Official Languages Committee on April 28th, 2009

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Good morning to you all and welcome to the 16^th meeting of the Standing Committee on Official Languages dealing with the broadcasting and services in French of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games.

This morning we have the pleasure of receiving two groups that are actively engaged in preparing the Olympic Games, particularly with regard to the language component. I would like to welcome Guy Matte, Executive Director of the Canadian Foundation for Cross-Cultural Dialogue, and thank him for having accepted our invitation on such short notice.

We greatly appreciate that.

As well, from the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC), we are pleased to welcome Jacques Gauthier, Chair of the Official Languages Advisory Committee, and Francine Bolduc, Director of Official Languages.

Without further ado, I would ask Mr. Matte to break the ice and give his opening remarks.

[Guy Matte, Executive Director, Canadian Foundation for Cross-Cultural Dialogue]

Thank you. I am pleased to break the ice on such a warm day.

I am the Executive Director of the Canadian Foundation for Cross-Cultural Dialogue. The foundation representations francophone and Acadian organizations in matters concerning the Olympic Games.

A few years ago, the Foundation, together with the Fédération des francophones de la Colombie-Britannique, signed a memorandum of understanding with VANOC committing us to promote the participation of Canada's francophones in the Games, something we take very seriously.

Since our last appearance, we have had numerous meetings with VANOC officials to study all aspects of service delivery at the Games, focusing particularly on language issues. In the wake of the report by the Commissioner of Official Languages, the foundation and the FFCB asked that a representative of the official language minority communities be given a seat on VANOC's board of directors, or at least that an observer position be created.

None of the signatories to VANOC's memorandum of understanding wanted to reopen it. The memorandum is a complex legal document, and this seemed to pose quite a problem. However, I give credit to Jacques Gauthier, who is sitting beside me and is on VANOC's board of directors, for suggesting the creation of an official languages committee within the board of directors. Members of that committee include Jean-Pierre Raffarin, the former Prime Minister of France, as well as a representative of the Foundation, Michel Matifat, and Serge Corbeil from the Fédération des francophones de la Colombie-Britannique.

Although this initiative does not fully satisfy our initial demand, it creates further ties between francophone communities and the board of directors. We will have to see whether the committee will really have full latitude to ensure that VANOC meets all its commitments regarding linguistic duality.

For example, although we have been assured that the opening and closing ceremonies will be models of respect for our two official languages, we will only be certain of that after the fact. We are confident, even though we still have some concerns. Would it not be possible to preserve the secrecy surrounding the ceremonies, while demonstrating that they will respect the two official languages of the olympic movement and of our country?

We are also concerned by the broadcasting of the games. We want to ensure that all Canadians have access to the same quality of broadcasting of the 2010 Games. We have close working relations with the CTVglobemedia consortium, which is responsible for the broadcasting, as well as officials at RDS, the Réseau des sports, because we want to ensure the best possible French-language coverage of the Games across the country. We are following the progress made by RDS in its agreements with the satellite and cable distributors.

Although all major companies have agreed to unscramble the signals for RDS and TQS free-of-charge for one month, agreements with some of Canada's 200 smaller cable distributors still need to be negotiated. These negotiations are done one at a time, but they are getting done.

We also raised the fact that francophone and Acadian communities would not be able to watch French-language programs promoting our athletes and the games in the months leading up to the opening ceremonies in February 2010. We are now also trying to find ways to resolve that issue as well. I think that we could be seeing great progress in that respect over the next few weeks.

The Foundation is taking its responsibilities regarding the broadcasting quite seriously and will continue to work with the consortium to ensure that Canada's francophones have equal access to the same quality of broadcasting.

Members of the committee, allow me to briefly report on other issues concerning the Vancouver Olympic Games. The Foundation and the FFCB are working hard to ensure that every community taking part in the Olympic Torch Relay recognizes the importance of promoting our linguistic duality in the celebrations surrounding that event. The FFCB is working with towns and villages in British Columbia, and the Foundation is dealing with the other 110 towns and villages outside Quebec. We are encouraging all of those municipalities to have one or more francophone representative of the community on their planning committees, which are called community celebration groups. To date, we have received a very positive response from almost every municipality we have contacted.

So far, 41 of those 110 towns and villages have at least one francophone in their community celebration groups.

We are encouraged by the commitment made by Minister Moore who stated the following when he appeared before the Senate Standing Committee on Official Languages on March 23:

With regard to the 2010 Olympic Games, you should know that official language minority community involvement is part of the conditions made for the money that Parliament approved for the torch relay....

That commitment will facilitate our work with those municipalities that are somewhat less attuned to our linguistic duality. Furthermore, through our various means of communication, we are encouraging francophones to register to become torch bearers.

We are also continuing to plan for the Place de la francophonie in Vancouver so that it can be ready for the games. We are encouraged by the federal, provincial and territorial governments' commitments, as well as by the interest in this initiative shown by some member states of the francophonie and the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie. We believe that the site will be a cultural showplace demonstrating the creativity and vitality of our francophone and Acadian communities to the world.

Schools will also be asked to contribute. Thanks to the support of the Ministry of Education, we are preparing an educational guide that will encourage both French and immersion schools as well as French second-language classes to promote the olympic values.

We have also collaborated with VANOC to find enough volunteers who can provide services in French. We will undoubtedly face crises, obstacles and resource problems in trying to ensure a French presence at the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Vancouver right up until the end of the closing ceremonies of the Paralympic Games.

The Canadian Foundation for Cross-Cultural Dialogue is committed and will continue to work to ensure that these beautiful and majestic games become a model of respect for the two official languages of the olympic movement and of Canada.

I would like to thank you for your invitation and I remain at your disposal.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Thank you, Mr. Matte, for your presentation.

We will continue with the Official Languages Advisory Committee and the presentation by Mr. Gauthier.

[Jacques Gauthier, Chair, Official Languages Advisory Committee, Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC)]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I would also like to thank committee members their welcome this morning.

I have a well-prepared text on our commitment with regard to official languages within VANOC, but I would rather take a few minutes to talk to you about the Official Languages Advisory Committee that we established some time ago. I think that such information as well as the committee's objectives are worth putting on the record. I will therefore take a few minutes to tell you about the committee's underlying mission.

I agreed to chair the Official Languages Committee as a member of VANOC's board of directors. Basically, as Mr. Matte indicated earlier, we have been working over the past two years in close cooperation with various francophone groups from across Canada, including the Canadian Foundation for Cross-Cultural Dialogue. We also work with the Fédération des francophones de la Colombie-Britannique as well as all kinds of organizations from coast to coast. We are also working in partnership with federal government officials whose job is to ensure that we make all the necessary efforts to respect the multi-party agreement, which is at the heart of VANOC's commitment to official languages.

We came to realize—and this is something Graham Fraser understood as well—that we needed to create a formal framework within the committee so that the various francophone stakeholders involved in the discussions would be on the same page and have the same objectives. That is why we recommended that this committee be established. At the outset, we wanted to bring together Canada's francophone stakeholders. After much reflection and discussion with various political players, including Mr. Diouf, the Secretary General of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie. We thought it would be a good idea to open the committee to international members, including Jean-Pierre Raffarin, who was pleased to be on the committee.

