Referendum question dominates as Quebec leaders clash in final debate

QUEBEC ELECTIONS Referendum question dominates as Quebec leaders clash in final debate PQ's St-Pierre Plamondon sticks to his timetable as Liberals' Milliard calls his opponents 'four nuances of Yes' Parti Québécois leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon has said he would hold a referendum after January 2029. During Wednesday's Radio-Canada leaders' debate, he was asked what happens if, at that point, he realizes that the "No" side would win? Would he delay the referendum? St-Pierre Plamondon said he would stick with his plan. Conservative leader Éric Duhaime, who voted Yes in 1995, countered that Quebec was weakened by that referendum. He said the same thing happened after the 1980 referendum. “Why do you want to drive Quebec into a wall, Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon?” Duhaime asked. 0 seconds of 45 secondsVolume 0%   By Philip Authier September 24, 2026 at 12:10 a.m. Last Updated: September 24, 2026 at 11:08 a.m. READ NEXT QUEBEC ELECTIONS CAQ plan to expand private health care could lengthen wait lists, researcher says Christine Fréchette says she would remove a guardrail aimed at keeping doctors in public practice and fund more private-sector surgeries. BUSINESS NEWS A CAQ government would match Ottawa's 'Productivity Mega Deduction' for business, party says But party leader Christine Fréchette says the province should have been notified about the deduction in advance. QUEBEC POLITICS PQ's 'harassing' complaints against psychiatrist broke international law, Amnesty report says Quebec's order of physicians rejected sanctioning Marie-Ève Cotton for social media posts that criticized the party.