The rest of Canada also resents having no say in the referendum question, particularly since it is seen as biased. They must develop the institutional capacity to determine the fairness of the referendum question. There is a widespread belief outside of Quebec that the question was unfair and misleading. It was a shameless, transparent, open process, and it was the likely reason for the widespread confusion. Poll results showed that many people thought that Quebec would stay in Canada if the Yes won.
Cairns recommends a federal system for determining the fairness of the referendum question.
To answer that question, we have to look at the political actors in place. Consensus building, which is at the heart of constitution making, doesn't appear to be anywhere near the federal government's agenda. Legault predicts that the Reform Party will become the official opposition, and that they and the provincial premiers will futher muddy the constitutional reform waters. And the provincial premiers' ignorance about both Quebec and Canada, and their fascination with their parochial short-term interests, are a recipe for disaster from the federalist point of view. The 1982 Constitution Act calls for a constitutional conference in 1997, but Legault suggested that such a conference would only pave the way for another referendum.