There was a reason for choosing Mr. Raffarin. As you know, he had been appointed the Grand Témoin (great witness) of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie at the Beijing Olympic Games. Given that very recent experience, we thought that he could help us in our work. As recently as last Friday, the committee had its first official meeting in Vancouver, and Mr. Raffarin provided us with exceptional support. He gave us a lot of information, both general and at times quite detailed, on the issues he had identified in Beijing and with which we should be dealing. We greatly value his work with us.

We have also obtained the participation of Judith LaRocque, who is the Deputy Minister at Canadian Heritage. Here again, the goal was to make sure that the federal government, which makes representations in matters concerning the francophonie, be part of the committee in order to listen and criticize generally, but also regarding VANOC's objectives. I think that our working group truly represents all bilingualism stakeholders.

I read in the paper this morning that the Organizing Committee of the Olympic Games had struck the committee a bit late in the process after having decided that such a committee was needed to ease tensions. I have to say that that is not an accurate interpretation of the situation. In fact, we have been working with stakeholders for over two years, especially to solve problems regarding the francophonie and ensure our presence where need be.

At our first meeting last Friday, we acknowledged that some issues were outstanding—and I will let Francine talk to you about them in a few minutes—but that substantial progress had also been made. We are probably responsible for the fact that news about this progress was not conveyed properly. Therefore, our challenge is to inform all francophone stakeholders, including everyone in this room, of course.

Over the next few weeks, we will be implementing a very detailed action plan, which is based on the report done by the Commissioner of Official Languages, Graham Fraser. We will therefore use the report to draw up our work plan, including timelines but especially measures to rectify the remaining outstanding issues. I must say that we have addressed major issues in recent months, including French broadcasting and the partnership with the French-language print media. These are issues have been settled. Agreements were reached with Gesca for French-language coverage of the games in Quebec, New Brunswick and parts of Ontario.

As Mr. Matte indicated, CTV appointed Gerry Frappier as the francophone chef de mission for the French-language coverage of the games. There will be over 200 reporters and some 20 hours of French-language broadcasting for the duration of the games by francophone reporters on all Canadian networks. In short, some major issues have been resolved. Needless to say, there is still work to be done. We have to be vigilant, but pragmatic at the same time. That is the ultimate objective of the committee, which will provide the board of directors with regular reports, but in particular, it will meet with and inform all official language stakeholders.

I want to assure you that we will continue to work with the major stakeholders in the coming weeks. I will again be meeting with Mr. Diouf, the Secretary of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie, to discuss the appointment of the next Grand Témoin, with whom we will be working hand in hand in Vancouver. The cooperation of our committee as well as each and everyone of you will be required.

I would like to thank you for inviting us to appear before you. I will now let Francine speak to you for a few minutes about the more concrete progress that has been achieved. I of course remain open to answer your questions.

Thank you.

[Francine Bolduc, Director, Official Languages, Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC)]

Thank you, Mr. Gauthier.

I would like to give you an overview of the current state of preparation of the games. You heard about the Official Languages Advisory Committee, which is part of our strategy. Mr. Gauthier has already talked about the print media and broadcasting organizations. I will therefore skip over that, unless you have questions later on.

With regard to translation, we have found a better way to align our official language objectives with the linguistic services. We therefore transferred the translation service to official languages, in order to ensure a perfect alignment. We have identified the needs very specifically in order to obtain the appropriate resources to offer translation services during the games.

We want to ensure that the spectators, athletes and the whole Olympic family have access to bilingual services and experience the games in a bilingual environment. We are currently recruiting and training enough bilingual volunteers to fill the various positions in 2010.

We have to make sure there are enough bilingual volunteers. I believe it should be quite easy to attain our objective. We will also have to ensure that those people will be located where French will be used during the games, i.e., with the public, with the people and not behind the scenes.

As for communications, as you already know, our website is bilingual. We are now working on the signage at all of the Olympic sites. The same will be done for the tickets, medals and all announcements made during the competitions. We are currently selecting all the sports commentators and will ensure that they are adequately bilingual.

We also want to make sure that all scoreboards at the different sites will be in both languages and that the messages displayed during the games will be created in either French or English in order to really get the public involved during the competitions.

The program for the Cultural Olympiad began in 2008, and the activities were mainly local in nature. In 2009, there have been tours, which means that the program has become more national in scope. The program of the 2010 Cultural Olympiad will be magnificent. Today, we will be announcing the names of the first 20 artists who will perform during the 2010 Cultural Olympiad. Of that number, five will be francophones, including three who will present French-language performances. I can give you a scoop, here and now. Robert Lepage and his work The Blue Dragon will open the 2010 Cultural Olympiad. There will be three performances, the first of which will be in French. We are very excited about that.

Moreover, Jorane and the Festival juste pour rire will be performing in French. Those three names will be part of the first group of 20 artists who will perform during the 2010 Cultural Olympiad. There will be two other announcements made later in the year. We are pleased to make this announcement today.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

You have one minute left, Ms. Bolduc.

[Francine Bolduc]

Much progress has been made since I last came here with Mr. Furlong. We are working hard to offer a bilingual experience to all visitors in 2010.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Mr. Gauthier, you have the floor.

[Jacques Gauthier]

I made an inadvertent mistake earlier when I said that RDS had committed to produce over 20 hours of television a week. I should have said 20 hours a day. My apologies.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Thank you for that clarification.

We will begin our first round of questions with Mr. Rodriguez.

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Honoré-Mercier, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Good morning to you all and welcome.

I just wanted to clarify the process leading to the creation of the committee. You said that the committee was struck a while back. However, this morning, we found out that the Official Languages Committee was established quite recently, whereas you say that it has been active for the past two years.

[Jacques Gauthier]

In fact, we have been meeting with the members who were appointed to the committee for over two years, but the committee itself was officially struck in the fall of 2008.

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Honoré-Mercier, QC]

So that is a year and a half ago.

[Jacques Gauthier]

Moreover, the draft terms of reference that I have here with me are dated November 6, 2008. So this is something we have been discussing for a while.

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Honoré-Mercier, QC]

Was the first meeting only held in April, this month?

[Jacques Gauthier]

Yes, officially, but, once again, I must point out that discussions had been held before the first meeting. We had to start by agreeing on our reference framework, provide appropriate information to the members, and so on.

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Honoré-Mercier, QC]

Is it not a rather long process, if it takes eight months to create a committee and develop the terms of reference before holding a meeting in April, which is less than a year before the games start?

[Jacques Gauthier]

It is not a long process, in that we are working with the Commissioner of Official Languages, Graham Fraser. He had told us that he would be producing his report in December 2008. Since we wanted our information on the Commissioner's concerns to be as up-to-date as possible, we had to wait for his report, and that is what we did.

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Honoré-Mercier, QC]

Do you not agree, Mr. Gauthier, that this could have been done earlier? This exchange with you has provided me with some new information. I though that the committee had been up and running for a long time, but I realize now that your first meeting was just this month. It was on April 23, right?

[Jacques Gauthier]

It was last Friday.

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Honoré-Mercier, QC]

It could have been held a little sooner.

[Jacques Gauthier]

At the risk of repeating myself, and I am doing just that, the work of our committee is driven by the recommendations made by Graham Fraser, the Commissioner of Official Languages. Mr. Fraser presented his report in December 2008. We are working in collaboration with him.

