In a press conference on November 12, Premier François Legault said the provincial government is looking into temporarily closing Quebec schools. 

Legault announced the government is exploring the possibility of a "definite" but not prolonged closure. 

He explained that the province's officials were in the midst of a discussion on the issue of closing schools when a Quebec media outlet released the information.

No decision has been made.

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I asked that we look into the possibility of closing schools for a well-defined period of time.

Premier François Legault

"I'll be transparent with you [...] I would have preferred that the discussion be finished and [that] we had [reached] a conclusion before it came out in the media," Legault said.

He also clarified that discussions with Quebec teachers' unions are in the works to outline whether or not the province will extend classes into June or July of next year, should schools be temporarily closed.

"For me, it remains the last [resort]," he continued. "But we can't exclude any solutions."

Legault said the provincial government has not yet decided when the potential school closures would happen.

While no decision has been made, 1,174 classes in Quebec have been closed due to COVID-19 outbreaks in schools.

Of those classroom closures, 324 have occurred within the last two days, said the premier.

"The recommendation that we [...] continue to have from [Quebec] public health is to ensure that the ventilation systems in schools are properly maintained," he explained.