Quebec premier to be absent at First Nations meeting

Quebec’s newly appointed premier, Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, will be absent from the upcoming First Nations-First Ministers’ Meeting in Ottawa on Monday, according to reports. The gathering, which will feature Prime Minister Mark Carney, provincial and territorial premiers, Assembly of First Nations National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak, and other influential leaders, is scheduled to take place after a traditional Indigenous ceremony on Sunday.

St-Pierre Plamondon announced his decision to miss the meeting during a separate news conference in Montreal on Friday. He stated that he intends to focus on different matters and has numerous meetings planned in the near future, including a discussion with the chief of the Assembly of First Nations of Quebec and Labrador. It is worth noting that other provincial leaders might also be absent from the meeting, such as British Columbia’s David Eby, due to his province's upcoming general election on Saturday.