Archives - Jean Chrétien

Prime Minister Jean Chrétien Addresses a Luncheon for the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Quebec City

In a little over four years, we will be in the 21st century. How can we prepare ourselves? By continuing to build a country which is undoubtedly one of the greatest successes of the 20th century. Or, as the proponents of separation suggest, by starting all over again with the pieces of what we have destroyed.

And there must be no doubt that no matter who is driving the YES bus, the destination is still the same: separation.

Taking apart a country that has secured a prestigious place for itself in the modern world is no easy task.

The consequences of Canada's dismemberment could be extremely serious for all our fellow citizens, both in Quebec and in all the rest of the country. And what message would be sent to the entire world at the dawn of the third millennium?

As Prime Minister of Canada, I have a duty to make this clear to those who will be making a decision on October 30, a decision that could be irreversible.

When I hear and see how casually the proponents of separation talk about breaking up this extraordinary country, I wonder if they truly appreciate the consequences of their plan.

They have a disturbing ability to sidestep any facts that contradict their approach.

If you listen to them, they'll tell you that separation will be effected effortlessly, simply, easily, without any upheavals or difficulties, as if by magic, like casting a spell. Everything will go well and it won't cost a penny.

Mr. Bouchard said on the weekend: "A YES has something magical about it. The whole situation is changed with the wave of a wand." The truth must be told. In the real world, there are no magic wands and people have to pay their bills.

People must be told what would happen if the proposal for separation by Mr. Parizeau and his magician became reality. They must be told that Quebec would no longer be a part of Canada. That Quebecers would no longer elect MPs to the House of Commons. That there would be no more Quebecers in the federal public service. That Quebecers would no longer be Canadian citizens and would thus no longer have the right to a Canadian passport.

Talking about the economic consequences of separation is not fear-mongering: it's telling the truth. Behind the numbers that Mr. Parizeau and his magician are ignoring, there are jobs, men and women who are earning a living for themselves and their children. And it's not Lucien Bouchard's magic wand that's going to put bread on their tables. Quebecers want to know whether their taxes will go up or down. Will they have more money or less money in their pockets at the end of the year?

All the studies--even the separatist studies--show that Quebec separation would lead to hefty tax increases and major cuts to government services. It is an inevitable reality that reassuring slogans cannot hide. And it's better to know now. Think it over carefully before you vote.

Then they say, what could be more normal than to sign all our own treaties? That seems just fine, but what does it really mean?

For example, let's talk about the North American Free Trade Agreement--NAFTA.

By leaving Canada, Quebec would be leaving NAFTA, and it would then have to try to negotiate admission as a new country. Such an operation entails tremendous risks for Quebec.

Can Mr. Parizeau and his magician guarantee workers in the textile, agricultural, cultural and financial services sectors that there will be no negative consequences for them, for their families, for their communities? It's better to know now. Think it over carefully before you vote.

It is also being suggested that after breaking up Canada, a separate Quebec will be able to keep the Canadian dollar and Quebecers will be able to keep Canadian passports and citizenship. It's amazing what you can do when you have magical powers. The scope of the break-up forces' proposal must be understood. Think it over carefully before you vote.

Can Mr. Parizeau and his magician guarantee that a separate Quebec would keep the Canadian dollar for longer than 39 days, as was the case for Slovakia after the separation of Czechoslovakia?

Two weeks ago, the Minister of Finance, Paul Martin, clearly explained why it would not be in the rest of Canada's interest to undertake negotiations with a separate Quebec to establish a new economic union.

He pointed out that that would inevitably bring the Americans to the negotiating table, demanding revisions to a number of clauses they don't like in the trade agreements we have with them. A new economic union would not be possible because the rest of Canada would lose too much in the exchange. For each concession made to Quebec, the rest of Canada would have to do the same thing for the United States. Think it over carefully before you vote.

None of the proponents of separation can counter Mr. Martin's position with any credibility.

Last week, the Premier of Ontario clearly set out not only economic reasons, but also political reasons for rejecting the proposal for political partnership between Quebec and the rest of Canada. This proposal, which has so far been described as unrealistic and illusory, is now considered unacceptable by all the provinces. And they're not bluffing, as Messrs Bouchard and Parizeau are suggesting.

Since the economic union cannot be negotiated and there are no takers for the political partnership, there would in fact be only one thing left to negotiate: separation pure and simple. Think it over carefully.

