Official Languages committee  Yes.

Official Languages committee  They will initiate the evaluation.

Official Languages committee  As a general rule, we see that when it comes to disbursements, there are in fact delays in the program, and there are efforts to be made in terms of catching up on spending. We are also in a good position to confirm that the money will be spent by the end of the program. I agree: $400,000 is in fact not a lot.

Official Languages committee  I am going to answer for us only. I have not looked at the issue, but we could get back to you on this.

Official Languages committee  You are talking about the proportion of the clientele?

Official Languages committee  The Atlantic region is 12% francophone. For our employees, over 50% of our positions are designated bilingual. We are talking here about positions that would be occupied by bilingual individuals.

Official Languages committee  The $500,000 is spread over the life of the program. It is used primarily to cover salaries and operating expenses, in part.

Official Languages committee  We already had a lot of structures in place around the official languages in terms of communication. That being said, there has been a specific focus on having tripartite communication around the road map and the focus, as well as with the use of our existing committee of RDÉE and ACOA, to tap into that well-functioning forum that allows for a good dialogue and ensures that we deliver the initiative as intended and achieve the results.

Official Languages committee  The roadmap has allowed for a lot of success to be achieved. I think that if it is renewed and the same approaches are retained, that will have a great deal of potential. However, if the roadmap were renewed, it would be desirable to initiate that kind of dialogue with the communities to determine whether some adjustments should be made.

Official Languages committee  When the roadmap was adopted, we first prepared an internal discussion paper. In the spring of 2008, we took a good look at the question of how we were going to implement the program. We also developed a management framework for implementing it. Then we really focused on communication and developing an Internet and Intranet site to use for our initiative.

Official Languages committee  As I've mentioned, certainly we've seen the benefit of the road map in terms of having the engagement with the communities and having the opportunity to work with the communities on a strategy that would move them further in their advancement. We have the preliminary results of the evaluation.

Official Languages committee  As I mentioned in my opening remarks, we have a high concentration of bilingual employees. These are bilingual positions. More than 50% of our employees are bilingual. We go beyond the bilingualism requirements. We think this is a positive measure. The requirements are determined at the base, and are based on the representation of francophones in certain regions, and in all regions where there is a certain concentration of francophones.

Official Languages committee  I agree with those comments. The way we make sure there is no duplication and we are moving in the same direction is really by creating a committee and maintaining ongoing dialogue with CIC.

Official Languages committee  The project in New Brunswick is really an exception to the rule. It is a specific project, it provides an additional contribution to the efforts made by the Immigration Department in the Atlantic region. In terms of everyday things, the Immigration Department is responsible for immigration, not ACOA.

Official Languages committee  Under our contribution agreement, it is the province of New Brunswick that is responsible for managing the project. That being the case, we make sure there are provisions for....