Announcement follows statements from Quebec premier, who expressed frustration over public prayers in Montreal

Quebec says it will ban prayer in public, a move that civil rights groups described as an “alarming measure” that targets religious minority groups and would infringe on “basic democratic freedoms”.

The province’s secularism minister, Jean-François Roberge, said the move had been prompted by the “proliferation of street prayer” which he described as “a serious and sensitive issue” adding that the government had watched with “unease”. Roberge said the government would introduce legislation in the fall.