The Bouchard-Taylor Commission winds up its public consultation

Montréal, February 3, 2008 – The Consultation Commission on Accommodation Practices Related to Cultural Differences (CCPARDC) today held the fourth province-wide forum organized by the Institut du Nouveau Monde (INM), which marks the conclusion of the consultation. Under the theme “What unites us?”, 216 participants took part in the province-wide forum, where they discussed what, beyond their cultural or religious differences, draws Quebecers together. All told, the four province-wide forums organized in collaboration with the INM attracted more than 800  participants. 

Consultation tour statistics

The Commission today published a statistical compilation of the consultation conducted in the fall of 2007. The 901 briefs submitted make the Bouchard-Taylor Commission one of the most popular and widely followed consultations in Québec’s recent history, exceeding even the Bélanger-Campeau Commission in 1990 (607 briefs) and second only to the National Commission on the Future of Québec in 1995 (over 5 500 briefs).

During the consultation tour, 3 423 individuals attended 22 regional citizens’ forums, which were also broadcast live by the two 24-hour news channels. In addition to the 328 briefs presented during hearings, the co-chairs heard personal testimony from 241 people out of a total of 761 requests received throughout Québec (see the table below for complete data).

Visits to the Commission’s Website

Many Quebecers also consulted the Commission’s Website and expressed their viewpoints by answering the questions of the week and submitting e-mails. Between the Website’s launching on August 14, 2007 and January 30, 2008, the site received 398 011 visits. Over 50 000 people answered the questions of the week (46 842 in French and 4 091 in English). Some 119 262 simulations were filled out under the heading “If you had to decide...” and over 2 500 e-mails, including 1 500 comments, were received.

 Table - Consultation in the fall of 2007

	Briefs			Testimony			Forums
Administrative region	Presented	Submitted	Total	Presented	Not presented	Total	Attendance
Outaouais	15	19	34	20	11	31	124
Abitibi-Témiscaminque	3	2	5	4	-	4	92
Côte-Nord	6	4	10	5	-	5	50
Saguenay— Lac-Saint-Jean	9	9	18	11	6	17	285
Laurentides	16	5	21	9	7	16	174
Lanaudière	8	3	11	15	10	25	91
Bas-Saint-Laurent	13	6	19	13	-	13	200
Gaspésie—Ïles-de-la Madeleine	3	3	6	3	2	5	76
Montérégie Est	12	9	21	7	4	11	75
Montérégie Centre	16	25	41	28	48	76	167
Mauricie	18	15	33	13	14	27	176
Capitale-Nationale Oct. 29 forum Oct. 30 forum	39	105	144	17	73	90	381 211 170
Chaudière-Appalaches	5	12	17	9	5	14	158
Centre du Québec	10	8	18	15	8	23	192
Laval	16	32	48	27	51	78	170
Estrie	23	28	51	7	48	55	249
Montréal CDN forum Nov. 27 forum Nov. 29 forum Dec. 11 forum Dec. 13 forum	58	283	341	38	233	271	763 171 171 210 108 103
Province-wide hearings	58	5	63	-	-	-	-
Total	328	573	901	241	520	761	3 423

The Commission

The CCAPRCD, co-chaired by sociologist and historian Gérard Bouchard and philosopher Charles Taylor, has been asked to take stock of accommodation practices and analyse all facets of the question by conducting a province-wide public consultation. The Commission will submit a report and make recommendations to the Québec Premier on March 31, 2008 (www.accommodements.qc.ca).

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