Frédérik-Xavier D. Plante - The Globe and Mail

Frédérik-Xavier D. Plante

Former StaffReporterMontreal, Quebec

Area of Expertise

Law enforcement accountability, migration, environmental issues, Quebec

Frédérik-Xavier D. Plante was a Montreal-based general assignment reporter. He joined The Globe and Mail in 2023 after working for La Presse and CBC/Radio-Canada in Montreal and Vancouver. That year, his investigative series on Montreal fire safety gaps prompted inquiries, lawsuits, and policy changes. It was a finalist for the Michener Award, Canada's top journalistic honour.

Other notable projects include investigations into illegal detentions, police impunity, at-risk species protection and tenant evictions. Plante holds a Master of Laws from McGill University and a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Montreal. You can reach him here: fplante@globeandmail.com or @fx_plante on X.

7

Years in Journalism

Education

Master of Laws (LLM), McGill University

Bachelor of Laws (LLB), University of Montreal

Honours & Awards

Michener Award finalist, 2023

World Press Freedom Canada Certificate of Merit, 2024

Professional affliations

Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ); Fédération professionnelle des journalistes du Québec (FPJQ)

Languages spoken

French, English, Spanish

Latest articles

March 29, 2025

The Irving Pulp and Paper Mill in Saint John, NB. (03/09/2025)
(Chris Donovan/The Globe and Mail)

The Irving Pulp and Paper Mill in Saint John, NB. (03/09/2025)
(Chris Donovan/The Globe and Mail)

In Canada’s ‘most tariff-exposed’ city, uncertainty over the trade war looms large

7 min read

March 24, 2025

A group of citizens gathered in front of the United States Consulate in Toronto on March 24, 2025, to protest the tariffs imposed on Canada by the Donald Trump administration. 2025. Andrés Valenzuela/The Globe and Mail.

A group of citizens gathered in front of the United States Consulate in Toronto on March 24, 2025, to protest the tariffs imposed on Canada by the Donald Trump administration. 2025. Andrés Valenzuela/The Globe and Mail.

Protesters gather at U.S. consulates across the country

4 min read

March 22, 2025

WEST PALM BEACH, FL - MARCH 7, 2025: Pierre Emmanuel Joseph poses for a photograph in West palm Beach, Florida United States, March 7, 2025. CREDIT: Saul Martinez

WEST PALM BEACH, FL - MARCH 7, 2025: Pierre Emmanuel Joseph poses for a photograph in West palm Beach, Florida United States, March 7, 2025. CREDIT: Saul Martinez

Black and Arab people overrepresented in Laval police stops, data show, reflecting broader Quebec pattern

5 min read

March 2, 2025

Jay, VT, United-States (03/01/2025) At the Vermont ski resort Jay Peak, the thrill of the slopes meets uncertainty. As Trump's new tariffs cast a shadow over cross-border trade, the economic ripple effects could hit both sides. – (Photo by Alexis Aubin)

Jay, VT, United-States (03/01/2025) At the Vermont ski resort Jay Peak, the thrill of the slopes meets uncertainty. As Trump's new tariffs cast a shadow over cross-border trade, the economic ripple effects could hit both sides. – (Photo by Alexis Aubin)

At a Vermont ski resort, Canadians continue to hit the slopes despite tariff tensions

4 min read

February 26, 2025

Quebec Premier Francois Legault responds to the Opposition over a report on the SAAQ during question period at the legislature in Quebec City, Thursday, February 20, 2025 THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jacques Boissinot

Quebec Premier Francois Legault responds to the Opposition over a report on the SAAQ during question period at the legislature in Quebec City, Thursday, February 20, 2025 THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jacques Boissinot

Quebec Premier Legault calls on Ottawa to order more icebreakers

3 min read

February 26, 2025

U.S. President Donald Trump hosts his first cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 26, 2025.

U.S. President Donald Trump hosts his first cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 26, 2025.

Canadian ministers, fentanyl czar visit Washington as deadline for 25-per-cent tariffs nears

5 min read

February 26, 2025

Liberal leadership candidates Karina Gould, left and Mark Carney, right, speak with each other as Chrystia Freeland and Frank Baylis look on following their debate in Montreal on Feb. 25.

