Sergio Marchi confirms ‘Operation Citizenship’ happened in lead-up to Quebec referendum

While Philippe Léger and others beat the drum to reopen questions around federal interference in the 1995 vote, nobody is asking how provincial agencies and Crown corporations received cash to spend on Parti Québécois propaganda in the year leading up to the vote.

Former prime minister Jean Chrétien, left, and former immigration minister Sergio Marchi. Marchi was quoted in a Quebec newspaper saying he was instructed by Chrétien to speed up citizenship applications in advance of a potential referendum vote. The Hill Times photograph by Andrew Meade and handout photograph

Opinion

BY SHEILA COPPS

December 1, 2025

OTTAWA—"Operation Citizenship” was all the buzz in Quebec last week. Former immigration minister Sergio Marchi was quoted in a Quebec newspaper saying he was instructed by then-prime minister Jean Chrétien to speed up citizenship applications in advance of a potential r...

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