Official Languages Committee on Dec. 4th, 2006

[The Vice-Chair, NDP, Yvon Godin]

I'd like to suggest that you file a complaint with the Commissioner of Official Languages, who will conduct a study, if that hasn't already been done.

[Marianne Théorêt-Poupart]

We're seriously considering going to see him to move this matter forward. We simply want to bring to your attention the fact that, 25 years after the Association franco-yukonnaise was incorporated, we're still having trouble getting services in French. We're constantly fighting for that. It's one of the most important issues we've raised before your committee. We want to say that we're here, even though few people know us. Even though we're a bilingual country, we're having trouble getting services in French, which is absolutely not normal.

I'd like to cite you a case pertaining to the Action Plan for Official Languages. The plan provided money for early childhood. Early childhood organizations received a lot of money to carry out applied research projects. The purpose of one of the projects was to determine the difference between children enrolled in a regular program and those enrolled in an enriched program. They chose to study 20 children from each group. However, there aren't 40 Francophone children three to four years of age in the Yukon. The Yukon Francophone comunity therefore can't even try to register for programs like that because it doesn't have enough people. Does that make us second-class citizens? No.

[The Vice-Chair, NDP, Yvon Godin]

Thank you.

I'd sincerely like to thank you for being here. As you've seen, despite the fact that you only had five minutes, I believe you had the time to express yourself. There was a dialogue, and we're going to write a report that will be submitted to Parliament. Next week, we'll be meeting other communities in Ottawa. This afternoon, Ms. Friolet, we're going to meet with the people from the health system. On behalf of the Standing Committee on Official Languages, I thank you and hope that we'll be hearing more French across the country.

Thank you. I'm going to suspend for 10 minutes.

[The Vice-Chair, NDP, Yvon Godin]

First, I'd like to welcome you to the Standing Committee on Official Languages. It's a great pleasure for us to travel here to Vancouver. As I said earlier, the Standing Committee on Official Languages has been in existence for 25 years.

It appears that we're celebrating that anniversary with a cross-Canada tour. However, that decision to do a tour is important. It pleased the committee to recommend it to Parliament so that we could go into the regions in the various provinces to meet people in the field, visit locations, see how the action plan is working, and lastly hear recommendations so that we can report on what's working and what isn't.

As you can see, I'm here today with representatives of the government: Sylvie Boucher is parliamentary secretary, Pierre Lemieux is a committee member and Conservative MP; Steven Blaney, who will be joining us, is a Conservative Party member. Brian Murphy is member of the official opposition; Paule Brunelle is from the Bloc québécois. My name is Yvon Godin, an NDP member, and I'm chairing this meeting.

I apologize for the delay. We should have started at 10 o'clock sharp. However, we'll be able to establish a good dialogue. You know how we operate, from what you saw in the first part. I ask each group to make a five-minute presentation, after which we'll move on to questions. Then we'll have a chance to establish a dialogue.

Sometimes people think they don't have a lot of time to make their presentation. You should know, however, that most members are quite familiar with the issues and have specific questions to ask for the purpose of writing a report that we'll be tabling in the Parliament of Canada.

As I said, the five-minute period for each presentation will be followed by a five-minute question period.

We'll begin with Brian Conway, from RésoSanté de la Colombie-Britannique.

[Dr. Brian Conway, President, RésoSanté de la Colombie-Britannique]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Distinguished committee members, it's an honour and pleasure for me to testify this morning on the work done by RésoSanté Colombie-Britannique over the past three years to support the development of health services for the Francophone population of British Columbia.

Our mission is to improve access to health services in French in British Columbia in an integrated manner within existing structures. First of all, I want to draw your attention to the notion of partnership that has led to the major successes that we've experienced over the past three years. RésoSanté Colombie-Britannique, like the 16 other member networks of Société Santé en français, aims to do business with five types of partners that are considered essential by the World Health Organization in order to take effective action on public health. Through the support of Health Canada's networking support program, our network, which has been in existence since 2003, now includes health professionals, representatives of the provincial health ministry, representatives of the institutional community—which includes health boards—the Foyer Maillard, Health Canada representatives, training institutions and, of course, a strong representation from the Francophone community.

The value of the partnership that we've established lies in the actions that we've already taken. From the outset, we managed to mobilize all the components of the health system to develop programs, starting with the BC Health Guide, or Guide-santé - Colombie-Britannique, in French. The provincial Health Department acted as RésoSanté's main partner for that project since it's a departmental program.

