Carney accuses PQ government of leaving empty chair at dinner with European Union

Quebec Premier Paul St-Pierre Plamondon is accusing Ottawa of muzzling him at the upcoming Canada-European Union summit in Montreal.

The federal government has assured the premier that he is invited to dinner with EU representatives, but the premier will not speak at the summit taking place Thursday and Friday.

"He was invited to the dinner and he refused," Prime Minister Mark Carney told reporters in Ottawa on Tuesday. "It's his decision to leave the chair empty." 

But the premier wrote on social media that Ottawa is seeking to impose economic decisions on Quebec without allowing the province a seat at the negotiating table. 

"The federal government would have us believe that giving the Quebec premier permission to serve shrimp cocktails at a reception constitutes an acceptable and sufficient form of influence in representing Quebec's interests," St-Pierre Plamondon wrote.

Federal Industry Minister Mélanie Joly said in Ottawa that geopolitics, including the summit, fall under federal jurisdiction.

The Parti Québécois government also says Ottawa denied Quebec's request to host a reception on the sidelines of the summit, which was submitted by former premier Christine Fréchette in September.

A provincial government spokesperson says the EU routinely holds a forum for economic leaders during such summits, which the province could have hosted or co-hosted.

The spokesperson said that there is precedent to include Quebec at the summit, as provincial representatives participated in negotiations for the Canada-European Union Free Trade Agreement. 

Marie-Claude Sarrazin, the new Quebec minister of justice and Canadian intergovernmental affairs, said the federal government's position serves as a reminder that the province needs "to be fully in charge in our own home."

“‘When you’re not at the table, you’re on the menu,’ Prime Minister Carney once told us,” she said. “The federal government has chosen to prevent Quebec from having a say on its own territory. This is a fundamental lack of respect toward Quebec and a denial of the role of our legislature."

The tension around the summit comes after St-Pierre Plamondon did not participate in a meeting on Monday between the federal government, provincial premiers and First Nations.

The Quebec premier also spoke with French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 27, 2026.

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