In October 2025, the Quebec government tabled Bill 1, proposing a draft constitution for Quebec. The idea of a Quebec constitution is not new, and in principle, all political parties in Quebec agree that Quebec needs a constitution of its own. Constitution making, however, must be a broad, consultative process. Instead, Bill 1 was drafted behind closed doors – and when it comes to human rights, and gender equality in particular, it is a spectacular disaster.
Bill 1 proposes to legislate abortion rights – which could open the door to future amendments and limits on abortion – but fierce opposition from Quebec’s feminist movement has forced the government to backtrack. However, this is just one of many troubling proposals within this thoroughly flawed bill, and the government’s selective responsiveness to outcry over the abortion clause does not diminish its responsibility to respond to civil society’s concerns regarding the rest of the Bill.
As the Fédération des femmes du Québec (FFQ) detailed in its submission to a committee of the National Assembly, Bill 1 threatens human rights and gender equality in Quebec to a significant degree. For example, the Bill would amend Quebec’s Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms to the point that the “collective rights of the Québec nation” will prevail over individual freedoms such as freedom of expression and religion. It would also specify that gender equality rights prevail over freedom of religion. Both of these amendments would undermine the fundamental goal of human rights legislation: to protect minority groups from the tyranny of the majority, and where a clash of rights arises, to equip courts with the ability to conduct nuanced, context-specific analysis. Moreover, given that the Quebec government’s vision of gender equality includes dictating what women can wear, the privileging of gender equality rings glaringly false to feminist organizations.
For these reasons and many others, LEAF steadfastly endorses the FFQ’s executive summary and recommendations. We support the strong, clear, and well-substantiated objections to Bill 1 not just from the feminist sector but from all of Quebec civil society – most notably from the Barreau du Quebec, an institution that does not involve itself in political affairs lightly. The Barreau’s submission to the National Assembly did not mince words. Bill 1 “introduces mechanisms that threaten the separation of powers, stifles checks and balances, creates legal uncertainty, and undermines fundamental rights. These changes risk eroding the foundations of our rule of law and undermining public trust in our institutions” (translated from French). LEAF agrees, and like the FFQ, calls for the immediate withdrawal of Bill 1 in its entirety.
