On the eve of her first General Council as leader of the Bloc Québécois, Martine Ouellet has admitted to feeling "resistance" in her party since she became leader almost a year ago.
"The pouring, just before a major event of the party like this week, with no respect for the work of the authorities, it does not move us forward," she said Saturday morning before about 200 delegates gathered in a hotel in Drummondville.
Ouellet was referring to the report in Quebecor Media outlets this week that revealed the salary that the leader would claim from his party when she ceases to be an MNA, which has been much talked about on social media.
Martine Ouellet has asked her party to pay her an annual salary of $95,000 as soon as she leaves her position in the National Assembly until the next federal election, scheduled for October 2019.
The members finally accepted the measure at the end of the day, but this idea did not seem to be unanimous among the membership, since Ms. Ouellet will receive a transitional allowance after leaving Quebec City.
The leader defended her request to claim a salary, saying it was "perfectly normal" for a party to pay its leader.
"I do not understand all the discussions I've heard this week. It was done for other leaders before me," she said in a press briefing.
Ms. Ouellet does not believe that other politicians have ever been asked to work "voluntarily".
"I think we do not have to ask that in politics, I think it's just normal," she said.
Asked about the issue before the vote, MP Luc Theriault was worried about the possibility that the Bloc lacks money for the next election campaign, implying that the finances are not as good as it seems for the party.
"Right now, there is not much that I see (...) If I compare myself to 2014-2015, we are late. A lot, "he said.
"My interest is that we can limit everything we can limit in terms of expenses. Free at the national office to ventilate that as they want. "
Bloc Québécois House Leader Xavier Barsalou-Duval said in an interview that the party could afford to pay its leader.
"The Bloc Québécois, unlike many federal parties, has no debt," he said.
"We have a good financial situation, we have increased the amounts we have raised each year since 2011," he added.
Ouellet will stop being paid by the party if she is elected to the House of Commons next year, according to Mr. Barsalou-Duval.
In her closing speech, the leader of the Bloc Québécois assured members that the party would work to raise the necessary funds for the next election.
In front of her activists, Martine Ouellet tried to convince them to put independence at the center of their platform and to distance themselves from the "same recipes that have been there for 25 years".
In a press briefing, Ms. Ouellet explained that a modernization of the party was necessary, and that goes includes a hardened stance on independence.
"It is essential, it is asked by all members and activists that every day (the party's MPs) speak of independence, that they use all the parliamentary tools," she explained.
Several MPs interviewed did not feel targeted by this call.
"There is not a single Bloc Québécois member who does not believe in independence," said Simon Marcil.
"I think we talk about it every time we denounce the blockage of the federal government," said Monique Pauzé.
As part of this national council, the Bloc Québécois has also adopted riding funding targets.
The objectives will be modulated according to certain criteria, including the number of donors and the particular context of the constituency.
"The new formula that has been established takes more account of the means of payment of each constituency," said Xavier Barsalou-Duval.
"Each constituency has a national funding target and it also needs to build an election fund for itself."
On the sidelines of this general council, the Bloc delegates were attending an afternoon conference on the environment, which was attended by Patrick Bonin from Greenpeace and Simon-Pierre Rioux from the Quebec Association of Electric Vehicles.
The Bloc members were to be visited by the Catalan Minister of Environment and Sustainability, Maria Subirà, but she had to cancel her visit because of the political uncertainty in Catalonia following the independence referendum on October 1st, which has since been declared illegal by the Spanish government.