QUEBEC CITY — The Parti Québécois (PQ) is accusing the the Couillard government of backing away from a June 2015 promise to amend Bill 101 that would force chain stores with English names to carry French-language descriptors.
The Liberals made the promise after a court ruled the law is vague on the issue.
At the time, the Liberals insisted it’s important for companies to respect the spirit of Bill 101.
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“We have seen many court decisions, it’s not clear,” said PQ leader Pierre Karl Péladeau.
“At the end of the day, it’s the responsibility of the government that this will be clarified.”
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Currently, there is nothing in the law that states chain stores with English names must have some sort of accompanying description in French.
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The Quebec Court of Appeal ruled in April 2015 that the French Language Charter does not allow the Office québécois de la langue française (OQLF) to force companies to add a French component to their name.
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The provincial government did not appeal the decision.
However, some stores, including Toys R Us, Old Navy, Curves, Walmart and Best Buy have come under fire for not including business descriptors in the province’s official language.
The official opposition argued it’s a grey area in Bill 101 and the Liberals should reopen the legislation in order to amend it.
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In the meantime, opposition parties insisted Quebecers have an important role to play when it comes to shopping at large stores.
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