There again, a spokesperson would have to be found who had the mandate to conduct such negotiations. I'm going to show you that it takes more than the wave of a magic wand to do that.

The magician's mandate following the referendum would be to try to unscramble the eggs and put them back in their shells. And I can tell you that it takes quite a magic wand to do that. Who could this negotiator-in-chief talk to following a YES vote? For the proponents of separation, the answer is very simple.

He'll sit down with the rest of Canada, presumably represented by the federal government. Well on that point, I absolutely have to lay to rest a myth that has been perpetuated for quite some time by the proponents of separation.

They're depicting the rest of Canada as a monolithic block that speaks with a single voice. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Canada is not like the former Czechoslovakia, which was made up of two republics with clearly defined boundaries.

Canada is a federation made up of provinces which are not homogeneous and which have different interests. Canada with Quebec forms a country.

No one knows what would be left without Quebec. We should know that the rest of Canada is not a country. Who has a mandate to speak on behalf of the so-called rest of Canada? Will it be the Canadian Parliament and the Canadian government, in which Quebec has 25% representation?

Given the scope of the consequences of separation for each of the other provinces, there is nothing to suggest that they would be willing to give the federal government free rein to establish the terms and conditions for breaking up the country.

Who can predict the reactions of the nine other Canadian provinces, let alone predict that the remaining provinces would manage to reach a consensus?

And unlike the claims of Mr. Parizeau and his magician, that's no easy task. No, it's not easy to make a new country out of the rest of Canada, with a new constitution, new institutions and new economic and political arrangements. That takes more than the wave of a magic wand.

After that, years of negotiations would follow on the terms and conditions of secession; years of negotiations to replace federal-provincial agreements; and years of negotiations to replace international agreements.

No one knows what Quebecers would get at the end of all of that. And, apart from those who indulge in mental hocus-pocus, we all know that Quebec and the rest of Canada would lose out in the operation.

In the meantime, what would happen to the dollar? What would happen to investment in Quebec and throughout Canada?

What would happen to jobs and the families that depend on them? What would happen to the standard of living of our fellow citizens? What guarantees could the proponents of separation give us then? Neither Mr. Parizeau nor his magician have given any answers to these questions.

Quebecers have a right to straight answers and to as much information as possible, so that they can decide where their best interests lie.

It serves no one's interests to disown studies that have cost Quebec taxpayers $10 million just because you don't like the conclusions, to stifle discussion and to refuse to answer difficult questions.

Can you imagine all the energy, time and effort that would be required to resolve problems relating to the dismantling of one of the largest industrial powers in the world?

Can you imagine all the bitterness and anger that would characterize that process?

And can you imagine that our competitors will be willing to wait for us while we settle our affairs? Think it over carefully before you vote.

Can you imagine that investors, who seek stability and who are not lacking in places to invest their money, will say to us: "Don't worry! We're not afraid to invest in you because who knows? one day you might succeed in digging yourselves out of this mess."?

On the other hand, what is immediately guaranteed after a NO vote is that we will still have a sovereign country.

A country that guarantees us Canadian citizenship, Canadian passports and the Canadian dollar.

A country that guarantees us an economic and political partnership, and gives us an influence with the countries of the Atlantic and the Pacific.

A country that is not a figment of the imagination, that we have known for a long time. A country that no one can take away from us. This country, Canada, is not the concoction of dream merchants and magicians; it was produced by the hard work of all who have worked together building it for over a century.

The day after a NO vote comes in, we can together mobilize all the energy and intelligence now being channelled into separation, and begin looking after the real concerns of our people.

Once the threat of separation, and all of the uncertainty surrounding it, is gone, Quebec and all of Canada can hope for lower interest rates, an improvement that means jobs, investment and growth.

A NO vote will finally enable Quebecers and Canadians to benefit from an economy which has everything going for it, from record productivity, and from an inflation rate lower than anywhere else in the G-7 countries and one of the lowest among OECD countries. They will have a country that is in the process of solving its debt and deficit problem. This is not a magic solution; it is one that will mean uninterrupted progress and change.

Quebecers will be able to join with other Canadians when it comes time to form new trade agreements abroad, in addition to those we have already made for North America.

Rather than tearing up the existing agreements and starting everything over again, Quebec can, by voting NO, benefit from new trade agreements throughout the Pacific, with Japan, Singapore, Australia and China--initiatives we are now pursuing.

