Parti Québécois barred from sitting in legislature for refusing oath to King

The three-member PQ caucus attempted to sit in the Salon bleu at the Quebec national assembly in the morning, but were barred for not swearing oath to King Charles III.

The three Parti Québécois (PQ) members who have steadfastly refused to swear the oath of office to King Charles III were barred from sitting in the province’s legislature Thursday.

The three-member PQ caucus attempted to sit in the Salon bleu at the national assembly in the morning, but were turned away.

To sit in the legislature, elected Quebec MNAs must take two oaths of loyalty: one to the Quebec people and another — as required by the Canadian Constitution — to the King.

In November, outgoing speaker Francois Paradis ruled that all elected members must take the oath to the King or risk expulsion from the legislature.

PQ Leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon has repeatedly called on newly appointed Speaker Nathalie Roy to reconsider her predecessor’s decision.

Shortly after he was turned away, the PQ leader took to Twitter to say he had submitted to the Sargeant of Arms his official papers confirming his election to the legislature and his medal for swearing an oath of loyalty to the Quebec people.

“I’ll let the speaker consider it and exercise her discretion,” St-Pierre Plamondon wrote. “It’s time things change.”