Bloc Quebecois 25 years later: original member Plamondon says party still needed

MONTREAL – It’s been 25 years since Lucien Bouchard created the Bloc Quebecois on July 25, 1990, following the failure of the Meech Lake Accord.

Liberal and Conservative members united to form the new party, which dedicated itself to defending Quebec’s interests in Ottawa.

Long-serving MP Louis Plamondon is among those who have been there since the beginning, when he quit the Progressive Conservative party to join the fledgling Bloc. He has served as the member for Bas-Richelieu-Nicolet-Becancour since 1984.

He believes the failure of the Meech Lake Accord left Quebec nationalists with two choices: “be crushed within the federalist system or take the path of sovereignty.”

Plamondon said he did not expect the party to exist 25 years after its creation. He says the party had counted on a victory in the 1995 sovereignty referendum, which the “NO” side won by a razor-thin margin.

The members “had to change their minds,” he said, and decided to continue to fight in Ottawa until there is a winning referendum.

“Above all, we couldn’t give up our seats and leave them to those who made us lose the referendum,” he said.

Plamondon said the Bloc remains the only party that prioritizes Quebec’s interests in Ottawa, “Where the interests of Canada always take priority.”

As for the Bloc Quebecois’ future: “it’s promising,” Plamondon said. He believes the return of Gilles Duceppe as leader could allow the party to win between 25 and 30 ridings in the next general election, set for October.