficulty understanding how this project will really meet our needs,” she said.

Speaking of division, Anglade did not hide her uneasiness with the convoy of some truckers and other protesters in Ottawa, pointing out that the vast majority of truckers are vaccinated and that the movement is being disavowed by the Canadian Trucking Alliance.

"There is a level of this that is worrisome, because you don't want the population to be divided forever. After two years of pandemic, we need to come together and find mechanisms that will make sure that everyone is moving in the same direction,” she said.

- This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Jan. 31, 2022