Bill C-13

An Act for the Substantive Equality of Canada's Official Languages

An Act to amend the Official Languages Act, to enact the Use of French in Federally Regulated Private Businesses Act and to make related amendments to other Acts

Part 1 amends the Official Languages Act to, among other things,
(a) specify that all legal obligations related to the official languages apply at all times, including during emergencies;
(b) codify certain interpretative principles regarding language rights;
(c) provide that section 16 of that Act applies to the Supreme Court of Canada;
(d) provide that a final decision, order or judgment of a federal court that has precedential value is to be made available simultaneously in both official languages;
(e) provide for Government of Canada commitments to
(i) protect and promote French,
(ii) estimate the number of children whose parents are rights holders under section 23 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms ,
(iii) advance formal, non-formal and informal opportunities for members of English and French linguistic minority communities to pursue quality learning in their own language throughout their lives, including from early childhood to post-secondary education, and
(iv) advance the use of English and French in the conduct of Canada’s external affairs;
(f) clarify the nature of the duty of federal institutions to take positive measures to implement certain Government of Canada commitments and the manner in which the duty is to be carried out;
(g) provide for certain positive measures that federal institutions may take to implement certain Government of Canada commitments, including measures to
(i) promote and support the learning of English and French in Canada, and
(ii) support sectors that are essential to enhancing the vitality of English and French linguistic minority communities and protect and promote the presence of strong institutions serving those communities;
(h) provide for certain measures that the Minister of Canadian Heritage may take to advance the equality of status and use of English and French in Canadian society;
(i) provide that the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration is required to adopt a policy on francophone immigration and that the policy is to include, among other things, objectives, targets and indicators;
(j) provide that the Government of Canada recognizes the importance of cooperating with provincial and territorial governments;
(k) provide that the Treasury Board is required to establish policies to give effect to certain parts of that Act, monitor and audit federal institutions for their compliance with policies, directives and regulations relating to the official languages, evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of policies and programs of federal institutions relating to the official languages and provide certain information to the public and to employees of federal institutions;
(l) enable the Commissioner of Official Languages to enter into compliance agreements and, in certain cases, to make orders; and
(m) enable the Commissioner of Official Languages to impose administrative monetary penalties on certain entities for non-compliance with certain provisions of Part IV of that Act.
It also makes a related amendment to the Department of Canadian Heritage Act .
Part 2 enacts the Use of French in Federally Regulated Private Businesses Act , which, among other things, provides for rights and duties respecting the use of French as a language of service and a language of work in relation to federally regulated private businesses in Quebec and then, at a later date, in regions with a strong francophone presence. That Act also allows employees of federally regulated private businesses to make a complaint to the Commissioner of Official Languages with respect to rights and duties in relation to language of work and allows the Commissioner to refer the complaint to the Canada Industrial Relations Board in certain circumstances. It also provides that the Minister of Canadian Heritage is responsible for promoting those rights. Finally, Part 2 makes related amendments to the Canada Labour Code .

[The Chair, Liberal, René Arseneault]

Welcome to meeting number 32 of the House Standing Committee on Official Languages.

In accordance with the order of reference of Monday, May 30, 2022, the Committee resumed consideration of Bill C‑13, An Act to amend the Official Languages Act, to enact the French Language Use in Federally Regulated Private Sector Undertakings Act, and to make related amendments to other Acts.

Today's meeting is being conducted in a hybrid format, in accordance with the House order of Thursday, June 23, 2022. Members may participate in person or remotely using the Zoom application.

Today, we have convened a single panel, with whom we will spend an hour and a half. After that, we will meet for 30 minutes in camera to discuss committee business.

To ensure that the meeting runs smoothly, I would like to provide some guidelines to witnesses and members.

Before you speak, please wait until I recognize you by name. If you are participating via video conference, click on the microphone icon to activate your microphone. Otherwise, leave your microphone muted when you are not speaking.

For interpretation, participants attending through Zoom have a choice of floor, English or French audio. The icon is at the bottom of their screen. People in the room can use the earpiece and select the desired channel.

I would like to remind everyone that all comments from members and witnesses should be directed to the chair. Members present in the room are asked to raise their hand if they wish to speak. Those using Zoom are asked to use the raised hand icon. The committee clerk and I will do the best we can to maintain a consolidated order of speaking for all members. We thank you for your patience and understanding in this regard.

I would like to inform the committee members that, in accordance with our housekeeping motion, all witnesses have completed the required connection tests in advance of the meeting.

I would now like to welcome our witnesses.

By video conference, we have the Acadian Society of Nouveau-Brunswick, represented by its president, Mr. Alexandre Cédric Doucet, and its executive director, Mr. Ali Chaisson.