To date, we've distributed more than 13,000 copies of the guide to the public, and more than 150 health cards have been translated. We've conducted some 20 awareness workshops in order to reach the Francophone community and health professionals who will be providing health services in French.

Our greatest success is without a doubt related to the fact that, as a result of that project, the department completely took charge of the ongoing distribution of the Francophone components of its program, while asking RésoSanté to continue its advisory role. The provincial health board, which is responsible for specialized services, the children's hospital and the women's hospital, itself directed two projects under the transition fund through the Provincial Language Service, or PLS.

In the context of the first project, the board developed health education material in French, created tools to assist parents and the Francophone school board in better supporting children who have special needs, developed the Francophone capability of its interpretation service and took part in the identification of several hundreds of service beneficiaries who speak French.

Incidentally, a study was conducted of medical school graduates in British Columbia. Seventeen percent of graduates from Vancouver said they could provide health care in French. So we have a critical mass of health professionals who could eventually take part in a Francophone health system. In cooperation with all the projects that we've carried out through the transition fund, we're starting to identify and mobilize those resources in order to improve public health.

Another PLS pilot project led to the creation and adaptation of material in French on mental disorders and drug addicts, to assist individuals, families and caseworkers in exchanging crucial information in French. Like the ministry, the provincial board and the PLS are pursuing their work in French well beyond the project's limits. The board has obtained additional support from the province enabling it to maintain a Francophone liaison officer position and to ensure ongoing distribution of information and material in French.

The regional health authority Vancouver Coastal Health also piloted a transition project making it possible to develop health education material, identify more French-speaking professionals and improve the system's ability to match Francophone patients with specialists who speak their language.

We're proud to announce the opening of a clinic, the Pender Community Health Centre in the eastern section of downtown Vancouver, which will soon be providing dedicated French-language services, where Francophones will be able to make appointments with doctors and other health professionals who will provide them with health care in French.

All that's starting at RésoSanté, with the development of the Guide - santé Colombie-Britannique and the partnership with the health authorities. The purpose of that is to improve the health of the Francophone population and the population of British Columbia in general.

We're pleased to know that, in the very long term, the infrastructure of RésoSanté Colombie-Britannique will now be assured. It now remains to be determined whether the funding for the projects now guaranteed until March 2008 will be extended to enable us to continue building the Francophone health system that we all hope to see develop here in British Columbia.

Training is another important component, and we're beginning to develop it with Collège Éducacentre for the personal support services attendants, with Simon Fraser University and in cooperation with the University of British Columbia. I would add that all the work that we're doing in the health field is supported by all stakeholders in all parts of the Ministry of Health, and we hope to be able to continue working with the federal government to ensure that the services we've begun to develop continue to be provided.

Thank you.

[The Vice-Chair, NDP, Yvon Godin]

Thank you, Mr. Conway.

We'll now move on to Ms. Bourgeois, from the Société Maison de la francophonie de Vancouver.

[Marie Bourgeois, Executive Director, Société Maison de la francophonie de Vancouver]

Thank you. I'm changing the hat that I had on a little earlier this morning. And I was told earlier that I should have worn my hairpiece on the other side, since I'm not talking about the Maison de la francophonie.

[The Vice-Chair, NDP, Yvon Godin]

I've tried, and it doesn't work.

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh!

[Marie Bourgeois]

Thank you.

I am the Executive Director of the Société Maison de la francophonie de Vancouver, which manages the building known as Maison de la francophonie de Vancouver. The president of the corporation, Pierre Senay, is also President of the Chambre de commerce franco-colombienne. He'll be able to tell you more about the future development of the Maison de la francophonie.

I'm going to start by telling you a little about the history of the Maison de la francophonie.

The largest number of Francophones in British Columbia live in the Vancouver region. Some 20 years ago, we discussed the possibility of putting in place a Francophone community centre because a number of Francophone associations were scattered over the city of Vancouver. A community isn't visible when it's scattered all over.

We tried four or five times to create a community centre, but without success. We got a boost in 1988, when the Francophone communities, the various associations, the cultural centre, the Francophone federation and other organizations started talking about that kind of centre. The Francophone community wanted to be visible and have its own space, but we needed funding to buy a building or build one. Steps were taken in that direction, and the federal government, provincial government, the city of Vancouver and the Government of Quebec were approached.

