A controversial proposal which would ban any religious symbols being worn at work by public employees in the Canadian province of Quebec has been defended by the governing party there.

Banned religious symbols under the proposed law will reportedly include turbans, hijabs, kippas, and crucifixes.

The proposal has been heavily criticised by one of Canada’s most renowned intellectuals, Professor Charles Taylor, who branded the proposal as “monstrous”.

However, Quebec Premier Pauline Marois defended the proposal saying: “What divides Quebeckers is not diversity, it is the absence of clear rules so that we can move onward in harmony.”

She told a meeting of her party, Parti Quebecois (PQ): “To recognize secularism as a Quebec value is to take cognisance of the evolution of a people which, for the past half century, has become increasingly secular and has taken the confessional character out of its institutions,” she said.

The measure will be contained in a new ‘Charter of Quebec Values’ and Marois said the Charter will be a force for unity among Quebecers in the same way the province’s language laws have been.

The proposed charter was central to PQ’s 2012 general election campaign in which it won a minority government. Marois promised a “secular” charter at that time which would rid public institutions of religious symbols, including those worn by public employees.

Critics say the Charter is the latest move against the public expression of religious belief by a province that has become increasingly hostile to religious believers.

In recent years private Catholic schools have been forbidden from teaching Catholic courses on religion and morality.

Instead, they have been forced to teach the “secular” and “neutral” world religions course designed by the government. Parents and schools seeking exemption from the course based on religious freedom have consistently failed in their bid.

At the same time, priests, rabbis, and other religious leaders have been barred from visiting any government-funded daycare centers, even if they are privately run and invited in by the day-care owners with the knowledge of the parents. The 2010 ban of any form of religious activity in the centers makes it illegal to pray, do religious crafts, or sing religious songs, including Christmas carols.

Even private citizens have been fined for holding religious ceremonies in public buildings rented for that purpose.

While parts of the proposed charter are reported to apply to the private sector, it is not yet clear what parts do apply and to what extent.

Professor Taylor, who in 2007 helped head up a one year Commission of Inquiry into what would constitute “reasonable accommodation” for minority cultures in Quebec, described the proposal as “ a terrible move, a gratuitous move of exclusion”.