Opinion: À la carte sovereignty is wishful thinking

For several decades, many of us assumed that Quebec independence meant we would no longer be Canadian. We understood that, in the event of a referendum, Quebecers would face a clear choice: remain Canadian or become citizens of a new Quebec state.

Apparently, that may no longer be the case — or at least that is what some of the Parti Québécois brain trust would have us believe.

In a recent debate in the French-language press, former Parti Québécois president Jocelyn Caron argued that in an independent Quebec many Quebecers would almost certainly be able to keep their Canadian citizenship. In other words, Quebec could leave Canada while those who so desire can continue to remain Canadian. That same view has been echoed by current PQ Leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon.

In an independent Quebec, Caron sees the emergence of a new hybrid identity, which he labels “québéco-canadien.” In effect, one could dismantle the country while continuing to belong to it. If we follow Caron’s reasoning, in a sovereign Quebec many people would be entitled to the benefits of being Canadian — including the passport and, perhaps most important, the emotional and civic attachment associated with Canada itself.

Yes-side supporters rally at the Verdun Auditorium in 1995. Contrary to what some separatists now insist, independence was once understood to involve a clean political break, writes Jack Jedwab of the Association for Canadian Studies. John Kenney / Montreal Gazette

That attachment is hardly insignificant. A December 2025 Léger survey for the Association for Canadian Studies found that 71 per cent of Quebecers would rather be citizens of Canada than of any other country in the world. Majorities of both francophone and anglophone Quebecers also believe they should continue to hold Canadian citizenship even after a breakup.

Assumptions notwithstanding, when it comes to Canadian citizenship, there is an important obstacle that merits attention. The same poll found that a majority of Canadians outside Quebec disagree that Quebecers should be able to retain Canadian citizenship after separation. And this is hardly a minor technicality.

If Quebecers retained Canadian citizenship after independence, millions of residents of what would presumably become a foreign country could continue voting in Canadian elections. That would certainly pose a serious problem for whatever Canadian geo-political entity emerged following a breakup.

According to Caron, there is no reason to worry about the opinions of other Canadians. He dismisses the prospect that Canada might modify the conditions of citizenship after a breakup as little more than federalist scare tactics — an assessment offered, of course, from the entirely unbiased perspective of this former PQ president.

The irony in all of this is striking. After decades of being told by separatists that Quebec forms a distinct nation requiring independence, considerable effort is now being devoted to reassuring Quebecers that, if they wish, they will still remain Canadian.

That alone says something important.

If Canadian citizenship is so valuable that separatists insist upon preserving it after independence, are they not implicitly acknowledging the extraordinary value of belonging to Canada in the first place? And if remaining Canadian matters this much, why exactly are we trying to dismantle the country that makes it possible?

It is not a scare tactic to insist that Quebec independence would not be a routine administrative adjustment. It would fundamentally alter Canada’s constitutional, territorial and political order. Countries do not normally dissolve themselves while simultaneously guaranteeing that everyone continues enjoying the benefits of the country being dissolved.

Contrary to what some separatists now insist, independence was once understood to involve a clean political break. Today, we are being offered something closer to à la carte sovereignty: leaving Canada politically while keeping its passport tucked away in the drawer — just in case.

The citizenship debate is only one of several questions on which Quebecers deserve clear and credible answers before being asked once again to contemplate breaking up the country. Currency, borders, Indigenous territory, pensions, trade, international representation, citizenship and voting rights are not secondary details to be worked out afterward. They go to the heart of what independence would actually mean in practice.

To these legitimate concerns as federalist scare tactics — as Caron does — is less an argument than a form of political subterfuge. All Quebecers deserve honest answers to serious constitutional questions, not rhetorical attempts to discredit those who raise them.

Jack Jedwab is president of the Association for Canadian Studies.

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