Official Languages  Mr. Speaker, $2 billion to boost English in Quebec since 1995: That is what the federal government has done for official languages in Quebec. That is not all, however; the Prime Minister is investing another $800 million in his action plan for official languages, and English is again reaping the benefits.

Official Languages  Mr. Speaker, Ottawa is spending $2 billion to anglicize Quebec, and it does not stop there. In its action plan for official languages, Ottawa has earmarked $800 million for English in Quebec over the next five years, and let the chips fall where they may. This is typical of our Liberals.

Official Languages  Mr. Speaker, $2 billion is the total amount that the federal government has invested in strengthening English in Quebec since 1995. It spent $2 billion to support the language of the 360 million anglophones that surround us, and enrich groups that are advocating for Quebec's anglicization.

Court Challenges Program Act  Madam Speaker, to put the court challenges program into context, I will start by providing a bit of history of the linguistic dynamic in Canada and Quebec because a people unaware of its history is like an individual having amnesia. We become easily manipulated. If we do not know our history, if we have amnesia and we are cheated, we can be cheated again.

Gala de l'ADISQ  Mr. Speaker, these are troubled times for Quebec culture, but yesterday's ADISQ gala showed just how vibrant and diverse French-language music is in Quebec. Among the winners were greats like Ginette Reno and Michel Rivard, who won an award for his show Le tour du bloc. What a great name.

Business of Supply  Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for his excellent speech. There seems to be a rather cavalier attitude here when we talk about being responsible. The government does not not talk about the decline of French in Quebec. A number of Liberals gave speeches, but we did not hear a word from them about that, even though it is a reality.

Business of Supply  Madam Speaker, I would like to know what my colleague thinks. First, does he consider it legitimate that Quebec, the only francophone state in North America, wants to ensure the future of French? The federal government seems unwilling to take account of our capacity to integrate and provide French instruction to newcomers.

Business of Supply  Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for his presentation. The purpose of all federal language policy includes providing support for English in Quebec and ensuring that at least a third of newcomers have access to services in English. Quebec is expected to integrate and provide French language training to 90% of newcomers to maintain its demographic weight.

Business of Supply  Madam Speaker, my colleague mentioned organizations that advocate for French outside Quebec. In Quebec, however, there are no organizations or groups dedicated to protecting or promoting French that receive funding under the action plan for official languages. Could he tell me what he thinks about that?

Committees of the House  Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for her presentation. I wanted to raise one point. From 1960 to 1994, the federal government supported social and community housing in Quebec. Then it withdrew, leaving it up to the Government of Quebec to manage this file. This is typical of many files.

Canada-Ukraine Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act, 2023  Mr. Speaker, I would like to hear my colleague's thoughts on two points. First, as with other free trade agreements, it is the executive branch that acts alone. Elected representatives and opposition members do not have direct access to the chapters or any direct influence on the content of the agreement.

Canada-Ukraine Free Trade Agreement Implementation Act, 2023  Mr. Speaker, we know that Parliament and elected representatives have a very limited ability to modify the agreement. All we can do is vote for the bill or propose amendments, but we cannot change the agreement itself. In most industrialized countries, however, elected representatives can participate in and directly influence free trade agreements and treaties.

Decline of French  Mr. Speaker, on Thursday, once again, the Liberals refused to acknowledge the decline of French in Quebec and Canada. However, Canada's census provides the relevant figures. From 2016 to 2021, the percentage of francophones in Canada, based on the first official language spoken, dropped from 22.2% to 21.4%.

Small Business  Mr. Speaker, there have been consultations among the parties and I believe that if you seek it you will find unanimous consent for the following motion: That the House recognize that, according to the 2021 census data, the proportion of Quebec residents whose mother tongue is French dropped from 77.1% in 2016 to 74.8% in 2021; the proportion of Quebec residents who primarily speak French at home dropped from 79% in 2016 to 77.5% in 2021; the proportion of francophones in Quebec, according the first official language spoken criterion, dropped from 83.7% in 2016 to 82.2% in 2021; the proportion of francophones in Canada, according to the first official language spoken indicator, dropped from 22.2% in 2016 to 21.4% in 2021; the proportion of Quebec residents who use French most often in the workplace went from 81.9% in 2011 to 79.7% in 2021.

Official Languages  Mr. Speaker, that is not very convincing. This situation with the RCMP is a perfect example of the federal government's culture of contempt for French. The RCMP hiring unilingual anglophones is one thing. That these people are not taking French classes is another thing. The worst part is that no one even thought about requiring them to take classes.