I was going to ask a question on another subject, but I was very interested by Mr. Landry's remarks. I have three brief questions to ask him.
Mr. Landry, you spoke about the horizontal responsibilities of the departments. Personally, that intrigues me, and I'd like you to say more about that. I think the Department of Health, the Department of Citizenship and Immigration and the other departments have a specific responsibility toward minority communities. They too must comply with the Official Languages Act. In the past, Francophones have always depended on Canadian Heritage. If the person in the position was not sensitive to their problems, their communities suffered as a result. That's my first question.
As regards the mid-term report, you said that Francophones had not been invited to the table. Over the past three years, I've taken part in a number of events where Francophones were the leaders. The communities were invited once a year with the ministers responsible for those departments. As regards the mid-term report, there was a major event at the Government Conference Centre in Ottawa, where some 50 or more people were in attendance to talk about the deficiencies of the Action Plan for Official Languages. I'd like you to comment on that.
Lastly, the government began to include specific envelopes in the agreements it signed with the provinces. In my view, that's very important. For example, in early childhood, I know that Manitoba had a specific envelope intended for Francophones in the five-year agreement.
This committee's mandate is to determine whether the Action Plan for Official Languages has worked well. I hope that we'll be able to recommend that the government renew the plan, and improve it, and perhaps even amend it. No doubt some things have worked better than others. I'd also like to have your comments on that subject.