It took two years to obtain funding and get the project going. As a Francophone centre, the Maison de la francophonie de Vancouver is unique in Canada, in that it was to house all the associations in the Vancouver region, not just one association. To all intents and purposes, it was the federal government that set that requirement before granting funding for the purchase or construction of a building.

That's what we did. We chose the legal structure of a limited partnership. We created a limited partnership consisting of 10 Francophone associations, which were established in Vancouver at the time. Today the limited partnership has 15 partners.

When we confirmed with the federal government that the building we wanted to construct or buy would house all the associations, it confirmed its funding. Lucien Bouchard, who was called the Secretary of State—the Department of Canadian Heritage did not exist at the time—told me at a meeting in Ottawa in December 1988, that I would be finding the Maison de la francophonie under my Christmas tree.

That confirmed the funding, and we went looking for a site. We found a building located at 1555 7th Avenue West in Vancouver, which is a very good and safe location with easy access by public transit. Our associations had space in the house when we bought the building. Those that didn't necessarily need offices nevertheless had a postal address at the Maison de la francophonie and the legal status of partner in the limited partnership.

We also managed to obtain charitable status, which gave us property tax exemptions based on the square footage occupied by the partner associations. We also have Anglophone tenants. The mix of Anglophone commercial tenants and Francophone association owner tenants has worked very well. The Anglophone commercial tenants have attracted visitors to the house who probably wouldn't have come if the building had housed only Francophone occupants. This situation has raised interest in linguistic duality and bilingualism. People wanted to take French courses, among other things.

We have a café that attracts a very large clientele, and you can see that for yourselves when you visit the Maison de la francophonie today. Last year, we celebrated our fifteenth anniversary; the success of the Maison de la francophonie is a model for a number of other centres in Canada.

You talked about the centre in the Yukon earlier. Before building that centre, they consulted the Maison de la francophonie to obtain information. We're collaborating with an organization at Collège Boréal in Toronto because it wants to establish a Maison de la francophonie in that city.

There was a Maison de la francophonie in Quebec City, funded by the City of Quebec. However, the city withdrew its funding for the space, but the association wants to take it back.

This is a model that we've created. The Maritime provinces also wanted to use the model of the Maison de la francophonie; it can bring everyone together, but not be an exclusively Francophone space.

[The Vice-Chair, NDP, Yvon Godin]

Thank you, Ms. Bourgeois.

Mr. Senay, from the Chambre de commerce franco-colombienne de Vancouver.

[Pierre Senay, President, Chambre de commerce franco-colombienne de Vancouver]

Thank you, Mr. Chair, for inviting me as President of the Chambre de commerce franco-colombienne to discuss the vitality of the linguistic minority communities.

The Chambre de commerce franco-colombienne was founded in 1983. It's a non-profit organization whose mandate is to develop and improve business relations among French-speaking business people in British Columbia.

I'd simply like to make a brief aside. Earlier, when you were speaking to Mr. Cyr, he talked about the Chambre française and Mr. Becker. That was the Chambre de commerce française au Canada, Vancouver branch, which is a separate organization.

The Official Languages Act derives, among other things, from the federal government's objective of promoting the vitality of the Francophone and Anglophone minorities, supporting their development and promoting full recognition of the use of English and French in Canadian society.

The great threat to the vitality of the official language minority communities is assimilation, as witnessed by the high linguistic assimilation rates, particularly in British Columbia. It isn't enough to send in reinforcements, particularly through immigration, in order to build a growing community.

Business people are concerned about the impact of assimilation on two levels: growth in the Francophone clientele base in order to make offering services in French cost-effective and the challenges involved in ensuring that their language is also that of their children and grandchildren.

In a world with extensive means of communication and transportation, the opportunity to serve Francophones here remotely in an increasing number of fields tends to fragment the minority communities. This offer of service must be made not only in primary services provided by governments, but also in all areas normally available in society.

The assimilation process occurs in two phases. The first phase is learning a second language. For virtually all members of official language minority communities, that phase is already complete. The second phase is giving up one's first language. This phenomenon rarely occurs during the lifetime of a single person because only a minority of people can forget a language that they used to master. It is therefore preferable to view linguistic assimilation as a process that takes place over at least two generations.

