Quebecers aren't interested in reviving debate about Labrador border: Poilievre

OTTAWA — Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre outright dismissed the idea floated by the Parti Québécois (PQ) of the federal government offering financial compensation to Quebec for the loss of Labrador in exchange for a new energy deal on Churchill Falls.

On Thursday, Poilievre was asked in a press conference in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, if that is something he would be open to if he was prime minister.

Poilievre said he has been continuously travelling throughout Quebec in the four years he has been Conservative leader and he said residents of the province have never brought up grievances around the border with Labrador in his discussions.

“I have not had a single Quebecer tell me that the border with Labrador is a priority for them,” he said. “Their priorities are affordable groceries, affordable gas, affordable homes, and safer streets.”

“So, I would encourage all parties — federal and provincial — to focus on the daily concerns that real Quebecers in communities across the province are actually focused on,” he added.

The issue has come up ever since National Post revealed last month that the PQ — which is poised to form government in October — would be willing to renegotiate a pending energy deal to further develop Churchill Falls only if it involves compensation for Quebec effectively being stripped of the territory of Labrador nearly a century ago.

In an interview, PQ energy critic Pascal Paradis said the indemnity should account for the 1927 decision of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in London to grant the disputed territory of Labrador to Newfoundland, then a British Dominion, instead of Canada.

Quebec had no direct representation in this case, so it had to rely on the government of Canada to defend its claims. The PQ claims Quebec was poorly defended by Canada.

Over the years, Quebec governments of all stripes have never officially recognized the decision of the Privy Council. It was ultimately maintained by the Canadian government when Newfoundland joined Confederation in 1949 as the tenth province of Canada.

While the PQ said there is no recourse today to challenge the decision of the Privy Council in London, Paradis said his party does not intend to abandon Quebec’s “historic position” on the matter.

“Given this injustice, compensation should be negotiated,” Paradis told National Post. “And that of course has a direct link with the negotiations on Churchill Falls.”

With the Quebec election looming, both Hydro-Québec and N.L. Hydro are currently hammering out a new memorandum of understanding (MOU) to update the terms of the 2024 MOU to develop Gull Island and expand capacity at the Churchill Falls plant.

Quebec Premier Christine Fréchette said last month she was “confident” about wrapping up discussions soon. Her Newfoundland and Labrador counterpart, Premier Tony Wakeham, did not go into specifics, only saying “things are moving forward.”

Originally, the MOU was signed in December 2024 by Fréchette’s predecessor, François Legault, and former Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Andrew Furey.

It was meant to replace the contentious 1969 energy deal that saw Hydro-Québec develop the Churchill Falls site in Labrador and benefit from cheap hydroelectricity for decades, leading to generations of resentment in Newfoundland and Labrador.

However, Wakeham’s government was elected in 2025, promising to review the 2024 MOU. A report concluded the deal was not in Newfoundland and Labrador’s best interests and negotiations restarted between both sides.

Prime Minister Mark Carney said at the time his government was ready to help N.L. Hydro broker a deal with Hydro-Québec . Michael Sabia was the CEO of Hydro-Québec who negotiated the 2024 MOU before he became Canada’s head of public service.

But political actors in Quebec have politely declined the offer, saying that they will come to an agreement. Poilievre also thinks both sides should be left to negotiate.

“I think we should leave it to the two parties to hammer out a deal. It’s a bilateral partnership between the two provinces, and I hope they come up with something that is fair for both provinces,” he said on Thursday.

With less than a month to go before the start of the election campaign in Quebec, time is running out.

The governing Coalition Avenir Québec remains in third place in the polls, with new numbers from Pallas Data showing that Fréchette, despite her best efforts, has not benefitted from a honeymoon period over the summer and that support has softened.

The PQ remains firmly in first place and is likely to form government on October 5.

Paradis believes Fréchette simply does not have the “legitimacy” to sign a new agreement with Newfoundland and Labrador in the dying days of her mandate and fears she might make too many concessions to wrap up the negotiations quickly.

National Post calevesque@postmedia.com

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