Legislative Council of Quebec
Until 1968, the Legislative Council of Quebec was the unelected upper house of Quebec's bicameral legislature, with the Legislative Assembly being the elected lower house. In 1968, the Legislative Council was abolished and the Legislative Assembly was renamed the National Assembly, and as a result, Quebec now has a unicameral legislature. The establishment of the original system dates back to the Constitutional Act of 1791.
It was the Union Nationale government of Premier Jean-Jacques Bertrand that passed the "Bill 90" legislation to do so, although earlier unsuccessful attempts had been made by earlier governments. In fact, the first attempt dated all the way back to Félix-Gabriel Marchand in the late nineteenth century. Quebec was the last of the provinces to abolish its unelected upper house.
The large chamber which used to house the Legislative Council is also known as le salon rouge (the red hall) because of the predominance of this color on the walls. It is now used for committee meetings and for important state functions requiring a vast, impressive space, such as delivering the National Order of Quebec.
see also: legislative council