Consequently, actions promoting the vitality and development of the official language minority communities must take into account the intergenerational nature of assimilation and include positive action measures in that area.

Recent years have witnessed major achievements in this field, in particular the creation of the Conseil scolaire francophone de la Colombie-Britannique. Earlier you talked about RésoSanté. However, the availability of early childhood and education services is still limited. Support for the development of these services is important in establishing the trust of citizens who have or are considering having children and in the intake capacity of minority communities, and that includes business people.

That trust also depends on whether the community is able to have its rights respected, which legislative will is not always enough to guarantee. The court system has been put in place to resolve disputes, in accordance with the law, including those concerning the way in which executive and legislative powers are exercised.

However, the Court Challenges Program has just been cancelled, which will limit the communities' ability to assert their rights and to combat assimilation and linguistic drift.

In addition, the availability of community services won't completely offset the lack of services and benefits normally available in a modern society. The limited availability of mass cultural services in French, the equivalent of MuchMusic via cable television, for example, makes it hard for young people to access culture in French and contributes to linguistic drift.

It should be noted that the sense of being a minority is not experienced in the same way in all communities across the country. In British Columbia, the Francophone community is scattered across the province, making it virtually invisible. And yet there are federal government service points providing service in both official languages. Such offices should be points for meeting and noticing the presence of minority language constituents. However, the various federal institutions have designated various offices to provide those services. As a result, instead of grouping the members of the minority community in one place that belongs to them, the use of services in the minority language disperses them, reinforces the sense of minority and does not promote the development of related French-language services that Francophone business people, among others, could establish.

On behalf of the board of directors of the Société Maison de la francophonie de Vancouver, which I also chair, I want to express the hope that the Maison can make a more active contribution to the visibility of Canada's linguistic duality and of the Francophone community, even more particularly on the occasion of the 2010 Olympic Games.

The central role that the Maison de la francophonie plays as a synergistic presence housing a critical mass of Francophones working in French in Vancouver promotes the development and integration of the Francophone community. Its location, the major roadways in the area and the availability of public transit help make the Maison de la francophonie a showcase for the Francophone presence in the City of Vancouver.

We hope that the Maison de la francophonie can serve as a gathering place for Francophones and a place with which they can identify during the Games and subsequently continue to serve not only the Francophones of B.C., but the Francophones from everywhere who have gotten to know Vancouver through the Games.

To achieve the objective of promoting the development of the official language minority community, sustainable infrastructure projects must be carried out that could showcase Francophones' cultural and linguistic heritage and their contribution to Canadian society.

The future depends on a correction of assimilation factors and a tenacious application of corrective action. Results will appear and can only be evaluated over generations.

Mr. Chair, with those words I complete my remarks. I'll be happy to answer members' questions.

[The Vice-Chair, NDP, Yvon Godin]

Thank you, Mr. Senay.

Now it's the turn of Pauline Gobeil, Vice-President of the Fédération des parents francophones de Colombie-Britannique.

[Pauline Gobeil, Vice-President, Fédération des parents francophones de Colombie-Britannique]

Mr. Chair, committee members, the Fédération des parents francophones de la Colombie-Britannique represents the parents of some 20,000 children who are entitled to French-language education in the province. It has been intervening in the matter of Francophone education for nearly 30 years. Over the years, it has called for and taken part in the establishment of a high-quality Francophone education system accessible across British Columbia. Its efforts have resulted in the establishment of the Conseil Scolaire Francophone de la Colombie-Britannique, which is responsible for governing and managing the province's Francophone education system.

Another issue closely related to education and on which the Fédération des parents francophones has been working for some 12 years is early childhood services. Research clearly shows that, starting in early childhood, intervention is required to give children the best possible chance to develop to their full potential and to be well prepared to enter school. As a result, it is by intervening in early childhood that we can increase the rate of transmission of the French language to children with one Francophone parent. According to Statistics Canada's 2001 census data, the transmission rate was only 24% for children zero to four years of age.

The federation thus began its development work in this area with the primary objective of recruiting and francizing students for the Francophone schools. However, it was not until 1996, when the school board was established, that these efforts began to produce results, with the introduction of junior kindergarten classes and child care centres in a few Francophone schools. However, the lack of resources and the inertia of various stakeholders in this issue did not really make it possible to develop access to a range of early childhood services in French. However, the Action Plan for Official Languages, which was adopted in 2003, altered the situation. Early childhood was included among the plan's priorities, and a portion of the funding necessary to move it forward was available.

