In the News:
Bill 94: To Reinforce Secularism in Education

Bill 94, An Act to, in particular, reinforce laicity in the education network and to amend various legislative provisions, 43^rd Legislature, 1^st Session, National Assembly of Quebec, 2025-03-20.

Several Key Aspects of Bill 94:

• Face-coverings prohibited for anyone entering a school (public or private): staff, students, parents, etc. This rule also applies to homeschooling.
• Ban on wearing religious symbols applied to all school staff (not just teachers, principals and vice-principals as stipulated by Bill 21), with acquired rights (so-called “grandfather clause”).
• Restrictions on religious accommodations. In particular, the number of vacation days cannot be increased.
• In public schools, ban on religious ceremonies “such as overt prayers or other similar practices” (articles 10 and 18).
• Rules of conduct for pupils, excluding “all forms of bullying and violence, in particular those motivated by racism or homophobia or targeting sexual orientation, sexual or gender identity, a handicap or a physical characteristic,” and ensuring “compliance with the equality of women and men” (article 42).
• An annual evaluation of each teacher.
• In French-language schools, an obligation for staff to communicate with pupils exclusively in French.

See also:

• RPL Press Release, 2025-03-20, Bill 94: A Major Step Towards Secular Public Schools, Rassemblement pour la laïcité
• The majority of English-language media are notoriously anti-secular and never miss an opportunity to denigrate Quebec’s efforts to prevent religious interference in government and schools. Here are two examples. After reporting on Bill 94, each article degenerates into alarmist rhetoric, quoting religious fanatics, dishonest politicians and others.
  • Janitors, library volunteers, secretaries: New bill would extend Quebec’s ban on religious symbols in schools, Philip Authier, Montreal Gazette, 2025-03-21.
  • Quebec bill would extend religious symbols ban to school support workers, force students to uncover faces, Benjamin Shingler, CBC, 2025-03-21.
• Here are various reports, some sympathetic, from the French-language media:
  • Québec interdira le voile intégral aux élèves (Quebec plans to ban the full veil for school pupils), Jean-François Thériault, Radio-Canada, 2025-03-21.
  • Le bar ouvert des congés religieux: enfin fini (The Open Bar for Religious Holidays is Finally Over), Mario Dumont, Journal de Québec, 2025-03-21.
  • Drainville face aux idiots utiles de l’islamisme (Drainville Versus the Useful Idiots of Islamism), Joseph Facal, Journal de Montréal, 2025-03-21.
  • Laïcité dans les écoles: Bernard Drainville veut redonner « du courage » aux dirigeants scolaires (Secularism in Schools: Bernard Drainville Seeks to Provide “Courage” to School Administrators), Yannick Beaudoin, Journal de Québec, 2025-03-20.