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Honoré-Mercier, QC]

So Graham Fraser did not act quickly enough. It is his fault.

[Jacques Gauthier]

I beg your pardon?

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Honoré-Mercier, QC]

He did not act quickly enough.

[Jacques Gauthier]

You are putting words in my mouth that I did not say.

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Honoré-Mercier, QC]

Well, it is a logical conclusion, since things could clearly have moved more quickly, overall.

Now, there are eight partners in the organization. There is the Canadian Olympic Committee, the Canadian Paralympic Committee, the municipality of Whistler, the city of Vancouver, etc. Do you make sure that all those organizations include French in their communications, for example, on their Internet sites?

[Jacques Gauthier]

What partners are you referring to?

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Honoré-Mercier, QC]

We are talking here about eight partners that are contributing financially to the games, including the Government of Canada, the province of British Columbia, etc.

[Jacques Gauthier]

I cannot answer that.

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Honoré-Mercier, QC]

This information is in the notes provided by our researchers.

[Francine Bolduc]

We are not required to impose obligations on our partners that apply to us. It is their responsibility. Our mandate is to ensure that, under the multi-party agreement, the provisions concerning the games are carried out. Our mandate is to encourage our partners and provide them with the resources, if we can.

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Honoré-Mercier, QC]

So if Tourism Vancouver decides to use only English on its website, along with a little Mandarin, Japanese and a few other languages, in others, no French at all, you have nothing to say about it. Is that right?

[Francine Bolduc]

Yes.

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Honoré-Mercier, QC]

But could you check the sites? It might be good to make a recommendation or two to some of our partners that have nothing at all in French on their websites. The Internet is a major means of communication in 2009.

Mr. Matte, on the broadcasting issue, you indicated that negotiations were under way with 200 small private cable distributors. Is that feasible? That amounts to nearly one negotiation every day.

[Guy Matte]

The negotiating is not done by us but by RDS, the francophone party. They tell me that they are in the process of signing agreements with small cable distributors.

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Honoré-Mercier, QC]

So it should happen.

[Guy Matte]

They tried to reach an agreement with the Canadian cable distributors association on a framework agreement to cover all distributors, but it was not possible to do so. So they need to negotiate with each one, and they are doing so.

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Honoré-Mercier, QC]

Can we rest assured today that Canadians, regardless of the region in which they live, will be able to watch the games in the language of their choice?

[Jacques Gauthier]

Last week, Mr. Frappier made a presentation to our Official Languages Committee in Vancouver. He assured us that the games would be broadcast in French across Canada under agreements with cable companies, as Mr. Matte mentioned. So to respond to your question, the answer that we were given was yes.

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Honoré-Mercier, QC]

The signals may be transmitted, but people do not necessarily have the right systems to decode them themselves and receive the image. That is my concern and that is why it is so important to negotiate with the distributors and other stakeholders.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Thank you.

Ms. Guay, you have the floor.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

I would like to thank the witnesses for being here.

Mr. Matte, I will start with you.

We have learned that 4% of Canadians would not have access to the broadcasts. We know that there is a community television network, so would it be possible to use that network, which is on the cable system, to ensure that the games are broadcast throughout Canada?

It would be terrible if Canada could not broadcast the games in both official languages, when China was able to do so. And people talk about Canada as being this wonderful bilingual country.

Would it be possible to use community television?

[Guy Matte]

Your question should really be addressed to the RDS representatives, and I believe that you intend to invite them here soon.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

Yes, they will be coming before the committee.

[Guy Matte]

So you will have a better picture of everything that is being done. I would like to correct you on one thing: it is not 4% of the Canadian population that will not have access, but 4% of francophones in Canada.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

I apologize. It is 4% of francophones, but that is still a lot of people.

[Guy Matte]

I grant you that. We are talking about 9,000 French-Canadian homes without access to the broadcasts in French. There are various reasons for that. Some people may refuse to be hooked up to television. That is a choice that people can make in our society.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

We are not talking about those people.

[Guy Matte]

I know. I have discussed this issue with Mr. Frappier, from RDS. He is also concerned about this issue, and he will tell you so himself. We are looking with the cable distributors at the possibility of providing boxes free-of-charge for a three-month period, so that people will be able to watch the Olympic Games. We are taking all sorts of measures.

It is a bit like having a big sausage and cutting slices off it. We still have a little piece of sausage and we are trying to make it as small as possible.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

You said earlier that 41 out of 100 municipalities have included one or more francophones—

[Guy Matte]

Up to this point.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

But that is less than half.

[Guy Matte]

Give me some time.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

The games are coming up fast.

[Guy Matte]

We are forming groups. A person in our office is working full-time on this issue. Thirty other municipalities are currently in discussions at the local level to see how they are going to proceed. There are more, but our data bank contains only the names of francophone representatives in 41 of the 110 municipalities that we are talking about. We are currently in discussions with 30 or 40 others, and they will be getting back to us in the coming days or weeks. Our objective is to have 110 municipalities.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

It needs to happen.

[Guy Matte]

We are working on it.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

That is what we want to see.

[Guy Matte]

I hope that 4% of them will not say no.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

I hope so too, and I hope that you will be working very hard to get all of them.

[Guy Matte]

That is what we are doing.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

My next question is for Mr. Gauthier or Ms. Bolduc.

How and by whom is VANOC funded? Does the Department of Canadian Heritage fund your committee?

[Jacques Gauthier]

No. Most of the funding for VANOC to organize the Games comes from sponsors.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

Do you have enough funding to do your work properly and ensure that the Olympic Games are bilingual?

[Jacques Gauthier]

Definitely. Over the past few months, we have submitted the latest revised budget to the board of directors, and the numbers were in line with our expectations.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

Mr. Gauthier and Mr. Matte, and Ms. Bolduc, you will remember that at the pre-launch of the Olympic Games, French was not really present, except for a folklore performance, and that was very disappointing to francophones. Since it was a dance troupe, no one knew whether the performers were francophone or anglophone. I hope that you are prepared to make sure that such a thing does not happen again. Can you give us a guarantee on that?

[Jacques Gauthier]

A permanent committee was established to organize the opening and closing ceremonies. Canadian Heritage has a representative on the committee to ensure that the performances include appropriate francophone content.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

Are you talking about the various performances at the opening and closing ceremonies?

[Jacques Gauthier]

Yes. The Torch Relay comes under another committee, but the one I am referring to is responsible for the opening and closing ceremonies. There was a meeting two weeks ago with the Canadian Heritage representative, who reports to Deputy Minister Judith LaRocque, whom I mentioned earlier and who sits on our Official Languages Advisory Committee. We have the same objectives, we could call her the French content watchdog, even though VANOC is very determined to carry out its mandate. There are some 20 pages of specifications detailing the federal government's expectations with respect to the opening and closing ceremonies. I think that we have taken the necessary steps to ensure that things will be done properly.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

Is it possible—

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Thank you, Ms. Guay. We will come back to this.

I would like to add that I would be honoured, as the Chair of the Standing Committee on Official Languages, to carry the torch in Lévis. I do not know whether it is on your list—

[Guy Matte]

Did you register on the RBC or Coca-Cola sites?

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Yes, on the RBC site.

[Guy Matte]

Good. Then you have a chance.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Oh! Oh!

