QUEBEC BUREAUCRATS UPBEAT ABOUT HARPER GOVERNMENT

C O N F I D E N T I A L QUEBEC 000024 SIPDIS PARIS PLEASE PASS TO UNESCO - ANDREW KOSS E.O. 12958: DECL: 2/23/2016 TAGS: PGOV PREL CA ECON SUBJECT: QUEBEC BUREAUCRATS UPBEAT ABOUT HARPER GOVERNMENT CLASSIFIED BY: Abigail Friedman, Consul General, Quebec City, State. REASON: 1.4 (b),(d) ¶1. (c) Summary: CG hosted a lunch for Quebec Ministry of International Relations (MRI) Deputy Minister Denis Bedard and other MRI officials February 22, one month following the election of Stephen Harper's Conservatives in Ottawa. Ministry officials were upbeat about the Tory victory, heralded by Bedard as the beginning of a new openness in Ottawa toward Quebec. (A new poll suggests the party is enjoying a rise in Quebec popularity since the federal vote, now at 31 percent from 25 percent at election time.) The MRI expects Charest to announce a cabinet reshuffle in the not-to-distant future, and also to split the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources into two separate ministries. MRI officials concurred with CG that Premier Charest is in pre-election mode, with the next provincial election likely in 2007. End summary. ¶2. (c) PM Harper's decision to make his first meeting with provincial leaders a meeting with Premier Charest last week in Ottawa was not a huge surprise to Bedard, who saw it as a clear signal of Ottawa's determination to work with Quebec. After their meeting the two leaders did not publicly discuss details of their conversation but Bedard told us Charest pushed Ottawa on a number of Quebec demands, notably concerning Quebec's role in international institutions such as UNESCO. The GOQ is hoping for a rapid meeting of the minds with Ottawa on how to proceed on the UNESCO chapter. ¶3. (c) Bedard said PM Harper has virtually agreed to give Quebec a seat at the UNESCO table along with Canada. There are two ways this could be done. The first would be to fashion a role for Quebec along the lines of Quebec's existing status within the Francophonie organization. The problem, according to Bedar, is that such a status does not exist at UNESCO and would have to be created. Bedard said this would require that two thirds of the 156 member countries agree to a special status for Quebec, which could prompt demands from other minority groups, for example in countries such as Spain, Germany, and the U.K. The other option would be for the PM to allow Quebec to occasionally speak in Canada's name on certain subjects agreed upon in advance. This could take place much more rapidly, but will likely be considered insufficient in some circles. (Comment: The opposition PQ is already doubting publicly that the Harper government will deliver on its campaign promise to Quebec on UNESCO. End comment.) ¶4. (c) Bedard confirmed CG's impression that Premier Charest is in a pre-election mode. There are a series of GOQ policy documents and announcements that will be rolled out in phases in the months ahead, he said. These include a long-awaited announcement on Quebec's energy policy, an announcement on Quebec's sustainable development policy, and one on Quebec's foreign affairs priorities and revamping of the MRI. As for the persistent rumors of an impending cabinet shuffle, Bedard believed this would likely take place quite soon. Newly-elected Liberal MNA Raymond Bachand (Outremont) is slated to become the new Minister for Economic and Regional Development, while current minister Claude Bechard would move over to head up a new Energy Ministry, which would be split off from the existing Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources. FRIEDMAN