Former National Union leader and former minister Rodrigue Biron has died

The last true leader of the Union Nationale and former PQ minister under René Lévesque, Rodrigue Biron, died a few weeks before his 91st birthday, our Parliamentary Office has learned.

The former Member of Parliament for Lotbinière (1976-1985) passed away Tuesday morning. The man, who battled cancer a few years ago, had been receiving residential care for some time.

A businessman deeply involved in his home region, Mr. Biron began his career by taking over the Ste-Croix Foundry, previously run by his father, Henri. Like his father, he was mayor of Sainte-Croix, in the Lotbinière MRC.

In the 1970s, Rodrigue Biron entered provincial politics and became leader of the Union Nationale. In the famous 1976 election, Biron was elected to the National Assembly along with 10 other Union Nationale members, after facing René Lévesque's Parti Québécois, which was then in power.

In 1980, he left the Union Nationale, announcing his intention to vote for the Yes side in the referendum. He joined the Parti Québécois and was re-elected in Lotbinière the following year.

René Lévesque appointed him Minister of Industry and Trade. In this role, he became known for his Biron Plan, which aimed to support SMEs during the economic crisis.

Before being defeated in 1985, Mr. Biron led an operation to privatize the branches of the Société des alcools du Québec, which Robert Bourassa cancelled upon coming to power.

Mr. Biron then returned to business. He served on the board of directors of the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec in 1995 and was appointed president of Technologies M4, a subsidiary of Hydro-Québec, that same year.

In 1997, he bit the dust when he faced Gilles Duceppe in a Bloc Québécois leadership race.

"He was someone who stood up," Mr. Duceppe recalled sadly, receiving occasional news from him. Even during the race, Mr. Duceppe had a "very decent relationship" with him.

A man involved

Mr. Biron remained heavily involved in his region and was notably named Patriot of the Year in 2024 by the Société nationale des Québécoises et des Québécois de Chaudière-Appalaches (SNQCA).

The current Minister of Health and Social Services, Christian Dubé, began his business dealings with Mr. Biron. In an interview with La Presse during the pandemic, Mr. Dubé recounted how Mr. Biron inspired in him a sense of state, the primary reason for his political involvement.

"I was deeply moved to learn of Rodrigue Biron's passing. I had the chance to work alongside him in business, and I remember him as a generous and passionate man about Quebec. My thoughts are with his family and loved ones," Mr. Dubé told the Journal in response to Mr. Biron's passing.

"He was a man who was very well-liked," recalls former Bloc Québécois MP for Lotbinière Odina Desrochers, who had been friends with Mr. Biron since his arrival in the sovereignist movement. Just recently, "I had the privilege of chatting with him one last time," said Mr. Desrochers, who often discussed politics with him.