That enabled the Fédération des parents francophones de la Colombie-Britannique and its early childhood partners to develop more cohesive action and to establish a solid foundation. Results were not slow in coming: five junior kindergarten and child care services were added in three years. The Collège Éducacentre now offers an early childhood education diploma program; RésoSanté Colombie-Britannique is starting to prepare the way to offer its health services in French; the Société de développement économique offers start-up support for family child care services; and the Conseil Scolaire Francophone has included the provision of early childhood services in its major orientations. It is also finalizing a service agreement with the Fédération des parents francophones to support it in implementing this orientation.

It is certain that not all these results are directly related to the Action Plan for Official Languages, but the plan has clearly played an essential role in creating considerable momentum on the issue. All the partners are now at the table and ready to act, and the early childhood action plan that they have developed together shows the path that must be taken. It must absolutely be ensured that the resources are available to fund its implementation.

That is why the federal government must now actively maintain its involvement with the province's Francophone communities which are still trying to accept the cancellation of the Canada-British Columbia agreement in principle on learning and child care. The various stakeholders must have access to the necessary resources to continue building on a solid foundation. If we want to ensure the development and vitality of the Francophone community in British Columbia, we must take action at the grassroots level. We must not only continue recruiting and preparing children to enter Francophone schools, we must also guarantee them and their families access to a range of French-language services covering all their needs. And a great deal remains to be done.

The Francophone schools currently serve only 25% of their potential clientele. The junior kindergartens and child care centres can only accommodate 400 children out of a Francophone population of 4,000. There are few or no health service programs. Assimilation continues to take three out of every four children before they enter kindergarten. For Francophone parents, living west of the Rockies should not result in the linguistic assimilation of their children. Canada's linguistic duality must be extended and experienced daily across the country.

The Fédération des parents francophones de la Colombie-Britannique recognizes the essential role that the federal government must play in achieving that duality and reiterates its support for the Action Plan for Official Languages.

Thank you very much.

[The Vice-Chair, NDP, Yvon Godin]

Thank you, Ms. Gobeil.

Now we'll hear from Alexandre Houle from the Centre culturel francophone de Vancouver.

[Alexandre Houle, Interim Executive and Artistic Director, Centre culturel francophone de Vancouver]

Thank you.

Ladies and gentlemen members of the committee, I want to thank you for your invitation to this consultation exercise of the Standing Committee on Official Languages. Allow me to begin my remarks by providing a brief description of the organization I represent, by profiling Vancouver's artistic community and giving you an overview of the clientele we serve.

Since 1974, the Centre culturel francophone de Vancouver has provided annual programming of French-language activities. That programming offers activities as varied as the Festival d'été de Vancouver, the Coup de Coeur francophone, an art gallery, a library and video library service, educational services and programs, cafés-philosophie, a day camp for children, newcomer intake and integration services, a community Internet access site and other activities.

So the centre presents cultural events and professional-quality shows. It offers the entire population of Vancouver French-language and cultural artistic products in the visual arts, media arts and performing arts. With 24,100 artists, British Columbia is the province with the highest percentage of its labour force engaged in an artistic profession, 1.1%, whereas artists constitute 0.8% of the labour force in Canada. Vancouver has the highest concentration of artists of all of Canada's major cities. Thirty percent of British Columbia artists, 7,250 persons, live in Vancouver, where 14% of the province's labour force is located.

The Francophones in the Vancouver region represent nearly 2% of the region's population. That population is expanding. The Francophone population of the Greater Vancouver area increased from 27,245 inhabitants in 1996 to 29,795 in 2001, a 10% rise. It represents 50% of the Francophone population of British Columbia. Furthermore, according to census data, there were 113,525 French speakers living in the Greater Vancouver area in 1996, compared to 147,755 in 2001, a 10.5% increase. That population is equivalent to that of cities such as Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Oshawa, Ontario and Sherbrooke, Quebec.

The Greater Vancouver area thus has a large Francophone and francophile population pool looking for a French cultural life. With its programming, actions and infrastructure at the Maison de la francophonie, the Centre culturel francophone de Vancouver is a major contribution to the maintenance and vitality of a Francophone cultural area.

