Official Languages Committee on March 30th, 2010

[Marc Lemay, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

There is a lot of money for international events. We are talking about millions of dollars.

I would now like to address the Air Canada Jazz issue. I come from the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

I would ask you to be brief.

[Marc Lemay, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

I will be brief. Howcome we cannot exert any control over and do not have French-language services on Air Canada Jazz, which covers Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia as well as Ottawa? I will not mention the number of flights I have taken. Do you have any authority over that situation?

[Graham Fraser]

Things become difficult with subsidiary corporations. There are language obligations on flights, but the same obligations do not apply to language of work and ground service.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Thank you, Mr. Lemay. We will now turn to the government side. Ms. Boucher, you have the floor.

[Sylvie Boucher, Conservative, Beauport—Limoilou, QC]

Good morning, Mr. Fraser. Welcome to our committee.

A lot has been said about the Olympic Games and the use of French during the opening ceremony, what with the wonderful song. I think that all, including the Minister of Canadian Heritage, were disappointed with the opening ceremony.

However, generally speaking, I know that many people and many in the media said that the games were the most representative of the francophonie in the history of the Olympics. In your view, was that the case with our games?

Moreover, the francophone media and CPAC had a lot to say about how exceptional the games had been for them. Mistakes were made just like in other events. In general, was French properly represented at the Olympic Games?

[Graham Fraser]

I do not want to make comparisons with other Olympic Games, because I was not in attendance. As well, I wouldn't want to draw any comparison with those held in Calgary or Montreal.

As I said in my opening remarks, given what was identified in our previous studies, we can assert that the games were a success. We do, however, have a reservation, and we will be investigating the problems that were identified or complaints received.

In terms of language, my own personal experience in Vancouver was positive.

[Sylvie Boucher, Conservative, Beauport—Limoilou, QC]

Overall, a lot was said about official languages. We all had questions following our meeting with VANOC. We were also wondering about Air Canada.

Have the issues that were identified here, in committee, been resolved or are there things still outstanding? I am thinking about the Toronto airport, among other things.

[Graham Fraser]

In that case, I should speak of some anecdotal evidence. I heard of a traveller who flew from Munich to Toronto, during the games. All of the other passengers were passing through Toronto on their way to the games. The person I spoke with said with some surprise that he had been welcomed in both official languages in Toronto.

I think what struck me with federal institutions, including the Toronto airport, was that there was a real effort to provide the proper language services. I am confident that we will not lose ground in the future. Efforts were made: I am thinking about the DVD on active offer that was prepared by Parks Canada, an initiative that is being taken up in other departments. There is also the Air Canada employees' outreach campaign. There is also the “Un moment s'il vous plaît” session to get people to call on a bilingual colleague if they are unable to provide the service in person. That goes to show that the federal institutions that have obligations now better understand the nature of those obligations.

There is one thing in particular that we have found: institutions often do not understand their obligations. I'm thinking in particular about airport authorities. It is only following our audits and questions that people became aware of the nature of their obligations.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Thank you, Ms. Boucher.

I would like to add my voice to that of Ms. Boucher concerning the song I Believe, and draw the attention of committee members to the fact that this is a bilingual song that was sung by Annie Villeneuve and Nikki Yanofsky. It was sponsored by the consortium, not by VANOC.

You spoke earlier about Coca-Cola and The Bay. That is a very good example of corporate bilingualism that hit the mark. I would like to congratulate them on that excellent initiative. I recall that they did a second recording toward the end of the Olympic Games. That was a nice way to incorporate various language and cultural elements.

[Graham Fraser]

If I may, I would like to clarify one of my answers regarding Jazz. Jazz's obligations are those of a third party. There is a contractual relationship with Air Canada, i.e., that Jazz operates on behalf of Air Canada, which is subject to the Official Languages Act. Jazz is not.

Air Canada's contractual relationship with the government ensures its accountability.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Does that answer your question?

[Graham Fraser]

Mr. Lemay asked the question. I simply wanted to clarify my response.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

In any case, we can continue to look into that issue.

Mr. Godin.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I believe we still have one hour left. Let us turn the page and move on to the issue of Air Canada. Let us take flight with Air Canada.

Mr. Fraser, you say that the responsibility lies with Air Canada. Now, Air Canada has a contract with Jazz. It is therefore up to Air Canada to specify what the contractual obligations are. According to the act, is Air Canada required, as part of its contract with Jazz, to demand bilingual services?

[Graham Fraser]

I do not understand.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

Does Air Canada have to force Jazz to provide services in both official languages?

[Graham Fraser]

Yes.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

Under the existing legislation?

[Graham Fraser]

Yes, that is my understanding. But I would like to ask Mrs. Tremblay to give us some more details about that.

[Johane Tremblay]

Indeed, just like any institution that calls on a third party to provide a service on its behalf, Air Canada has to ensure that the third party provides the service in both languages, as it itself would do. Jazz now covers a number of regional routes, but it is no longer a subsidiary of Air Canada. According to our interpretation, it is a third party operating on behalf of Air Canada. Air Canada must ensure that Jazz offers bilingual services.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

Mr. Fraser, do you intend to conduct an investigation into Air Canada so that it complies with the Official Languages Act?

[Graham Fraser]

Yes. Moreover, we will conduct an audit of Air Canada's services to the public. It will begin this year. The audit will be quite in-depth. A meeting has been planned for this week between myself and one of Air Canada's senior executives.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

I am asking you the question because I find that, lately, Air Canada is showing a complete disregard for the official languages. The situation is worse than it has ever been. On March 24, I sent a letter to its customer relations unit in Calgary. I will send you a copy, Mr. Fraser. I referred to flight AC8742. In my book, “AC” refers to Air Canada, not to Jazz.

When you ask for a glass of water, you receive orange juice. Yesterday morning, I flew from Bathurst to Montreal. The Bathurst area is 80% francophone. As for Montreal, I don't have to belabour the point. This time, I asked for a glass of orange juice and was brought a glass of water. When I pointed out the mistake, I was told "I'm very sorry". You might find that amusing; I do not, not one bit. I wanted to make sure that the person did not understand French, that it was not a simple, one-off mistake on her part. Upon disembarking the plane in Montreal, I asked the flight attendant whether she thought it was quite foggy outside. She answered: “Yes, there's no more snow”.

Air Canada does not meet its legal obligations in Quebec. Will you conduct an investigation and report back to the government on the reasons why Air Canada does not comply with the act?

[Graham Fraser]

That will be part of an audit. Furthermore, we investigate the complaints that are sent to us. If my memory serves me correctly, we have received 355 complaints concerning Air Canada over the past five years. We are continuing to highlight the importance of the travelling public's language rights. That is one of our priorities. As I have said, we will conduct an audit that goes beyond the issue of third party institutions in order to get to the bottom of things.

Ms. Charlebois could add to what I have just said.