It's to prevent that very lack of accountability and the failure to consult the communities. You asked why I think that, but it's actually all the communities, parents, and school boards who feel that way. There wouldn't be three organizations at the table. The umbrella organization representing the communities and parents, in other words, the FNCSF, would, with their consent, make sure the process was being followed, not to mention properly negotiated from the outset.
We are not trying to interfere with what the provinces and territories are doing. For us, it's simply a matter of oversight. Then, action plans and a few ground rules can be established.
You're doing that already. What we're asking for is nothing new. It's what we've been asking for since 1970. In fact, in 2005, the Standing Senate Committee on Official Languages sought exactly the same thing in recommendations 5 and 6 of its report.
On Monday, we asked the committee members whether it was possible to revive those recommendations. They smiled. Nevertheless, what it shows is that recommendations 5 and 6 were sound. They sought more or less what we are asking for. Is it possible to take another look at those recommendations and see whether they make sense in 2016?
The federal government is already doing it. What we are asking for isn't new. You already negotiate education matters directly with associations representing indigenous peoples in British Columbia and Manitoba. You already sign agreements directly with the associations, without necessarily involving the province.
We want to be part of a process that already exists. The current protocol deals not only with French first-language education, but also with immersion and post-secondary programs. That's why we are proposing a separate tripartite protocol. We aren't necessarily interested in a protocol that deals with immersion and post-secondary education; we are concerned solely with K-12 schools and support for language and culture for French-language school boards. We aren't asking for anything unreasonable.