[Guy Matte]

Mr. Godin.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

I would like to thank our guests.

I would like to continue along the same lines as Mr. Rodriguez for a few minutes.

I too am disappointed that the first meeting was held only in April. According to Mr. Matte, the organization wanted to be part of the committee from the beginning. Later on, a parallel committee had to be struck. It was not easy. The credit goes to you, Mr. Gauthier, and I want to thank you. It is not easy for francophones to make themselves heard.

[Jacques Gauthier]

I will not try to convince you. However, I would repeat that we have been working on this for over two years. Our discussions and our relations with the Commissioner of Official Languages, Mr. Fraser, have been ongoing for over two years as well.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

Mr. Gauthier, you do not need to try to convince me. The Olympic Games are being held in Canada, which is a bilingual country. For two years, you have been working very hard to ensure compliance with the Official Languages Act. I am sure that you have not had to work very hard to ensure access for anglophones. It is easy for anglophones to have their rights respected.

[Jacques Gauthier]

It is not my major issue.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

I beg your pardon?

[Jacques Gauthier]

You are right. It is not my major issue.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

Thank you.

Do you see the problem? We have to worry about whether there will be francophone artists. Do you know what concerns me? Will the opening ceremonies take place during the day? Will we be able to watch them during the day? Are there agreements with Radio-Canada? I know there are agreements with CTV, TQS and RDS, but they do not broadcast everywhere. TQS is not available in Fredericton, New Brunswick.

When the Canada Winter Games were on, Radio-Canada did its broadcast at 12:30 a.m. or 2:00 a.m. in Bathurst, Campbellton and the Acadian Peninsula. The opening ceremonies were rebroadcast. People in those areas did not see them.

Are you considering reaching agreements with other television networks that broadcast across Canada? Radio-Canada is available everywhere. It seems that the public broadcaster is being left out of all this. We will be speaking to their representatives at an upcoming meeting. What is being done for the opening and closing ceremonies of the Olympic Games?

[Jacques Gauthier]

Mr. Godin, it is important to keep in mind that there is a broadcast agreement between the International Olympic Committee and the cable company that wins the bid.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

I agree, but this is Canada and we have an Official Languages Act.

[Jacques Gauthier]

I cannot disagree with you. Here is what I am getting to.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

Thank you.

[Jacques Gauthier]

So there is an agreement between the International Olympic Committee and CTV. For our part, we applied pressure to ensure that there would be francophone content that was distinct from the anglophone content. We were successful.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

Are you in discussions with the Government of British Columbia?

[Jacques Gauthier]

No.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

You never speak to provincial authorities?

[Jacques Gauthier]

About what? About official languages?

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

Yes.

[Jacques Gauthier]

I personally have not done so.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

You have not done so. Who would have that mandate?

[Jacques Gauthier]

The Fédération des francophones de Colombie-Britannique has the right people to make things happen.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

Someone received $26 million from the federal government. It was not the Fédération des francophones de Colombie-Britannique. I will get right to the point. Tourism BC has six Internet sites to promote the Olympic Games. The only site missing is the French site. Is that not a shame, an insult?

[Jacques Gauthier]

I would say that we have—

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

I do not want to put words in your mouth. I would like your opinion.

[Jacques Gauthier]

No. My personal opinion is that things should be in French and English. I am speaking on behalf of VANOC and not the committee I represent. We have no jurisdiction in this area.

However, we brought it to the attention of the Commissioner of Official Languages and asked him to do something, if he could. And he did. We are trying to use that kind of proactive pressure rather than being on defensive.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

Where translation is concerned, we have heard rumours that they want to hire students. With all due respect for students, they do not have professional qualifications. That is why they are still students. They do not yet have their degree.

Have you entered into agreements with the federal government for translation services?

[Jacques Gauthier]

This has been an active file for several months. Before the election, we brought our translation needs to the attention of Public Works Canada and the Translation Bureau. Those needs have evolved since then, in that we have managed to reduce our translation needs by getting sponsors to give us some access to translation, etc.

We met once again with people from Public Works Canada two weeks ago. We will also be meeting with the Translation Bureau this afternoon in order to specify our translation needs clearly. An official request has been made in order to cover the needs we still have.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Godin.

We will now go to Mr. Lemieux.

[Pierre Lemieux, Conservative, Glengarry—Prescott—Russell, ON]

Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you for our presentations here this morning.

I would certainly like to highlight that Canada has two official languages, as everyone knows, and that Canada is a model for English and French, where bilingualism is concerned. So we need to reflect that positively at the Olympic Games since those games are very important for our country.

You may not be able to give us details about the opening ceremonies. Nonetheless, those ceremonies are very important because the world will be watching. And as I have mentioned, we need to project a positive image of our country.

Can you reassure me that we will see a good reflection of our linguistic duality at the opening ceremonies?

[Jacques Gauthier]

I am very confident in the people on the committee supervising the preparation of those ceremonies.

It is true that the performance marking one year 'til the opening of the games was not exactly what we were hoping for in this regard. I admit that I was disappointed. But it enabled us to take a stand and remind those in charge of our expectations.

Having Nicole Bourget on the committee is very reassuring to all of us. We met with her to make sure that our objectives were the same. She reports to Judith LaRocque. We need to be confident. And I am certainly not talking about blind confidence. She provided us with her specifications and her expectations. Everything is in place for... There is also regular reporting to monitor that things are progressing properly. In my opinion, we are in a good position.

[Pierre Lemieux, Conservative, Glengarry—Prescott—Russell, ON]

Thank you. As I said, this is very important, since the opening ceremonies will certainly be watched around the world.

From a practical and realistic standpoint, I would like to know how things will work, for example, if a Franco-Ontarian from my area or I myself, not as a member of Parliament of a member of the Standing Committee on Official Languages, but as a Canadian, asks to be served in French at the games. The first person I meet may be an anglophone and unable to speak to me in French. But what happens immediately after that?

I think that it is very important to deal with people directly, and I would not want to speak on the phone with a manager in French. I would want to address my questions to the person right in front of me. How will that work? The challenge will be to find enough volunteers who are bilingual or able to speak French, and I will want to be served in French. Can you answer that question?

[Francine Bolduc]

Certainly. We have received over 11,000 applications from bilingual people who have indicated that they can hold a conversation or even more.

We are in the process of checking their level of bilingualism and assigning them to positions where they will be able to speak directly to the public and answer questions. In addition, we have identified all the positions dealing with the public, for such activities as welcoming people, providing information and issuing tickets.

And all those who speak French will wear a special pin. So it will be easy to identify the people to ask if you want service in French. All that will be organized.

If ever a French speaker does not report for duty or there is no one available who can speak French, a mobile team will be sent to deal with last-minute needs. The plan that we are preparing will ensure that at all times—100% of the time—on every shift, there will be someone who works with the public and who will be able to answer questions in French. That is our commitment.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Thank you, Mr. Lemieux.

[Pierre Lemieux, Conservative, Glengarry—Prescott—Russell, ON]

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Mr. D'Amours.

[Jean-Claude D'Amours, Liberal, Madawaska—Restigouche, NB]

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Mr. Gauthier, I would like to come back to something. You answered questions earlier from my colleague, Mr. Rodriguez, about the committee. The only reason you gave for not moving more quickly was that you were waiting for the Official Language Commissioner to give his recommendations.