We have the India Canada Organization, represented here by Mr. Deepak Awasti.

We also have with us the Réseau pour le développement de l'alphabétisme et des compétences, represented by its President, Ms. Mona Audet, and its Executive Director, Mr. Denis Desgagné.

Before we begin the first round of questions, each organization will have five minutes for their opening remarks. They can split their time among their representatives if they wish, but they each have a maximum of five minutes. They can always add to their remarks after, as they answer questions. I will signal to them about 30 seconds before their time is up.

We begin with the Acadian Society of Nouveau-Brunswick.

Mr. Doucet, you have five minutes.

[Mario Beaulieu, Bloc, La Pointe-de-l'Île, QC]

Excellent.

I have a question for the Acfas representative.

Does Acfas also have a mandate to defend research in French in Quebec, and if so, what is it doing? Should Bill C‑13 have provisions to cover that?

[Arielle Kayabaga, Liberal, London West, ON]

Yes, thank you very much.

Mr. Boucher, you mentioned earlier that there were still shortcomings in francophone minority communities. Can you mention a few and explain how Bill C‑13 addresses them?

[Arielle Kayabaga, Liberal, London West, ON]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I'd like to begin by thanking our guests today for having taken the time to attend this meeting.

I'll begin with a question for Ms. Montreuil.

Ms. Montreuil, I'd like to begin by allowing you to finish answering my colleague's question about the measures in Bill C‑13 designed to support research in French.

[Daniel Boucher]

I believe that consultation is clearly a starting point. Indeed, Bill C‑13 should be more explicit about very concrete results in various areas, including immigration.

Generally speaking, I believe that the exercise is useful, but that holding consultations is only the beginning. Consultations must be conducted seriously to really obtain an accurate picture of the community's opinion.

[Sophie Montreuil]

Yes, it's an excellent question and I'll answer it from memory because I don't have my computer in front of me to check the exact wording of Bill C‑13.

I previously mentioned the changes we were proposing for those aspects of the bill pertaining to positive measures.

Positive measures can represent leverage to encourage the entire machinery of government to comply with and espouse the principles of the act. We are proposing changes in wording because the very words used in those passages about positive measures all provide leverage on behalf of organizations like mine, and can remind certain authorities, organizations, departments and other bodies of their obligations under the act.

For example, in the paragraph that begins with “to support the creation and dissemination of scientific information in French,” we propose adding, “namely by supporting scientific research and science in French”.

Concretely, this proposed addition would give us some leverage to tell the Department of Canadian Heritage that, to the best of our ability given our limited funds, we support all of our researchers, students, experienced professors, and volunteers across Canada. They do remarkable work to ensure that the French language and French-language activities exist within their institutions and communities, and our view is that it's up to the country to support the vitality of these communities.

One such positive measure would give us added leverage to do things like insist that the Department of Canadian Heritage fulfill its obligations.

You may perhaps think that the research granting councils are taking care of everything and that it's a done deal, but that's not the case. It's all linked together, because in order to support research, one must also support science and the communities, as well as student development, if we want them to be able to continue their research in French and remain in their communities rather than have to move to another province.

An organization like the Department of Canadian Heritage could have much more responsibility in this area

[Bernard Généreux, Conservative, Montmagny—L'Islet—Kamouraska—Rivière-du-Loup, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you to the witnesses.

Good afternoon, Ms. Montreuil. My first question is for you.

What's a positive measure, in your opinion? Such measures are discussed at length in Bill C‑13 and we've talked about them with several witnesses who told us that they're important. But what are they, concretely? People appear to be saying that they could be applied through regulations developed afterwards, or at least formulated. What does it mean for you?

That's a good question, isn't it?

[Daniel Boucher]

Thank you very much, Ms. Ashton.

We are delighted to have a French school in Thompson and to know that your children can go there.

As for the importance of correcting the numbers and setting demographic targets to close the gap in Manitoba, there were worrisome trends in the last census, but on the other hand, the work that we've been doing on francophone immigration for several years now makes us optimistic for the future. That's a partial answer to Mr. Beaulieu's question.

However, it's essential for the Canadian government and the provincial government to work together to reach these targets, because we're not going to get there otherwise. It's absolutely essential to introduce all the programs and services needed to so.

Manitoba has received considerable support in this area. For several years, the federal government has been investing in francophone immigration. But there's still something missing. We're not meeting the francophone immigration targets, which means that Bill C‑13 has to set very concrete targets, because that's one way of making up the demographic shortfall. Unless there are much more robust measures in Bill C‑13, even though I believe we have made quite a lot of headway, we won't move forward. We believe that we would be missing an opportunity if we were to fail to be as explicit as possible in Bill C‑13.

