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It was with great interest that I read Dan Delmar’s opinion column (“Why the PQ’s plans for diversity, openness will continue to fail,” June 14) regarding the motions submitted at Sunday’s Parti Québécois national council meeting in order to increase the party’s outreach toward minority communities, entrepreneurs and youth.

Before diving into my disagreements with some of Delmar’s arguments, I would like to thank him for stating that both PQ leader Jean-François Lisée and I “seem sincere in (our) shared desire to have a more diverse PQ.” We are indeed, and are starting to make good progress toward that goal, including improved collaboration with the anglophone community. That being said, I would like to clarify a few things.

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First and foremost, it is worth noting that of the 21 propositions from the written summary of my consultations that were put forth as motions, 19 were passed, which means the 5,000 new members whom I convinced to join the PQ last summer have been greeted with a 90 per cent success rate. Some journalists present last Sunday did applaud a few of these audacious propositions, including a call for increased diversity within the public sector, a permanent accountability committee on prevention of discrimination and racism to ensure results and better integration, and anti-poverty measures to assist women who immigrate to Quebec.