MONTREAL – Prime Minister Stephen Harper says Quebecers and Canadians have moved past the 1759 defeat of French forces on the Plains of Abraham despite what the Bloc Quebecois says.

The Bloc wants organizers to cancel this summer's re-enactment of the battle, where British forces trounced French troops. Sovereigntists have denounced it as an insulting reminder of the defeat of their French ancestors 250 years ago.

Harper said Friday the decision to allow the re-enactment to go ahead rests with the National Battlefields Commission, which administers the Plains.

"That's for the commission to decide what is appropriate," Harper said of the Aug. 1 commemoration.

"What I know is this: For most Canadians and most Quebecers, that battle is an important event but it is an historical battle," the prime minister said to a burst of applause from workers at Montreal's CAE plant when he repeated the remarks in English.

He said the Bloc Quebecois "want to keep fighting today."

"Most Canadians have moved beyond this. We're not fighting battles across the country in workplaces like this. English- and French-Canadians work together and we're going to continue to keep this country together forever."

The Prime Minister's Office has previously declined to comment on the re-enactment and Heritage Minister James Moore's office has referred all queries to the battlefields commission.

Quebec sovereigntists have promised to protest outside the re-enactment, political commentators have decried it and even federalist Premier Jean Charest has criticized the event and promised to stay away.

In Quebec's popular lore, the battle of the Plains is considered the end of francophone autonomy in North America and the start of British dominance.

Bloc Leader Gilles Duceppe has said he is fine with other events related to the anniversary, which include architectural digs, guided cruises and art exhibits.

But he questioned the holding of a masked ball, saying such a festive event is out of place.

The masked ball in question is a re-enactment of a party held by residents of New France in an act of defiance against British troops as they prepared a blockade of Quebec City.

The head of the National Battlefields Commission has said there will be numerous events commemorating the anniversary but the contentious battle re-enactment is under consideration.

Andre Arthur, an Independent MP from the Quebec City region, said during a visit to Shannon, Que., on Friday that the commission has badly managed the event.

He questioned the leadership of commission head Andre Juneau and said the organization of the re-enactment should never have been left to amateur historians.

Federal Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Josee Verner said Juneau will have to explain the event programming before the Commons heritage committee.

The battle has been re-enacted in the provincial capital three times in the past 15 years – in 1994, 1998 and 2004.

The Quebec Historical Corps, which is staging the re-enactment, says between 70,000 and 90,000 spectators have come to watch the roughly 2,000 people who dress up for the event.