It’s called Quebec or more accurately it’s called the Quebec question since the province of Quebec – six times as big as the UK with a fraction of the population – is a beautiful place and the people are generally as friendly here as anywhere else in this vast country. The problem is that Quebec was originally French but when the British defeated France in the Seven Years War (1756- 1763) French involvement in North America was ended.
Very generously, the British Government allowed the French speaking Canadians to govern themselves in return for a declaration of loyalty to the British Government. A hundred or so years later, in 1867, Quebec became a founder member of the newly created Dominion of Canada and was allowed to maintain its French identity within the new country. Since then Quebec has continued to exist as a French speaking province with road signs in French, French speaking schools and all sorts of privileges granted to French speakers. So much so that at times you’d think you were in France.
Every once in a while Quebec separatists gain power in the province and they invariably agitate for a referendum on whether or not to leave the Federation and break up Canada. So far, every attempt at independence has been voted out but still they keep trying. Elections took place in Quebec earlier this week and the winners, the Parti Quebecois, are now pressing for another referendum.
The rest of Canada, rightly proud of their beautiful and unified country, are getting sick and tired of all this and sick too of the constant whingeing emanating from Quebec. The people of Quebec have many privileges and concessions, probably more than anywhere else in Canada but it seems that the more they have the more they want and further concessions by the Federal Government only result in further bouts of whingeing.
Very interesting eh? Does any of this remind you of somewhere else, somewhere a little closer to home, a place about three hundred miles north of London?
Common Sense 