But the parliamentary official languages committees, from the House of Commons and the Senate, have made recommendations. How many times have the committees talked about official languages? From your answer, that does not seem to matter. I understand that the Commissioner of Official Languages is the supreme authority, the watchdog, but when things get to his level it means that someone has not been listening. Can someone somewhere explain to me why what we say is not important?

Are the Senate recommendations to the effect that francophones and everyone else need to be well served not important? I live in a francophone community in New Brunswick; approximately 80% of the people in my riding are francophone. Is that not important? Are my comments to the organizing committee not important? Do things absolutely have to get to the level of the Official Languages Commissioner before anyone listens? This is a serious problem.

That was the answer you gave earlier. This is deplorable. You say that things were being organized and planned earlier but we parliamentarians did not make a ripple and our recommendations were a lot of hot air, since we were not doing anything important and no one was listening to us. That's what you seem to be saying.

When the committee last met, I asked whether there was going to have to be some badmouthing, where the committee was concerned.

Mr. Chairman, it looks like you did not understand. I mean this in the sense of criticizing or complaining. Once the Olympic Games are over, will we need to start badmouthing, since we are not being listened to once again?

If it takes the involvement of the Official Languages Commissioner to put mechanisms in place to ensure that francophones can be heard at the Olympic Games... We won't hold these kinds of games here again in two or three years, much less tomorrow.

That was more of a comment and it was in connection with your answer. I made a comment on that.

You mentioned earlier that Ms. Bourget had been appointed by Canadian Heritage to help oversee the opening and closing ceremonies. Can you tell me whether Ms. Bourget was also given other responsibilities? Was she also on the VANOC committee for the countdown?

[Jacques Gauthier]

I don't know. Personally, I cannot answer that question this morning.

[Francine Bolduc]

No, she did not sit on that committee. There was no specific committee, but for the opening and closing ceremonies as well as for the Olympic Torch Relay, committees were formed.

[Jean-Claude D'Amours, Liberal, Madawaska—Restigouche, NB]

It seems as if there are all kinds of committees. I can't remember who it was, but someone said earlier that you were not responsible for the partners. There's a committee for this and a committee for that, but in the end, if your Advisory Committee on Official Languages has no link with the rest of the machinery, how are we going to be able to convince the partners, the volunteers, the countdown committee, and the opening and closing ceremonies committee? It's as though everyone sits on a committee, everyone does a different task, but ultimately, your Advisory Committee has no contact with many of these people. It's as though you are relying on other people.

[Jacques Gauthier]

Look at the bigger picture, Mr. D'Amours. I have said on several occasions that the committee was formed just over eight months ago, but the work that is being done to honour the multi-party agreement on bilingualism within VANOC began several years ago. It is part and parcel of all our actions—

[Jean-Claude D'Amours, Liberal, Madawaska—Restigouche, NB]

Mr. Gauthier you say that it began several years ago—

[Jacques Gauthier]

—and of all the committees of the board.

[Jean-Claude D'Amours, Liberal, Madawaska—Restigouche, NB]

You say that it began several years ago, but francophones' rights were not even respected during the countdown ceremonies. The work has been going for several years, but one year before the opening of the Olympic Games, those rights were not respected.

I have doubts. You are the Chair of the Advisory Committee. I am a francophone from outside Quebec. When the rights of francophones from outside Quebec are not respected in this country, that triggers something inside me that causes me to stand up and speak out. I don't necessarily get that same feeling concerning the Advisory Committee.

[Jacques Gauthier]

Our mission is just that: to ensure that our commitments with regard to bilingualism are respected.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Thank you Mr. D'Amours.

We will now continue with Mr. Paillé.

[Pascal-Pierre Paillé, Bloc, Louis-Hébert, QC]

I will take advantage of my colleague's question to continue in the same vein. Could you describe to us your chain of command or organization chart? You said that there is an official committee that is responsible for official languages within VANOC. So if I understand correctly, you make recommendations to VANOC, which in turn makes recommendations to the Commissioner of Official Languages, who in turn sends them to the minister.

Could you please explain the chain of command to me? There seems to be some confusion as to the role of the various committees.

[Jacques Gauthier]

No. Rest assured, we are in direct communication with the decision-makers. I mentioned earlier that we made sure that everyone who is responsible for the French language during the Games work together. We work closely with the federal secretariat and with the Fédération des francophones de la Colombie-Britannique, the Canadian Foundation for Cross-Cultural Dialogue and Canadian Heritage. We are in contact with the Commissioner of Official Languages, the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie, and the International Olympic Committee. All these partners, who want to ensure the presence of bilingualism and the French language during the Games, work with us on the Official Languages Advisory Committee, an organization that reports to the board of directors.

[Pascal-Pierre Paillé, Bloc, Louis-Hébert, QC]

Could you send us that organizational chart? I don't have much time, but I would like to consult it.

I would like to ask you other questions.

[Jacques Gauthier]

It's not an organizational chart, it's an explanation.

[Pascal-Pierre Paillé, Bloc, Louis-Hébert, QC]

My next question is on a slightly different topic. Concerning signage, we got the impression, when the Commissioner of Official Languages appeared before us last week, that there are problems.

Do you have any comments on this topic?

[Jacques Gauthier]

The commitment made by the government, through VANOC, concerning signage at Olympic venues, is that, during the Games, signs will be bilingual. We made that commitment and we will honour it. There are still a few months to go before the Games, so you should give your verdict once the Games open. There are people VANOC who are working to ensure that everything is in place so that we can honour the commitment we made.

[Pascal-Pierre Paillé, Bloc, Louis-Hébert, QC]

Mr. Matte, you said earlier that we will not know the results before the end of the Olympic Games. If ever there was a major problem, who should be held responsible, in your opinion?

[Guy Matte]

Before or after?

[Pascal-Pierre Paillé, Bloc, Louis-Hébert, QC]

After.

[Guy Matte]

I am an eternal optimist and I hope that we will succeed. If blame needs to be laid afterward, I think that we will all have a collective responsibility for not adequately respecting the reality of linguistic duality. I will be just as responsible as our VANOC colleagues, the federal government and the Canadian public as a whole, which won't have given us enough support for us to succeed.

I don't think that blame can be attached to one particular individual or organization. However, if we need to point fingers, then people will be responsible to varying degrees, because if the opening and closing ceremonies are kept secret until the last minute and ultimately we realize there are problems, I might be less to blame than VANOC and perhaps also than the people who oversee VANOC at that level.

I think that VANOC clearly learned its lesson following an incident that occurred a year before the Games. It had a great impact on the in-house group. It wasn't a pleasant experience; they heard about it constantly, as did you, the media and the Canadian public at large. But I think they learned their lesson and I hope they will remember it.

[Pascal-Pierre Paillé, Bloc, Louis-Hébert, QC]

Thank you.

I have about a minute left. I will now go on to Ms. Bolduc.

You said that a portion of your funding comes from sponsors. Has the current economic crisis had an impact, or were the contracts signed before the downturn? Had commitments already been made by private sponsors?

[Jacques Gauthier]

At the last meeting of the board of directors, the VANOC people pointed out that over 98% of the sponsorship agreements and collaborative protocols with the partners had been signed. That is fortunate, because the economic crisis is affecting VANOC as well.

