Thank you very much for your presentation. It was very clear.
I wish to make a comment. The reason why we request documents in French is because we live in a bilingual country. To my mind, this means that information must be available in both French and English, and when I talk about French and English, I am also, necessarily, talking about the quality of language.
As a French speaker, I find it unimaginable that a government website should contain text in unintelligible gibberish. This is a matter of respect, of rights, and of the role that I play in this society. I am constantly receiving letters from people who tell me about what they have read on a Government of Canada website, whether it be Job Bank or elsewhere. This is very serious, especially because I know that we have highly competent translation services, with people who know what they're doing and are able to do it.
You talk, first and foremost, about cost. There are costs associated with living in this country and we must assume them. It is obvious that we are dealing with this situation in Quebec. We understand time and time again that it is impossible to receive equivalent services, and we want to bail out. However, so long as we are here, we are perfectly entitled to make sure that things are done right.
I would like you to meet some of the people who write to me. Those people feel hurt, troubled and devalued. If you say that there are fewer complaints, it is because people have given up. People no longer bother to lodge complaints or write letters to their MPs or newspapers. For those people, it is mission impossible. You admitted so yourself when you said that it was impossible to revise everything. For me, this is a sign of failure.
What I am calling for is not revision. I expect to be addressed in language that is correct, idiomatic and grammatical. That is my first comment and it comes straight from the heart, because it is our very presence in this country that is at stake. However, time and time again, we find ourselves dealing with this problem, it becomes very demotivating, and even more so for those looking for a job. When I visit the website to look for a job, which is supposed to be drafted in French, and I am unable to understand it, it is even more demotivating.
How can you fully assume your responsibility to post job offers in French? You seem to be saying hat you do not have the resources. What must be done for things to change?