"No One Listens to Québec in Ottawa"

From Paul Adams in The Walrus...

Under Mr. Chretien, the Bloc could have its political cake and eat it too. Three successive terms of majority government likely eradicated any lingering notion that one could wield real power in Ottawa without knowing the secret Liberal handshake. The Bloc safely relied on being able to tell Quebecers that no one was listening. But no longer. With a minority in Ottawa, the Bloc now inadvertently finds itself in a situation in which it is actually being listened to by Ottawa and where policy is being shaped by Bloc input. Too much more of this, and soft separatists may just start to accept that they do not need to leave Canada in order to be recognized and treated as a founding people. In highlighting what Quebecers can achieve in Ottawa, Mr. Duceppe is presenting them, albeit unwittingly, with the reason to stay, not to go. At the very least, the Bloc seems to now be in a position where they have to concentrate on participating in the debate about the issues, which affect the whole of the country, as opposed to simply spinning their usual thread of discontent.