Péladeau Still Controls Quebecor despite Promises

This article was last updated on April 16, 2022

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The company eyeing to become Canada’s fourth national wireless carrier, Quebecor Inc., is still under the direct control of potential separatist leader, Pierre Karl Péladeau, who vowed to surrender his shares to a blind trust almost four months. Still controlling 72 per cent of the voting rights in Montreal-based Quebecor, Peladeau failed to follow through on statements he and the company made on March 9, i.e. the time he announced to run for the separatist Parti Québécois.

Even though the party lost the election, Peladeau secured a seat in the provincial legislature and now he is one of the potential candidates for the vacant party leadership. University of Ottawa professor at the School of Political Studies, Luc Turgeon, says that Péladeau’s decision to maintain direct control over the company grows suspicion that the federal government is crafting wireless policies to help his company become a national carrier. Turgeon stated that “it will be controversial in the rest of the country” because “outside Quebec, the Parti Québécois is often viewed as anti-Canadian so some people might wonder why this decision favours a company whose shareholder is potentially the leader of the secessionist party.”

The statement issued by the Quebecor promised that “following his decision to enter politics Mr. Péladeau has promised to place his financial interests in the Corporation in a blind trust or under a blind management agreement if he is elected to Quebec’s National Assembly on April 7.” It added that “as of today, Mr. Péladeau will no longer take part in any decisions respecting the Corporation’s daily or strategic management.”