Former Quebec premier Lucien Bouchard visited TVA Nouvelles to defend the open letter he signed with five other former Quebec premiers to express their concerns to Minister Dubé, and which was criticized by former Health Minister Gaétan Barrette became.
• Also read: Letter from six former prime ministers: Quebec does not shy away from pressure from former prime ministers
• Also read: Letter from six former Quebec premiers concerned about the impact of the Dubé health care reform
In an interview on La Joute, Mr. Barrette described the trip as “a diplomatic ballet of the powerful.” […] who defend the canned goods.
Mr. Bouchard says he is “disturbed” by this description, which he completely refutes.
“The fact that I have once expressed an opinion 21, 22, 23 years into my career, does that make me a powerful person who wants to manipulate the levers of public power?” No, he says. The powerful are the ones who are forcing the reforms that will come down our throats, and who are doing so against the will and interest of the patients treated by these university hospitals and these excellent institutes.”
“In our system there are companies that work and others that don’t work. We must not destroy those that work, we must not hinder them, he adds. Attributing such petty motives to people who do this on a purely voluntary basis, to serve, they have many other things to do, and the same goes for the rest of us. I’m not happy to hear things like that.”
In their letter, the premiers particularly criticized the merger of university institutes and hospital centers under a single new public body, which would have “significant negative impacts on these institutions, which play an essential role in Quebec society.”
They also say that they fear a decline in donations because “individuals want to finance not a system but an object, an institution.”
“The will of the donors is in question,” says the man who was Quebec premier between 1996 and 2001. “It’s not the government that decides who donates and who doesn’t.”
“Anyone who finds that it is not necessary to donate to a place because it is a huge legal patent controlled by officials, I am not interested in giving my money, I want to donate somewhere else : That’s an individual’s decision, he adds up. It is not the minister who will decide.”
François Legault’s decision on Wednesday to take a stand in favor of reforming his health minister did not surprise Mr Bouchard.
“I expected that,” he admits. It is the government that is sticking to its line and as far as it can hold it, it will stick to it.”
The former prime minister nevertheless defends his position and that of other former Quebec leaders.
“What concerns me is the suggestion that people who want to maintain the level of excellence of these institutions are using small powers to defend their private interests. Does this mean that the aim of the reform is to prevent people from continuing to donate and volunteer? Is that the goal? It looks like it’s starting to look that way.”
Watch the full interview in the video above