[Niki Ashton, NDP, Churchill—Keewatinook Aski, MB]

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.

I'd also like to welcome our witnesses. I am of course very pleased to see people from the Société de la francophonie manitobaine here today.

I'd like to begin on somewhat of a personal note. I have already spoken about this in committee.

I'm a francophile from Manitoba, and everyone of my generation had access to an education in French. For me, it was in immersion. We owe a great deal to the hard work and efforts of the Société de la francophonie manitobaine. The battle continues, and it's thanks to you.

I would also like to emphasize the importance of the Franco-Manitoban School Division, which has made it possible for us to send our children to the division's schools so that they can learn French.

On September 7, I had the great privilege of being able to send my twins—you saw one of them earlier—to the La Voie du Nord community school here in Thompson, a community that has no francophone heritage, but where quite a few francophones live. The school is a response to the clear desire of Manitobans of my generation to give their children the opportunity to speak French. It's not something that can be taken for granted. It's been possible because of your work.

The struggle has to continue, and in order to do so, several measures need to be introduced, including the modernization of the Official Languages Act. The existing shortcomings you discussed earlier today need to be addressed.

Once again, I'd like to give you my heartfelt thanks.

I would now like to ask you a few questions.

Mr. Boucher, we have frequently spoken with you and others from the Société de la francophonie manitobaine about the importance of francophone immigration in countering the demographic decline in minority language communities. We have been hoping to have some targets embedded in the act to make up for lost ground, but Bill C‑13 does not get contain any.

How important is catch‑up demographic growth for a francophone community like Manitoba's?

[Francis Drouin, Liberal, Glengarry—Prescott—Russell, ON]

Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.

I want to thank my colleagues here present, both in person and virtually.

My first question is for Ms. Montreuil.

You raised a very important point. It's true that research conducted in French is on the decline in Canada and around the world and isn't proportionally representative of the global francophone population. The vice-chair and I are also discussing that issue.

We're trying to determine how to stimulate scientific research and establish incentives so that it's published more extensively around the world. I know there are excellent researchers in Canada. The aim of these discussions is also to give them access to French-language infrastructure and vehicles and francophone universities, or at the very least enable them to dialogue in French.

How can that aspect be linked to Bill C‑13?

Then I'll discuss positive measures with you.

[Joël Godin, Conservative, Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thanks to the witnesses, Ms. Montreuil and Mr. Boucher.

I'm going to let you continue your presentation, Mr. Boucher. At the end of your statement, you discussed language clauses and the need for them to be explicit.

Could you be “more explicit” in your definition of “language clauses”? It must be understood that a language clause is a provision respecting languages. However, we're studying Bill C‑13, which concerns the modernization of the two official languages, English and French.

Wouldn't it be better to state more clearly that the purpose of those clauses is to maintain both official languages?

[Daniel Boucher]

All right.

In some instances, these clauses concern early childhood. To sum up, we have language clauses that enable us to develop as a community. We're essentially trying to ensure that this is included in Bill C‑13.

I'm now ready to answer your questions. With me today is Jean-Michel Beaudry, who can respond as well.

[Daniel Boucher, Executive Director, Société de la francophonie manitobaine]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Greetings from the beautiful province of Manitoba and the centre of Canada. I would like to thank the Standing Committee on Official Languages for inviting us to appear today. My name is Daniel Boucher, and I am the executive director of the Société de la francophonie manitobaine, or SFM. I am joining you today from Treaty No. 1 territory, and the lands I am standing on are part of the traditional territory of the Anishinabe, Cree, Oji-Cree, Dakota and Dene peoples and the homeland of the Métis nation. On this eve of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, I want to acknowledge that the French language was unfortunately used as an instrument of colonization in the history of the indigenous peoples.

Today SFM expresses its wish that the indigenous peoples and communities in Canada may flourish, and we demand complete respect for their voices, particularly in their efforts to preserve and restore indigenous languages. As the representative organization of the francophone community of Manitoba, and with the help of its network of collaborators and partners, SFM strives for the advancement of all the community's areas of activity.

I would like to address two major themes today: the urgent need to modernize the Official Languages Act and the importance of language clauses respecting third parties. First, I would like to state that SFM fully supports the demands of the Fédération des communautés francophones et acadienne, the FCFA, respecting the modernization of the Official Languages Act. I would also like to refer to the brief that the FCFA submitted in May entitled, Proposed amendments to Bill C‑13, An Act to amend the Official Languages Act, to enact the Use of French in Federally Regulated Private Businesses Act and to make related amendments to other Acts.