We must take care not to underestimate the importance of being part of a Pacific country at the dawn of the 21st century.

On a world scale, Quebec will be able to continue with Canada to exercise the influence of a major nation with access to the other major nations.

We deserve to continue being part of a country that is a member of the G-7, APEC and the Quadrilateral, where Japan, the United States and Europe are our partners. We deserve to have influence in the world's places of power, rather than sit on the fringe of decision-making. That is what uninterrupted progress and change mean.

What people want to hear governments talk about nowadays is how they intend to go about helping small businesses to create jobs for the future.

They want to see their governments in Ottawa and Quebec City work together conquering foreign markets to open up job prospects for our people.

While we are wasting valuable time, our competitors are addressing the real concerns of people.

We must stop our navel-gazing and together restore hope to our youth by concentrating on ways of creating jobs, so that they can clearly see where there future lies. I can assure you that my government is devoting all its energies to this.

Canada will continue to develop by taking a moderate approach, in order to respond more practically and more effectively to the needs of its people.

We are used to doing things quietly, without a great hue and cry, but with practicality and effectiveness as our goal.

The state of public finances is such that the federal government and the provincial governments are currently taking a careful look at their respective roles in order to better define their responsibilities toward their constituents.

Since 1993, we have been developing joint action plans with nine of the ten provinces to reduce needless duplication and overlap.

We have often combined our resources to provide better services to taxpayers at a lower cost.

Only the Quebec government has refused to join with the federal government to eliminate duplication and waste and to streamline services.

Unfortunately for those who wish to leave Canada, it is strategically more important to undermine the country's operation, even if this is done at the taxpayers' expense.

Relations between the federal and provincial governments have nonetheless developed greatly since the beginning of Confederation, in response to the real needs of Canadian men and women. In a rapidly changing world, our institutions must continue to adapt. This they are doing, and will continue to do.

The best way for Quebecers to assure positive change is to vote NO. A NO vote will allow Quebecers and other Canadians to work together to respond to new challenges and new times. Everywhere in the country, Canadians are searching for new and more flexible ways to make Canada work.

In less than two weeks now, it will be time to choose. Don't put your trust in magicians.

Remember, this referendum is not an election to choose a government and a Prime Minister who can be replaced four years later.

It is an irreversible choice of a country. Think hard about it.

Mr. Bouchard and Mr. Parizeau do not want to renew Canada. They want to get out. They want to make Quebec a foreign country like the United States or Mexico. They are offering a one way ticket to separation.

The price of the ticket is your passport and all the advantages that go with it. The consequences are extremely serious. Think hard and long before you vote.

On the one hand stands separation, which would hurtle us all into the unknown, with all the risks that it would involve.

It is an invitation to an adventure from which no one, including those who believe in it, would emerge a winner. On the other hand stands an economically and politically strong Quebec, continuing its tremendous development in Canada.

We have built and founded our country on the values of freedom, peace, tolerance, generosity, openness to differences, sharing and compassion toward those less fortunate among us.

We must not underestimate the enviable reputation enjoyed by Canada everywhere in the world.

On the eve of the third millennium, imagine for a moment the message that we would be sending out to the whole world by dismantling a country built on values that so many can only dream about.

I am going to say NO to separation. I will say it with pride. The pride of a Quebecer who believes in this country that we have built together. The pride of a Quebecer who believes profoundly in Canada's outstanding potential.

The pride of a Quebecer who believes that Quebec's essential place is in Canada. A Quebec which by its language, its culture, and its institutions forms a distinct society.

A Quebec which has forged its place by dint of hard work, and which no one can take away. And the pride that I feel being a Quebecer in no way contradicts something else that I am tremendously proud of, namely, of being Canadian.

The separatist leaders, who never miss an opportunity to appropriate the tradition of those who made Quebec's Quiet Revolution of the 1960s, should remember this: During the 1980 referendum campaign, Jean Lesage, called the Father of the Quiet Revolution, said this, and I quote:

"I personally have never envisioned Quebec as being separate from Canada. Canada is my country, and I am proud of it; Quebec is my homeland, and I am proud of it too. But my country is Canada. I want to stay in it. I don't want to limit my horizons or go back to the time when Quebec was inward-looking."

"Beginning in 1960, we triggered an explosion of freedom and progress in Quebec, to give Quebec its rightful place in Canada. No one has preached pride in Quebec more than I, but political independence is not pride; it is presumption and recklessness."