Liberal leadership candidates Karina Gould, left and Mark Carney, right, speak with each other as Chrystia Freeland and Frank Baylis look on following their debate in Montreal on Feb. 25.

Five takeaways from the two Liberal leadership debates

5 min read

February 26, 2025

Canada's Liberal Party leadership candidate and former Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney looks on, on the day he speaks to the media after participating in an English language debate ahead of the March 9 vote to replace Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, February 25, 2025. REUTERS/Evan Buhler

Canada's Liberal Party leadership candidate and former Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney looks on, on the day he speaks to the media after participating in an English language debate ahead of the March 9 vote to replace Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, February 25, 2025. REUTERS/Evan Buhler

Carney says he wasn’t on the board when Brookfield formalized a move to the U.S., but company records say otherwise

4 min read

February 25, 2025

Liberal Party leadership candidates (from left) Karina Gould, Frank Baylis, Chrystia Freeland and Mark Carney prior to the English-language Liberal Leadership debate in Montreal on Feb. 25.

Liberal Party leadership candidates (from left) Karina Gould, Frank Baylis, Chrystia Freeland and Mark Carney prior to the English-language Liberal Leadership debate in Montreal on Feb. 25.

Liberal leadership contenders spar over U.S. threat, NATO target in final debate

5 min read

February 24, 2025

(L-R) Mark Carney, former Governor of the Bank of Canada; Chrystia Freeland, former Finance Minister; Karina Gould, former House leader; and Frank Baylis, former Liberal Member of Parliament, pose before the first of the two nights of the Liberal Leadership Debate at the MELS studios in Montreal, Canada, on February 24, 2025. Candidates vying in the federal Liberal leadership race to replace Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. (Photo by ANDREJ IVANOV / AFP) (Photo by ANDREJ IVANOV/AFP via Getty Images)

(L-R) Mark Carney, former Governor of the Bank of Canada; Chrystia Freeland, former Finance Minister; Karina Gould, former House leader; and Frank Baylis, former Liberal Member of Parliament, pose before the first of the two nights of the Liberal Leadership Debate at the MELS studios in Montreal, Canada, on February 24, 2025. Candidates vying in the federal Liberal leadership race to replace Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. (Photo by ANDREJ IVANOV / AFP) (Photo by ANDREJ IVANOV/AFP via Getty Images)

Liberal leadership contenders focus on Trump’s threats to Canadian economy, sovereignty in French debate

5 min read

February 18, 2025

Rio Tinto now owns this hydro dam, built in 1926, one of the installations along the Saguenay that made this area attractive for aluminum making.

Rio Tinto now owns this hydro dam, built in 1926, one of the installations along the Saguenay that made this area attractive for aluminum making.

The country that helped build Quebec’s aluminum industry now threatens its survival

5 min read

February 15, 2025

A hockey puck with the Canadian flag at a National Flag of Canada Day ceremony, one day before the official observance of Flag Day, on the Rideau Canal Skateway in Ottawa on Feb. 14.

A hockey puck with the Canadian flag at a National Flag of Canada Day ceremony, one day before the official observance of Flag Day, on the Rideau Canal Skateway in Ottawa on Feb. 14.

Flag Day surges in relevance as Canada faces Trump’s threats to economy, sovereignty

5 min read

February 11, 2025

Saguenay, QC - 20250212 - Rio Tinto aluminium smelter in Jonquière. The Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region has four aluminium smelters and produces a third of the metal produced in Canada thanks to abundant and cheap hydroelectric power.

Saguenay, QC - 20250212 - Rio Tinto aluminium smelter in Jonquière. The Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region has four aluminium smelters and produces a third of the metal produced in Canada thanks to abundant and cheap hydroelectric power.

In Saguenay, Canada’s aluminum valley, anxiety over planned U.S. tariffs is palpable

3 min read

February 8, 2025

Ontario PC Leader Doug Ford appears at a campaign event at NRS Brakes in Scarborough, Ont., on Feb. 7.

Ontario PC Leader Doug Ford appears at a campaign event at NRS Brakes in Scarborough, Ont., on Feb. 7.

