Lapierre was a strong proponent of the Meech Lake Accord, and Turner and Martin also expressed support for it.

Upon leaving the Liberals, Lapierre sat as an independent, helping to found the Bloc Québécois and serving in their first caucus.

[4] In private life, Lapierre was well known in Quebec as a broadcaster and talk show host for Montreal radio station CKAC.

[6] By contrast, Lapierre had what a CBC commentator described as a "rough and tumble, shoot from the hip style of politics", being known for his flamboyance, aggressiveness, toughness, rudeness and arrogance.

[6] In the 2004 federal election, Lapierre was expected to deliver the vote in Quebec, but this was difficult following the sponsorship scandal of the Liberal Party.

Lapierre said that it would help the Liberals if the Royal Canadian Mounted Police could "lay some charges already" in the sponsorship probe.

He also spearheaded a large federal investment in the Prince Rupert container terminal, saying that it improved ties to Asian markets while enhancing economic development in northern British Columbia and Alberta.

Lapierre reduced the amount paid by airports to the federal government by some $5 billion over the remaining life of the leases.

[10] As Transport Minister, his predecessor Tony Valeri had dismissed VIA Rail chairman Jean Pelletier, who filed a lawsuit against the government charging it had failed to use due process.

[11] But in March 2007, Justice Francois Lemieux ruled that the Martin government acted improperly in 2005 when it fired Pelletier a second time, immediately after a court had overturned his first dismissal, stating that Lapierre was biased and failed to follow proper procedures.

[12] On November 22, 2007, Judge Hélène Langlois of the Quebec Superior Court ruled that the government of then-Prime Minister Paul Martin had acted in a "cavalier and precipitous" fashion when it fired Pelletier.

They also said he had failed to warn the public or intervene, making him indirectly responsible when thousands of travellers were stranded when the carrier stopped operations.

Interim successor Bill Graham appointed Lapierre to his shadow cabinet as Industry critic.

He started work as a political analyst with Quebec television network TVA and Montreal radio station 98.5 FM.

[19] On March 29, 2016, Jean Lapierre died in a plane crash short of the airport in the Magdalen Islands.

[21] Lapierre and Beaulieu were given a funeral at Saint-Viateur d'Outremont church in Montreal on April 16, 2016, attended by extended family, friends, political and broadcasting colleagues, and dignitaries including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his wife Sophie Gregoire Trudeau.

[3] The plane was travelling faster and at a higher altitude than recommended, the federal Transportation Safety Board stated.

The agency said that the plane crashed short of the airport soon after the pilot turned off the autopilot and lowered the landing gear.

Almost immediately afterwards, the Mitsubishi MU-2B-60 aircraft "rolled quickly into a steep right bank and descended rapidly" before smashing to the ground.