For now, our budget is still balanced, and the money is coming in, more in fact than we had expected. So we have every reason to be confident in this regard.

[Pascal-Pierre Paillé, Bloc, Louis-Hébert, QC]

Thank you.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Thank you, Mr. Paillé.

We will now proceed with Mr. Galipeau.

[Royal Galipeau, Conservative, Ottawa—Orléans, ON]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

First, I would like to welcome you. We ordered this beautiful Vancouver weather for you, especially for Mr. Matte, who has come from very far away. Mr. Matte lives in Orléans.

We know that VANOC consults with various francophone groups on the French aspect of the Games. We know, in fact, that the Canadian Foundation for Cross-Cultural Dialogue, which is here this morning, works closely with VANOC.

How are these groups, which defend the rights of francophones in British Columbia, involved in the organization of the Games?

[Guy Matte]

Like the FFCB, we are mandated to ensure that the Olympic Games are delivered in both official languages. Our resources are as follows.

First, we have a representative who sits on the advisory committee set up by Mr. Gauthier.

Second, we have regular meetings, about every two and a half months, with various directors of the Olympic Games, that is, the Cultural Olympiad, the Torch Relay and so on. We meet with these people officially. They meet with us to explain the progress made on their files and especially to explain to us how the francophone and Acadian communities will participate.

Third, we are also in contact with the staff at Official Languages, VANOC, of which Ms. Bolduc is the director. Our staff and hers are in almost daily contact on different topics and events that occur. When a problem crops up somewhere, we try to solve it through discussions.

Lastly, we have regular meetings with Mr. Gauthier himself, as person in charge and trustee. He was appointed by the board of directors to oversee everything connected with official languages. We therefore have frequent meetings and phone calls with him to solve problems, when they arise, or to commend people when things go well.

[Royal Galipeau, Conservative, Ottawa—Orléans, ON]

Is the Fédération des francophones de la Colombie-Britannique involved?

[Guy Matte]

It's the same level of involvement. We are two partners with the same responsibilities and we discharge them in the same way.

[Royal Galipeau, Conservative, Ottawa—Orléans, ON]

So the Fédération des francophones de la Colombie-Britannique will have a special role to play once the Games begin.

[Guy Matte]

No, I can't say that we will play a special role once the Games have begun. We play a special role before the beginning of the Games. Once they have begun, in my opinion, it will be a bit too late to do anything. Everything must be planned and organized in advance. Once the wheels start rolling, on the first day, there will be very little that you, I, committees or groups can do. That's why we must ensure that we are involved in all of VANOC's planning, to ensure that linguistic duality is respected.

[Royal Galipeau, Conservative, Ottawa—Orléans, ON]

We have heard this morning that many questions deal with concerns regarding the opening and closing ceremonies. It makes me think of the adage, once bitten, twice shy.

Can you explain what went wrong to cause such concerns?

[Guy Matte]

Thank you, Mr. Gauthier.

[Voices]

Oh, oh!

[Jacques Gauthier]

I can help you.

[Royal Galipeau, Conservative, Ottawa—Orléans, ON]

Mr. Matte's microphone is still on.

[Jacques Gauthier]

I am convinced that we both have different versions. So I will let him say what he has to say. Earlier, I apologized, saying that we were disappointed by the results of the show that was put on one year before the start of the Games. Some people may not have done the right thing, but it was not because of a lack of will.

[Royal Galipeau, Conservative, Ottawa—Orléans, ON]

Is the Fédération des francophones de la Colombie-Britannique involved, at least by acting as the conscience of the Games?

[Jacques Gauthier]

Yes. That's why we have clearly tightened the standards for preparing these important shows. That's why we now have several watchdogs that ensure that our expectations are being met. These same watchdogs report to us regularly and confirm that the work is being done right. So given this context, I think we are entitled to be confident. Work is being done, and above all, the watchdogs are keeping an eye on things.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Thank you very much, Mr. Galipeau.

Would you have liked 30 seconds?

[Guy Matte]

I thought I was safe!

I think the people who planned the one-year Olympic countdown show had a different concept of linguistic duality.

What was important to them was showing francophone culture. They thought that showcasing some dancers and choreographers would be enough. We told them that linguistic duality includes the word "linguistic" and that French has to be heard.

How can you tell if a dance troupe is francophone? You can't. And yet, we were told that francophone culture would be represented.

They can certainly include all the culture they want, but the most important thing for us is to hear French. Otherwise, the Official Languages Act will not be respected and they will make fools of themselves.

[Royal Galipeau, Conservative, Ottawa—Orléans, ON]

I think you realize, Mr. Chair, why I said that we have good people in Orleans. We have just had a demonstration of that.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Excellent. Just between you and me, my sister lives there.

Mr. Godin.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

Decision-makers are responsible for their decisions. I'm having a hard time accepting that they didn't know that someone was should have spoken French so it could be heard. Token gestures are not enough.

I'm disappointed, and I find this unacceptable. Mr. Gauthier, you have been working on this project for two years now, and you have been sitting on a committee for eight months. Everyone is talking. In my opinion, this blunder was almost intentional. It was unfortunate and unacceptable.

Mr. Matte, you say that once things get started, there is no turning back. I'm going to go back once again to the Canada Games that were held in northeastern New Brunswick. I had to rise in the House of Commons and ask the Minister of Canadian Heritage to speak to CBC/Radio-Canada so that the closing ceremonies would be broadcast during the day. They changed the broadcasting schedule, but it was unfortunate that we had to get to that point.

Mr. Gauthier, should the CRTC get involved to ensure that someone somewhere broadcasts the Games to the 4% of the population who currently do not have access? At one point, people were saying that things were going well because 86% of the population would have access to the Games, and that very few people would not have access. That percentage is now 96%, and now very few people do not have access. We're at the end of the sausage, but we want that last little piece.

[Jacques Gauthier]

Last week, Mr. Jean-Pierre Raffarin made a comment that bears repeating. He told the committee that we were very critical on a number of issues, but that, in actual fact, we should focus more on the progress made and turn our attention to a shorter list of items.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

I agree with you, it's a very short list. All Canadians should be able to watch the Games in either language. It's a short list but we want it.

[Jacques Gauthier]

With regard to broadcasting, it is true that before we were saying 86% of the population would have access and today that number is much higher.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

You say it's a short list, I'm talking about 100%. We will not be satisfied until all Canadians can watch the Olympic Games in both official languages.

[Jacques Gauthier]

Mr. Frappier will tell you himself that we cannot force people to get television. If all you have are rabbit ears—

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

I'm not talking only about people who want to watch the Games. Let's not start talking about people who don't want to see them. This is a democratic country. If I don't want to watch the Games, that's my business. What I'm saying is that, in Canada, people who want to watch the Games are entitled to have access.

[Jacques Gauthier]

I understand what you are saying but—

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

Do you agree with me?

[Jacques Gauthier]

—I can't comment on that, I'm not—

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

Should the CRTC get involved?

[Jacques Gauthier]

I don't know, I'm not familiar enough with the issue.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

The CRTC is the one that is granting the licences.

