Canadian and Québecois statesman, and prime minister of Québec (19962001), born in Saint-Coeur-de-Marie, Lac-Saint-Jean, Québec, SE Canada. Educated in Jonquière and Laval, he practised law before being appointed Canadian ambassador to France (197080), entering parliament as a Conservative (1988). He became minister of the environment (198990) before resigning from both post and party to form and lead the Bloc Québecois. Following the 1993 elections, the Bloc became the official opposition in the House of Commons. An active campaigner for Québecois sovereignty, he became chairman of the Parti Québecois in 1996, a position he resigned from in 2001.
The Honourable Lucien Bouchard| Rank: | 27th Premier |
|---|---|
| Term of Office: |
January 29, 1996 – March 8, 2001 |
| Predecessor: | Jacques Parizeau |
| Successor: | Bernard Landry |
| Date of Birth: | December 22, 1938 |
| Place of Birth: | Saint-Coeur-de-Marie |
| Spouse: | Audrey Best |
| Profession: | Lawyer |
| Political affiliation: | Parti Québécois |
Lucien Bouchard, PC , B.Sc , LL.B (born December 22, 1938 in Saint-Coeur-de-Marie, Quebec, Canada) is a Quebec lawyer, diplomat and politician.
He is the brother of noted historian Gérard Bouchard, and a recipient of the title of Commander of the French Legion of Honour.
Biography
Origins
Bouchard graduated from Jonquière Classical College in 1959, and obtained a Bachelor's degree in social science and a law degree at Université Laval in 1964.
Early years in politics and diplomacy
Bouchard's relationship with politics is a complex one, as he affiliated himself over the years with various political parties with highly diverging ideologies, going as far as founding one, the Bloc Québécois.
Bouchard has been a Quebec nationalist during his entire political career; He worked for the federalist Liberal Party of Quebec's campaign of 1970, but was deeply shaken by the events of Quebec's October Crisis, especially by Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau's imposition of the War Measures Act.
Bouchard worked with the "Yes" side during the 1980 Quebec referendum on sovereignty. While still a strong Quebec nationalist, he believed that Mulroney's Meech Lake Accord was sufficient for Quebec's remaining in confederation.
However, after a commission headed by Jean Charest recommended some changes to the Accord, Bouchard left the Progressive Conservatives. Mulroney felt stabbed in the back by Bouchard, and rejected his reasoning, having heard from a friend that Bouchard planned on leaving days before the Commission's report. After the failure of Meech, Bouchard soon formed the sovereigntist Bloc Québécois, which attracted a variety of former Liberals and Conservatives.
The Parti Québécois campaigned for the Bloc in the 1993 federal election in order to prepare Quebec for sovereignty, according to the Three Periods strategy of PQ leader Jacques Parizeau. The Bloc won the second-most seats in the election, making Bouchard the first separatist leader of the Opposition. (Op Ed.: Perhaps in Canada, especially Quebec, Lucien Bouchard will be remembered by some as having survived this disease. Mr. Bouchard's 'fame' does not extend beyond Canada.)
Referendum on sovereignty
In 1995, Bouchard signed, as Bloc leader, a tripartite agreement with Parti Québécois leader Jacques Parizeau and Action Démocratique leader Mario Dumont, which mapped the way to the referendum on independence. Québec premier Jacques Parizeau first led the Yes campaign but, as support for sovereignty began to plateau, the more popular Bouchard was given the official leadership.
Premier of Quebec
After the Yes side lost the 1995 referendum, Parizeau resigned as Québec premier. Bouchard resigned his seat in Parliament in 1996, and became the leader of the Parti Québécois and premier of Québec.
On the matter of sovereignty, while in office, he stated that due to lack of "winning conditions" (Bouchard did not elaborate on their nature) no referendum was held. A main concern of the Bouchard government, also considered part of the conditions gagnantes, was economic recovery through the achievement of "zero deficit". (Quebec is Canada's poorest province as measured by Gross Interior Product per capita, after the Maritime Provinces.)(reference needed) Bouchard's financial restructuring is widely considered to be a first step to solving Quebec's financial problems.
Retirement
Bouchard retired from politics in 2001, and was replaced as Québec premier by Bernard Landry. Others have speculated that the Michaud Affair, regarding allegedly anti-Semitic comments by Parti Québécois candidate Yves Michaud, was another factor favouring Bouchard's departure. Bouchard, considered more moderate on the sovereignty issue than traditional PQ premiers, also faced criticism by the hard liners of his own party for failing to engage the province in a third referendum on sovereignty in the course of his mandate, six years after the second one. He has served as a negotiator in high-profile commercial disputes, most recently for the Societe des alcools du Quebec (Quebec Liquor Board) during a strike that lasted six months.
On September 8, 2005, CTV Newsnet mistakenly announced that Bouchard had died.
On October 19, 2005, Bouchard and eleven other Quebec personalities of different backgrounds and political aspirations published a manifesto entitled "Pour un Québec lucide" ("For a clear-eyed vision of Quebec").
Nearly a year later on October 16, 2006 Bouchard declared to TVA news reporter Paul Larocque, that the population of the province is not working enough and that it should be more productive in order to produce more resources for the population.
Legacy
His government implemented some controversial policies, including cuts to the province's health care spending in order to balance the deficitary provincial budget, and the amalgamation of Quebec's larger cities undertaken by his successor Bernard Landry. Minority opinions regarding Mr. Bouchard have never been quantified, and given that minorities in Quebec overwhelmingly support the federalist position, it is doubtful they would look favorably upon Mr. Bouchard because he started a separatist party in the federal House of Commons and was a leading seperatist figure in the 1995 referendum campaign to separate Quebec from Canada.)
On May 6, 2006, daily French language newspaper Le Devoir published the results of a survey showing that half the population in Quebec would be in favour of Lucien Bouchard coming back in active politics. Survey also showed that a theoretical party led by Bouchard along with Mario Dumont would win in an election against Parti Québécois and Parti Libéral du Québec. (French) However, Bouchard stated that he will not return to politics.
Analysis
Our debt to Lucien Bouchard by Jean-François Lisée Dossier of Lisée articles on [[Vigile.net]Quebec separatist website] CBC report on Bouchard's life and careerBiographies
National Assembly biography (French) Agora biography (French) Bilan du Siècle biography (French) Federal Political Biography from the Library of Parliament Lucien Bouchard page at CÉRIUM|
Preceded by: Jacques Parizeau |
Premier of Quebec 1996-2001 |
Succeeded by: Bernard Landry |
|
Preceded by: Jean Chrétien |
Leader of the Opposition in Canada 1993-1996 |
Succeeded by: Gilles Duceppe |
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Preceded by: New party |
Leader of the Bloc Québécois 1990-1996 |
Succeeded by: Gilles Duceppe |
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Preceded by: Clément Coté, Prog. Cons. |
Member of Parliament from Lac-Saint-Jean 1988-1996 |
Succeeded by: Stéphan Tremblay, B.Q. |
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Preceded by: Jacques Parizeau |
Leader of the Parti Québécois 1996-2001 |
Succeeded by: Bernard Landry |
| Chauveau | Bouchard | |
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