You have that brief to hand, and it is divided into six themes: clarifying the Treasury Board's role; addressing the issue of language clauses with third parties, including the other orders of government; ensuring the effectiveness of the francophone immigration policy; strengthening part VII, particularly with respect to consultations; including part VII in the order-making powers of the Commissioner of Official Languages; and clarifying the definition of “francophone minorities”.

The work leading up to Bill C‑13, currently under consideration, was not done in haste and began more than five years ago. The bill itself is the result of many studies and consultations conducted, in particular, by this committee, the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages, the Standing Senate Committee on Official Languages, the Department of Canadian Heritage, the FCFA, and many others.

As our president, Angela Cassie, told the committee on February 14 last, before Bill C‑13 was introduced, “Any more delays would only further weaken the position of French in our communities. Parliament should therefore begin its work immediately.”

However, I agree, as do all francophone communities, that Bill C‑13 still contains deficiencies that must be corrected. I refer you once again to the FCFA's recommendations. This bill is an important step toward ensuring the survival of the official language minority communities. Do not let this legislative work be in vain. The Official Languages Act must be renewed soon, failing which prejudices will worsen.

Moving on to the importance of language clauses, allow me first to clarify the reason why the issue of these clauses with third parties, including the other orders of government, should be addressed more expressly in Bill C‑13. In Manitoba, under certain agreements between the province and the federal government, support is provided for the development of the official language minority communities.

[Sophie Montreuil, Executive Director, Association francophone pour le savoir]

Mr. Chair, members of the Standing Committee on Official Languages, good afternoon.

I am really honoured to be with you today.

Thank you for this opportunity to discuss a very important issue: the vitality of French-language research in Canada.

My name is Sophie Montreuil, and I am the executive director of Acfas, an association that has been working in the sciences for nearly a century. We will be celebrating our 100th birthday in June, in fact.

Our association brings together French-speaking researchers across Canada, as well as research users. On average, we have 4,500 members annually and more than 25,000 supporters.

We have a very large network, with a regional presence spanning almost the entire country. Our six branches are located in Acadia, Toronto, Sudbury, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta. Those branches are overseen by volunteer committees made up of French-speaking students and teachers, and they organize French-language science activities in minority communities.

As a general rule, research contributes to the development of societies, states and their citizens. In a bilingual country like ours, research conducted in French opens the door to many more possibilities.

First, it helps build a French lexicon that can be used to disseminate knowledge throughout francophone minority communities, in the media and among government workers.

Research conducted in French produces data on issues and realities that affect francophone minority communities, and that data supports the development of public policies and services tailored to those communities.

Research conducted in French also helps to strengthen the ties between universities and the communities they belong to.

In addition, research conducted in French makes scientific life possible in French, fostering a sense of linguistic security among French-speaking youth and the French-speaking science community.

Lastly, research conducted in French provides an inclusive space for researchers of all backgrounds and origins, brought together by the desire to study and work in French.

Acfas carried out a significant study between 2019 and 2021. The report provides an overview of French-language research in minority communities across Canada and addresses the challenges. Basically, the study reveals a decline in research conducted in French in Canada and a significant lack of support for researchers working in French. Unfortunately, those are the clear and simple report findings, and they are corroborated by other studies.

That is why it is so important that the modernized Official Languages Act clearly mention support for the development and dissemination of knowledge in French in Canada.

We are delighted that Bill C‑13 includes a commitment to replace sections 41 and 42 of the Official Languages Act, so that positive measures can be taken to “support the creation and dissemination of information in French that contributes to the advancement of scientific knowledge in any discipline”. We certainly welcome that provision, but some minor changes are needed in order for us to be completely satisfied.

As the Association des collèges et universités de la francophonie canadienne also noted, the provision is too broad and will have a limited impact. All it will do is support the flow of information, something that is already provided for in other parts of the act.

We would like to propose three amendments.

First, we recommend going back to the language in the official languages reform document. Specifically, we propose adding the term “research” and rewording the reference to positive measures in new subsection 41(6) proposed in the bill. Accordingly, the language that currently reads “may include measures, among others, to” would instead read “include measures, among others, to”.

Lastly, we also recommend that the positive measure I referred to a moment ago be reworked. In other words, the measure to “support the creation and dissemination of information in French” should be amended in two ways: the term “scientific” should be added before the word “information”; and it should be clearly laid out that, to achieve the measure, the government must “support scientific research and life in French, among other things”.

I will leave it there.

[Angelo Iacono, Liberal, Alfred-Pellan, QC]

What would you say are the most important elements of Bill C‑13 for Quebec? Can you name two?