Yes, that's right.
It was already there to serve the francophone population, which did not have enough resources. There was already an agreement.
To transfer a school, the legislation governing education in Quebec requires a very well-defined process, which takes about 18 months. There are 6 months of consultation and one year of planning. In so doing, parents, students and communities in general have the opportunity to provide input on the issue and have a planning period.
That was simply set aside because the minister decided to use a power that has existed for 20 years but has only been used once.
We were more shocked by the process than the outcome. It is important to emphasize that this was not a question of empty classrooms not being used to meet needs. There was already an agreement between the school boards. It was an unexpected intervention and it was very difficult for the community.