MONTREAL - Parti Quebecois Leader Pauline Marois said that if elected, she will demand a meeting with the federal government within the first few weeks of forming a provincial government.

And if Marois doesn't like what she hears from Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Quebecers will have more reasons to split from the country.

She told reporters Friday in Gatineau, Que., just across the river from Ottawa, that a PQ government would demand Ottawa repatriate several powers to Quebec, in areas of language, culture, and unemployment insurance.

"I will be polite, but I will be firm," Marois said.

She said she wants to see how much she can get from Ottawa regardless of how much power her party would have in the province's legislature. The latest polls place the PQ in minority territory.

On Saturday morning, Marois told reporters that when the House of Commons passed a motion in 2006 that declared Quebec a nation within Canada, the province should have received some sort of tangible benefits.

"When Stephen Harper decided that Quebec was a nation, that should have had consequences," she said. "As of now, there haven't been any consequences."

The latest poll placed the PQ at 32%, four points ahead of the Coalition Avenir Quebec (CAQ).

Quebecers head to the polls on Tuesday, Sept. 4.