[Jacques Gauthier]

I can't give you an answer.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

Have you tried to reach agreements with VIA Rail, Air Canada or Greyhound to transport the volunteers throughout the country? Travelling from Acadia to Vancouver is expensive. Perhaps some bilingual people would like to volunteer and help you out. Have you reached an agreement with VIA Rail so that they would add a few cars for this occasion? It wouldn't be a big deal for them.

[Francine Bolduc]

No agreement has been reached so far. I know that all the applicants, throughout the country, have already confirmed that they will make their own way to the Games and cover their lodgings during the event.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

We're talking about people who are willing to go, but you are short of staff. This is exactly what I'm talking about.

[Francine Bolduc]

To date, we have already received more than 11,000 applications. We think that's enough to staff all the positions that need to be filled.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

So you are telling us that there are no longer any problems with volunteers.

[Francine Bolduc]

In terms of numbers, there are no more problems. The next challenge will be ensuring that these people are placed in positions where they will be the most useful.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

You will also have to make sure that they are bilingual enough.

[Francine Bolduc]

Yes. We will ensure that there is a good level of bilingualism and that these people can communicate in both languages. That's our mandate.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Thank you, Mr. Godin. The clerk was just telling me that if she had a round-trip ticket to the Games, she would be interested in volunteering.

Before I give the floor to another colleague, I would like to tell you that I was struck by the part of your presentation when you said that you saw the 2010 Winter Olympic Games as a celebration of both Canada's linguistic duality and its cultural diversity. That's not what we sensed during the first event.

Mr. Matte, in your presentation, you said that even if you were something of a watchdog for us, ensuring that VANOC was doing a good job, you did not yet have access to information about the opening and closing ceremonies. So, you asked the following question:

Is there no way to maintain the confidentiality of the opening and closing ceremonies while demonstrating that they will be respectful of both official languages and our country's Olympic movement?

I would add to “be respectful of both official languages”, “and cultural diversity”. I wanted to ask this question, Mr. Gauthier, since we are lucky enough to have you here.

[Jacques Gauthier]

We ourselves do not have access to the content. It's odd to see just how much the International Olympic Committee is regulating this event.

For this reason, a committee of specially-designated people has been established. It includes the representative from Canadian Heritage, whose mandate is to ensure that the requirements in terms of La francophonie are met. We do not have access to the content, and myself, I do not want to have access to it.

Do you remember that, in Beijing, part of the opening ceremonies were cancelled at the last minute because some helicopters had flown over the stadium during a rehearsal, and the people on board had seen part of the show.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

That's really secret.

[Jacques Gauthier]

Indeed, that's just how secret it is.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Thank you.

We will now go on to Ms. Zarac.

[Lise Zarac, Liberal, LaSalle—Émard, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Good morning ma'am, good morning, gentlemen. Thank you for being here today to answer our questions.

As you can see, we are concerned, and we are wondering if linguistic duality will indeed be respected during the upcoming Olympic Games in Vancouver. It really doesn't matter where these concerns come from, as Mr. Galipeau was saying, this feeling may be due to the bitter taste that was left in our mouths after the festivities that were held at the beginning of the year.

As far as I am concerned, today I have a new concern, in addition to the ones I had already when you said, following your presentation, that the only power you had was to raise your partners' awareness.

Representatives of more than 30 French-speaking countries will be arriving in Vancouver. Even before they get to the Olympic site, signage will be a very important factor. So agreements will be to be established with the municipalities and the province about this.

If your only power is to raise awareness, how can you make sure that there will be bilingual signs everywhere in Vancouver? Do you have a strategy to raise awareness? What measures will you take to achieve that goal?

[Francine Bolduc]

We will be meeting with all our partners in the coming weeks, and we will present them with information so as to make them more aware of this issue and we will be offering them some tools.

For example, we have some freelance translators with whom we have negotiated good rates. When the people in charge of signage need translation, we will be able to put them in touch with these translators.

In addition, we have created a guide with all the signs that will be displayed at the various sites. We will provide this guide to these people. We have also made sure that we can offer them revision services. Once they use the freelances, they will be able to give us the completed work so that we can make sure that all the signage is consistent.

We are going further. We want to raise awareness but we also want to provide resources and tools. This way, they will not have any excuses. We made a commitment to do this.

[Lise Zarac, Liberal, LaSalle—Émard, QC]

But the resources that you are talking about are human resources. Are there not any financial resources?

[Francine Bolduc]

No, absolutely not.

[Lise Zarac, Liberal, LaSalle—Émard, QC]

In another life, I was a city counsellor. Let me tell you, signs are extremely expensive. We are currently in a recession. How can we make sure that Vancouver will cover the cost of bilingual signage?

[Francine Bolduc]

That's a very good question, but as far as we are concerned, we are making sure that all the Olympic signs will be in both languages. Our budget provides for that. In this case, there is no problem because we are already in the process of doing it—

[Lise Zarac, Liberal, LaSalle—Émard, QC]

At the venues, yes, but as I was saying, people will have to get to those sites as well. You mustn't forget that. That counts for something. Thirty French-speaking countries are sending athletes. They will have to get to the venues first and to do that, they will have to be able to read the signs. No financial resources will be allocated?

[Francine Bolduc]

No.

[Jacques Gauthier]

If you don't mind, I would like to provide some additional information. Traffic signs, for example, are already part of our commitment and are already included in our budget. Last week, Mr. Raffarin went to Whistler and he told me that it was incredible, because already, several months before the Games, all the roadsigns allow francophones to understand how to get to the venues. So that aspect has already been covered.

[Lise Zarac, Liberal, LaSalle—Émard, QC]

So there is funding for the municipality?

[Jacques Gauthier]

A part of the budget is already set aside for traffic signs and venue signage, among other things, because just as you were saying—

[Lise Zarac, Liberal, LaSalle—Émard, QC]

I understand that there is no problem with the venues.

[Jacques Gauthier]

There is no problem getting to the venues.

[Lise Zarac, Liberal, LaSalle—Émard, QC]

I just want to make sure that francophones who want to go to the various venues—citizens of more than 30 French-speaking countries will be coming to visit us—will be able to read the signs.

So a budget has been allocated to Vancouver for signage?

[Jacques Gauthier]

Yes.

[Lise Zarac, Liberal, LaSalle—Émard, QC]

That's not what Ms. Bolduc seemed to be telling me initially.

[Francine Bolduc]

We are responsible for the Olympic signs.

[Lise Zarac, Liberal, LaSalle—Émard, QC]

So people will be able to get to the venues. There will be signs in French.

[Francine Bolduc]

Absolutely.

[Jacques Gauthier]

Exactly.

[Lise Zarac, Liberal, LaSalle—Émard, QC]

I have a second question. Do I have time?

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

You have 30 seconds, Ms. Zarac.

[Lise Zarac, Liberal, LaSalle—Émard, QC]

When the Commissioner of Official Languages came and met with us, he mentioned some concerns about under-funding of translation services.

Do you believe that is so? If you do, will you be asking for additional funding?

[Jacques Gauthier]

It's already under way. We have already sent our requests, as I was saying to the Translation Bureau at Public Works Canada.

[Lise Zarac, Liberal, LaSalle—Émard, QC]

I see. So a request has been made, but you still have not received an answer?

[Jacques Gauthier]

It's an interactive process. We explain our needs in greater detail, and things are coming along nicely.

