Cons of Quebec's Sovereignty
Prime Minister Mulroney had the Father of Confederations words, "Whatever you do, adhere to the Union. We are a great country, and shall become one of the greatest in the universe if we preserve it; we shall sink into insignificance and adversity if we suffer it to be broken”,[1] in mind when he proposed the accords to reconcile with Quebec after Quebec was stabbed in the back during the "Night of the Long Knives", where Quebec was left out of the discussion where other provinces reached an agreement on a process for patriating and amending the constitution.(2:)
Why Quebec should Stay in Canada
Without a doubt, the matter of the survivability of Quebec's economy after it becomes sovereign is the most important matter. Although Quebec accounts for 19.80% of Canada's GDP (3:), Quebec would not have been so prosperous without the immense help of Canada, which aided Quebec by providing social services and equalization payments. An independent Quebec would not be able to afford the services which Canada provides for them, which would leave Quebec with two options; cut services the government would provide, such as healthcare, postal services, and employment insurance, or Quebec could raise taxes which would not be popular among the people who have one of the lowest average total incomes. Quebec has the second highest GDP within Canada(4), but that does not mean it can survive without Canada. It has the fourth lowest GDP per capita, $35,117(5), of all the provinces, which in turn allows Quebec to recieve $7.8 billion in 2013-14 from eqaulization payments(6), which enable less prosperous provincials governments to provide public services for the people. If Quebec did become independent the economy and the people's standard of living would be severely impacted without the money from these equalization payments. Also impacting the people would be the social services provided by the government of Canada, such as public healthcare, which would be left behind as
Why Quebec should Stay in Canada
Without a doubt, the matter of the survivability of Quebec's economy after it becomes sovereign is the most important matter. Although Quebec accounts for 19.80% of Canada's GDP (3:), Quebec would not have been so prosperous without the immense help of Canada, which aided Quebec by providing social services and equalization payments. An independent Quebec would not be able to afford the services which Canada provides for them, which would leave Quebec with two options; cut services the government would provide, such as healthcare, postal services, and employment insurance, or Quebec could raise taxes which would not be popular among the people who have one of the lowest average total incomes. Quebec has the second highest GDP within Canada(4), but that does not mean it can survive without Canada. It has the fourth lowest GDP per capita, $35,117(5), of all the provinces, which in turn allows Quebec to recieve $7.8 billion in 2013-14 from eqaulization payments(6), which enable less prosperous provincials governments to provide public services for the people. If Quebec did become independent the economy and the people's standard of living would be severely impacted without the money from these equalization payments. Also impacting the people would be the social services provided by the government of Canada, such as public healthcare, which would be left behind as