Quebec renews burqa ban debate in parliament Read morePhilippe Couillard, the premier of Quebec, was defensive as he addressed the new law. “We are just saying that for reasons linked to communication, identification and safety, public services should be given and received with an open face,” he told reporters. It’s as simple as that.”The law was originally meant to ban face coverings for those offering or receiving services from government departments and provincially funded institutions, such as universities. “As long as the service is being rendered, the face should be uncovered,” Stéphanie Vallée, Quebec’s justice minister, said when asked. “We don’t have a big issue right now with hordes of Muslim women in niqab trying to work in the public service or accessing public services with difficulty.”The law comes after two attempts by authorities in Quebec to legislate secularism in the public domain in recent years.

Source: The Guardian October 18, 2017 16:32 UTC