The Bloc Québécois closed off 2014 with yet another departure from its top ranks.

Annie Lessard has resigned as the party’s vice-president after what an MP says was a conflict of personality with leader Mario Beaulieu.

Louis Plamondon, MP for Bas-Richelieu-Nicolet-Bécancour, said he was not surprised by her departure.

“She was used to working with (former leader Daniel) Paillé. When Mr. Beaulieu arrived, she didn’t have same ease. They had different personalities,” Plamondon said.

Lessard will remain a member of the party and continue to work for its cause. “It wasn’t a paid position. She was a volunteer,” Plamondon added.

In an interview with La Presse, Lessard said she felt uneasy with what she described as a yes-men culture in the national office of the Bloc, one that simply endorsed decisions made by the leaders.

Plamondon disagreed with her assessment.

“Our last meeting lasted four hours. The one before lasted six. We have debates, we discuss ideas. She saw a problem, but other members didn’t,” he said.

Beaulieu is a hardline separatist and former head of the sovereignist Société Saint-Jean-Baptiste who became Bloc leader last June. He won the leadership on a platform that focused primarily on Quebec’s independence.

Since then, two MPs have resigned from caucus and the party’s only other sitting MP, Claude Patry, has announced he won’t seek re-election in 2015.

Lessard’s departure is another blow to the struggling party, which was decimated after the 2011 federal election, losing more than 40 seats in Quebec.

With files from The Canadian Press.