Quebecois slump in polls after nine months

QUEBEC’S separatist government would be swept from office if it called an election now, nine months after taking power last September.

A new poll reveals only 24 per cent of voters support the Parti Quebecois (PQ) which wants the resource-rich, mainly French-speaking province to break away from Canada.

The poll for La Presse newspaper was carried out 15-20 May. In September, PQ won 32 per cent of the vote.

The opposition Liberals – who governed Quebec for almost ten years before the election – had 38 per cent support, up from 31 per cent in September. The right-leaning Coalition Avenir Quebec was on 22 per cent, down from 27 per cent.

The PQ holds only 54 of the 125 seats in the Quebec parliament and relies on opposition support to push through legislation, meaning it has had to dilute its agenda and backtrack on some promises.

Earlier this month it laid out a new tax and royalty plan for the mining industry that was more moderate than initially proposed.

The party, led by Pauline Marois, has also shied away from campaign vows to abolish an unpopular health tax, curb admission to colleges for English-speaking students and freeze tuition fees for university students.

The PQ’s lack of popularity suggests independence is off the agenda for now.

Previous PQ governments held referendums in 1980 and 1995 on whether to break away from Canada. Both failed.