Ontario Liberals, PCs air duelling election campaign ads during Super Bowl

3 min read

February 7, 2025

Marc-Antoine Goyette sits on the bed of a Victorian-style bedroom that he designed and built with artistic collaborator Gabriel Lacombe inside an abandoned warehouse in Montreal's South West. With funding from the Canada Council for the Arts, the bedroom was built to open dialogue about Canada's housing crisis. (Selena Phillips-Boyle / The Globe and Mail)

Marc-Antoine Goyette sits on the bed of a Victorian-style bedroom that he designed and built with artistic collaborator Gabriel Lacombe inside an abandoned warehouse in Montreal's South West. With funding from the Canada Council for the Arts, the bedroom was built to open dialogue about Canada's housing crisis. (Selena Phillips-Boyle / The Globe and Mail)

Artists built an illicit ‘luxury squat’ in a vacant Montreal factory to protest the housing crisis

5 min read

February 1, 2025

Premiers and senior federal government figures look on as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks at a press conference concluding a first ministers meeting, in Ottawa, on Jan. 15.

Premiers and senior federal government figures look on as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks at a press conference concluding a first ministers meeting, in Ottawa, on Jan. 15.

‘A declaration of economic war’: Premiers react to U.S. tariffs

7 min read

February 1, 2025

Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is joined by Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc, Minister of Foreign Affairs Melanie Joly, and Minister of Public Safety David McGuinty, as he speaks during a press conference while responding to U.S. President Donald Trump's orders to impose 25% tariffs on Canadian imports, in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada February 1, 2025. REUTERS/Patrick Doyle

Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is joined by Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc, Minister of Foreign Affairs Melanie Joly, and Minister of Public Safety David McGuinty, as he speaks during a press conference while responding to U.S. President Donald Trump's orders to impose 25% tariffs on Canadian imports, in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada February 1, 2025. REUTERS/Patrick Doyle

Canada hits back against Trump tariffs

8 min read

January 29, 2025

Olga Pyroh poses for a portrait in front of the Ottawa Street location of Centre Saint-Michel in Sherbrooke, QC. on Jan. 07, 2025. The Center became the center of attention when the Coalition Avenir Quebec (CAQ) government announced that it would cut budgets for francisization classes amid calls by the same government to protect the french language in Quebec. The Center offered eight levels of French language classes, but opted to keep the lower levels until the end of funding. The adult learning center currently has five cohorts of low-level students left. Funding will end on Jan. 24, 2025.
(07/01/2025)
(Andrej Ivanov/The Globe and Mail)

Olga Pyroh poses for a portrait in front of the Ottawa Street location of Centre Saint-Michel in Sherbrooke, QC. on Jan. 07, 2025. The Center became the center of attention when the Coalition Avenir Quebec (CAQ) government announced that it would cut budgets for francisization classes amid calls by the same government to protect the french language in Quebec. The Center offered eight levels of French language classes, but opted to keep the lower levels until the end of funding. The adult learning center currently has five cohorts of low-level students left. Funding will end on Jan. 24, 2025.
(07/01/2025)
(Andrej Ivanov/The Globe and Mail)

More immigrants to Quebec want to learn French. But cuts to public classes put their fluency in jeopardy

5 min read

January 20, 2025

Julien Poulin in "Bob Gratton, Ma Vie, My Life", winner for best actor in a drama at the 2007 Gémeaux Awards Sunday, September 9, 2007 in Montreal. (CP PHOTO/David Boily) CANADA

Julien Poulin in "Bob Gratton, Ma Vie, My Life", winner for best actor in a drama at the 2007 Gémeaux Awards Sunday, September 9, 2007 in Montreal. (CP PHOTO/David Boily) CANADA

Actor created his Bob Gratton character in response to 1980 Quebec referendum

6 min read

January 18, 2025

A Quebec trucking company has been ordered to reinstate a driver who was fired after she drank at least nine beers before losing control of her truck on a Pennsylvania highway. The Quebec flag flies on top of the legislature in Quebec City, Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jacques Boissinot

A Quebec trucking company has been ordered to reinstate a driver who was fired after she drank at least nine beers before losing control of her truck on a Pennsylvania highway. The Quebec flag flies on top of the legislature in Quebec City, Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jacques Boissinot

Prolific Quebec songwriter and composer Stéphane Venne has died

3 min read