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

Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre speaks during Question Period in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Thursday, June 18, 2026. Photo by HYUNGCHEOL PARK /Postmedia

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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.

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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.

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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.

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“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.”

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“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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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“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.”

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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.

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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.”