I'd like to read you a few quotes that show how the arts and cultural activities contribute to the vitality of communities.

Culture is fundamentally important to a community's health and vitality. Through it, a society, with its customs, traditions and creative ability, sees itself and fully realizes itself. The ecosystem of Canada's Francophone and Acadian communities, through its creators, citizens, cultural and community organizations and institutions, nourishes and protects its identity. Cultural development is the cornerstone that ensures the community's continuity.

That's the vision that was adopted by the members of the first national forum on cultural development of the Canadian francophonie, held in September 2003.

The arts and cultural activities are at the very heart of communities; they transform the community into a more attractive place to live, while enabling it to grow and develop by defining its unique characteristics; they provide a tourist attraction and contribute to the community's economic competitiveness around the world.

The arts—as we have agreed to call them—are not secondary. They are essential. ... A society without the arts would be a society that has broken its mirror and broken its heart. It would lose everything that today, in our view, is human.

We create social value and we allocate resources to improving the lives of people and society as a whole. Investment in the arts thus produces results with high intrinsic value, a return on invested social capital that is not easy to quantify. Quality of life issues are very important for business in the provinces, where companies want to attract and retain employees and their families so that they live and work in our communities. This is as important a factor for a small town with one mill as it is for a major city that wants to welcome a large head office. Families want to live in rich and diversified communities that afford significant opportunities for personal development, including musical activities, dance and the performing and visual arts.

The arts reflect the members of a community. They offer them diversity, enhance mutual understanding and promote active participation by citizens as audience members and volunteers. Every year, nearly 14 million people attend performances of dance or music, the theatre and opera. In 2001, they spent $815 per capita on these types of activities. Twice as many Canadians attend live artistic performances as sports events.

Their contribution to Canada's gross domestic product amounts to $26 billion, and they provide employment for approximately 740,000 persons. Exports of Canadian cultural products, for example, increased by 80% between 1996 and 2002, to $2.3 billion. The potential for greater growth is impressive.

The arts and culture are essential factors in the new world economy, not only because of their entertainment value, but also for the skills they lead people to develop. Knowledge of the arts, for example, stimulates young people to develop critical thinking and creative problem-solving skills, talents currently in high demand. In the 1990s, the cultural labour force grew 31%, compared to 20% for the Canadian labour force as a whole.

The arts and cultural activities instill greater self-assurance in young people, including those at risk, by developing their social skills, helping students to learn other subjects and enhancing academic performance. For example, music helps in learning mathematics, whereas theatre and dance improve reading, writing and language skills. Parents recognize these benefits: 85% of them believe that their children's creativity develops through arts programs, while 70% believe their children's personal development is improved and 78% that the arts enhance their self-assurance and self-confidence.

The impact of arts and culture in Canada is tangible and their benefits flow to all Canadians. Many of their effects are quantifiable. Beyond a doubt, they attest to the importance of the arts and are undeniably essential to the Canadian economy. However, their greatest impact isn't quantifiable since it represents the acquisition of works of art in all their forms by Canadian artists and artistic organizations, of works that produce a feeling of...

[The Vice-Chair, NDP, Yvon Godin]

Sir, you should...

[Alexandre Houle]

Yes, I'm going to finish.

Like the vast majority of organizations operating in the cultural sector, the Centre culturel francophone de Vancouver has faced major challenges in the past 10 years. Inadequate and unstable operating funding causes high turnover among human resources and a decline in the number of volunteers, which makes it increasingly difficult to achieve objectives.

The Fédération culturelle canadienne-française, with more than 300 participants in the cultural sector from all regions of Canada, has adopted a common vision for minority cultural development. These joint efforts have made it possible to identify concrete solutions for supporting the arts and culture sector: adding an arts and culture axis providing for the necessary financial resources to support the actions of provincial and local cultural organizations in their communities; taking arts and culture into consideration in the other axes identified in the plan, such as education and community development; including federal cultural agencies in the accountability framework proposed by the action plan; the professionalization and training of human resources and volunteers; supported networking to compensate for scattered population and a sense of isolation; and consolidating operating funding to ensure recruitment and retention of qualified human resources.

