After weeks of delays hearings on Bill 86 began Tuesday at the National Assembly.
Bill 86 may be about school board reform, but for some, the issue runs much deeper – it's about the very identity of the anglophone community.
“It's the understanding of how important our institutions are to this community,” said Sylvia Martin-Laforge of the Quebec Community Groups Network, which will be among the groups speaking at hearings on the proposed legislation.
“The English-speaking community comes from a different tradition in our institutions and that's not well understood,” added Martin-Laforge.
The Quebec government wants to reform how school boards are managed in order to give power to parents and school staff, but the proposed changes are controversial.
Education Minister Pierre Moreau has plenty to manage - he has been dealing with health issues and returned to the National Assembly after three weeks off. He was back on the job Tuesday and expectations were high.
“What we are going to do first and foremost is listen to what people have to say,” said Moreau.
Bill 86 would alter school board elections, giving more decision-making power to parents, school staff and community members instead of an elected council of commissioners.
English school boards are among the many opponents of the bill, and have yet to confirm when they will be allowed to speak at the hearings.
Sylvia Lo Bianco, vice-chair of the English Montreal School Board, pointed out that the EMSB is the board with the highest graduation rate in the province at 88 per cent.
"The previous minister had refused to sit down with the stakeholders of the English community. It was a big problem for us," said Lo Bianco.
With a new minister the board has been promised a time to present its case, but the public hearings have been stretched out because of Moreau's health issues.
"Certainly it's a little bit of frustration on our part, because we have been preparing," said Lo Bianco.
Critics argue the bill ignores the right of the English-speaking minority to control its own schools – a right guaranteed under the Canadian charter.
“I know that there are a lot of legal opinions concerning the bill. We'll see at the end of the day whether or not we have to make changes to make sure the constitution is respected,” said Moreau.
The EMSB and the Commission Scolaire de Montreal were originally not on the list of speakers for the public hearings, but after complaints from many, including PQ leader Pierre Karl Peladeau, the two boards were given the opportunity to speak.
On this identity issue, the English community has found an unlikely ally in the PQ.
“We do think that this bill is unconstitutional. We do recognize the right of the English community,” said PQ education critic Alexandre Cloutier.
The hearings will continue in the weeks to come.