In conclusion, the Centre culturel francophone de Vancouver, as the “lungs of the Francophone community”, is located in the Canadian city with the highest concentration of artists. In our view, we now have a consensus on recognition of the positive aspects of investment in the arts and culture. It is high time the federal government provided adequate support for our initiatives. The future of the 2010 Winter Olympic Games will provide a platform for the artists and crafts people from this area, enabling them to express the very essence of Canada's identity, not only to the country as a whole, but also to the entire world.

[The Vice-Chair, NDP, Yvon Godin]

Thank you, Mr. Houle.

We'll now begin our question period.

Mr. Murphy.

[Brian Murphy, Liberal, Moncton—Riverview—Dieppe, NB]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

First of all, I want to thank all the witnesses for their presentations.

I come from Moncton, New Brunswick, and I'm an Anglophone. In New Brunswick, we have a very strong, very real Acadian presence.

Mr. Houle, your statistics and those cited in the other presentations show that there may be more Francophones in Vancouver than in Moncton, New Brunswick. I often promote the fact that I'm the member for a riding that has the largest urban Acadian population in the country. Whatever the case may be, we're a federal committee, and we have to recognize the presence and size of the Francophone population of British Columbia.

In 1999, Moncton played host to the Francophone Summit. I was the city's mayor at that time. I observed a major change in the philosophy of the majority Anglophone community, which became convinced at that time of the economic and cultural importance and utility in promoting the Francophone community.

In four years, you'll be hosting a major international event: the Olympic Games. In Moncton during the Francophone Summit, we received support from France to install an Alliance Française office. For a small city like Moncton, that's an important and unique thing.

Like us, you have a French Consulate General and an office of the Alliance Française in Vancouver. Little mention is made of the role that France and the Alliance Française play in promoting the Francophone population here.

When the Olympic Games are held, will you have the support of the Alliance Française, France and your community in promoting your Francophone population in cultural and economic terms?

[Pierre Senay]

First, I'd like to draw a subtle distinction. The Alliance Française is mainly dedicated to promoting French culture, not necessarily the culture of French Canadians. The linguistic notion is the same, but it's more specific to France.

We contacted the Vancouver branch of the Chambre de commerce française au Canada so that we could work together to bring together all Francophones. As is the case of the Alliance Française, the purpose of the Chambre de commerce française is to stimulate trade with France and to bring together French expats, because they have more in common with each other than with Canadian Francophones.

This isn't a homogeneous community. The goal of France's Consulate General is to protect the interests of French citizens, not those of French Canadians. We can indeed work together. Will the Consulate support us? That's not its purpose; that's not its priority. It takes part in the community, but its institutions are somewhat specific.

[Brian Murphy, Liberal, Moncton—Riverview—Dieppe, NB]

Are you preparing for the economic impact that the next Olympic Games will have on the promotion of your Francophone community?

[Pierre Senay]

In general, the people from the community are doing a lot for the Olympic Games, and every organization is working in a specific area. We're talking about the Centre culturel francophone, the Conseil culturel et artistique francophone, the federation and other organizations.

Fifteen years ago, we established the Maison de la francophonie, which is essentially a place for offices and commercial space. That made it possible to create a critical mass, but, apart from the offices and the Centre culturel francophone, the community at large doesn't have a community space, a place where they can meet. So they meet on the sidewalk.

The community at large needs a Francophone place where they can meet, with which they can identify and where they can also have access to services. That would enable us to create an even greater mass and thus to attract businesses.

I'm talking about Vancouver, of course, but, as others have mentioned, British Columbia has approximately 70,000 Francophones, including 30,000 in Vancouver. Probably 150,000 out of 250,000 speak French. So I don't want to minimize the impact on other communities, but, for the moment, I'm talking just about Vancouver.

[The Vice-Chair, NDP, Yvon Godin]

Thank you, Mr. Senay.

Ms. Brunelle.

[Paule Brunelle, Bloc, Trois-Rivières, QC]

Good morning, everyone. It's a pleasure for me to meet you today. As I did with the first group that we heard from, I take the liberty of congratulating you for your courage and determination in maintaining the French language here. We realize that the need to save the French language is intimately related to culture and everything we are as individuals.

Mr. Senay, you talked about two stages of assimilation: learning a second language and forgetting the first language. You're telling us that this is a process that definitely operates over two generations.

In Quebec, when it became mandatory for immigrants to attend Francophone schools, we realized that the second generation spoke French. That's how French has become the common language.

You're saying that the future will be assured by correcting assimilation factors. Could you tell us how?