[Lise Zarac, Liberal, LaSalle—Émard, QC]

You are confident. Perfect, thank you.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Thank you, Ms. Zarac, you were within two seconds.

We will continue with Mr. Petit.

[Daniel Petit, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

I'd like to thank our guests, Mr. Gauthier, Mr. Matte and Ms. Bolduc, for being with us.

We have very little time, but I'm going to try to ask you a question. How many volunteers are there? Who is in charge of volunteers at VANOC? Could Mr. Gauthier answer this question? How many do you have? How many do you want overall, and how many bilingual volunteers?

[Francine Bolduc]

We have 25,000 volunteer positions to fill.

[Daniel Petit, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

Are they all bilingual?

[Francine Bolduc]

No, because there are many positions in different areas of activity. What I meant to say is that we have 11,000 bilingual applicants who have shown interest. As for recruitment, we are processing all these people's files to make sure that they are sufficiently bilingual, and that they have the ability to carry out the various tasks so that we can put them in the right positions.

[Daniel Petit, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

The problem that has also been raised, that we've noticed and that several people have mentioned, is that of housing the volunteers. People will be coming from across the country. Obviously, getting to Vancouver is not easy. You can get there, but afterwards you have to find accommodation because the Games last a while.

What have you planned for these people? Is there some kind of housing or rooms available or something similar to encourage them to work there during the Olympic Games?

[Francine Bolduc]

Many of the applicants hail from British Columbia. So, they have accommodations. At this point we are doing a recruitment drive. We went to Ottawa. We are in Montreal this week and we'll be visiting the Atlantic provinces next week, I believe.

Everyone who applied for a position at the Olympic Games, and whom we invite to our recruitment sessions, have all already stated they would be put up by people they know in British Columbia or in Vancouver. So it is not a problem.

[Daniel Petit, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

Based on what we know, Olympic venues are federal and not provincial sites. Is the signage you're referring to, to direct people, only on federal sites or also provincial land?

In my province, Bill 101 gives prevalence to French. I would image that, British Columbia, English comes first. Have you discussed the idea of bilingual signage on provincial sites with the Government of British Columbia?

[Francine Bolduc]

Olympic signage falls under our jurisdiction and all such signs will be bilingual. Signs telling people, for instance, that they are 30 km from a given location, are the Government of British Columbia's responsibility. These are two completely different things.

[Daniel Petit, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

There will be two venues, specifically for ski competitions. Some unilingual francophones will arrive at the airport, which is under federal jurisdiction. They will leave the airport and they will be carless. It may be their first time in Vancouver. I don't know if you've ever left Vancouver Airport, but it is not obvious. You arrive in the city and you have to get to a given venue.

Have you discussed having bilingual signage with provincial officials? Have you received a positive response or did they say they were looking at the issue?

[Francine Bolduc]

At the airport, which is the point of entry for the Games they are, a number of signs in both languages. We can assure you that all Olympic signs, at the airport or at points of entry directing spectators to the Olympic sites, will be in both languages. That is what I can confirm.

[Daniel Petit, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

Do I have any time left, Mr. Chairman?

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

You have 30 seconds, Mr. Petit.

[Daniel Petit, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

My question would be too long. Thank you.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Thank you.

Ms. Guay, would you like to continue and finish our round of questions?

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

It would be a pleasure, Mr. Chair.

When the Commissioner of Official Languages came to meet with us, he also shared his concerns with respect to the opening and closing ceremonies. I understand that, pursuant to the Olympic Charter, these shows must remain top secret. You therefore have absolutely no access to them, and I find that unfortunate, because these shows can be successes or flops.

There is a requirement for the opening ceremonies at the Olympic Games to be held in both official languages. Is that correct?

[Guy Matte]

Yes.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

Are you sure that will be the case? Our concerns are justified.

[Guy Matte]

I understand, you can ask that question.

[Jacques Gauthier]

We also hope it does turn out to be the case. Over the coming weeks, we will be meeting with the President of the IOC, specifically to share our expectations and our obligations in the area of bilingualism, as well as to raise his awareness of the importance of French being spoken.

[Guy Matte]

You cannot forget there are two parties. The celebrations fall under a VANOC and the part that the IOC is responsible for fall under Mr. Jacques Rogge. As a francophone, he too has the responsibility to speak French, at least I would hope so.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

We need to, however, make sure of this.

[Jacques Gauthier]

Yes.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

We know what has occurred in the past and are rightfully concerned about the future.

[Jacques Gauthier]

That is what we'll do.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

There are a number of committees which overlap, and that is worrisome to me. How do you communicate amongst yourselves? It must be rather difficult, because you have varying areas of responsibility. You cannot interact only once every two months.

[Jacques Gauthier]

As I mentioned earlier, all individuals involved in the francophonie or bilingualism—

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

You're showing us that, but we did not receive it.

[Jacques Gauthier]

No, but I will circulate it. You must remember that those particular organizations work directly with us on the committee.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

We would like a copy of the document so we too can understand how things work.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Ms. Guay, I would like to simply remind members that, normally, all documents must be tabled in both official languages. You may hand the document over to the clerk. We will have it translated and distributed to committee members in both official languages.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

It would help us understand how things work.

Do you have a committee responsible for handling disputes? If there were problems involving the official languages, is there somewhere people could file their complaint? Will it be quite obvious at the Olympics?

[Jacques Gauthier]

The Commissioner of Official Languages has already indicated to us that his office would serve as a point of contact to resolve the occasional problem and we will do the same.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

Very well. Thank you.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Thank you very much, Ms. Guay.

That actually completes our round of questions, because we need to discuss a motion after hearing from our witnesses. Allow me to thank them on your behalf and on mine.

Thank you for your presence here today. I thank you once again for having accepted our invitation on such short notice. You must have sensed the interest that committee members have in this wonderful opportunity to showcase Canada, specifically through the Olympics' opening and closing ceremonies. I thank you for having shed light this morning on a number of things through your responses and for having brought forward new information on, among other things, Robert Lepage, the francophone media, and your efforts. We urge you to continue your efforts and we'll be following the matter closely, without a doubt. Thank you very much.

We will be taking a few minutes' break to give our witnesses time to leave the room.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

We will now move to the motion introduced by Ms. Guay.

Ms. Guay, you may introduce your motion.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

This is a motion I prepared following our meeting with the Commissioner Official Languages.

Mr. Chair, you will recall that I had mentioned to you that our committee would probably appreciate having additional reports or even receiving letters when there are problems concerning the Olympic Games. The committee would like the Commissioner to report to us, but not just in September; we would like more frequent reports.

This is why I introduce this motion today. Because the motion deals with the subject at hand, 48 hours' notice is not required. It reads as follows:

That the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages send to the Official Languages Committee, a regular update to be provided, at minimum, every three months, on the status of the francization of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games as a whole, including the VANOC Advisory Committee on Official Languages, the broadcasting of the Games, and the compliance with the multi-party agreement clauses on official languages.

I'd like to inform you that my colleague Mr. Galipeau has asked for a small amendment, which he can speak to. I am in favour of this amendment if it is limited to what he mentioned to me.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

That is what we will see.

Mr. Galipeau, you are first on my list of speakers.

[Royal Galipeau, Conservative, Ottawa—Orléans, ON]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

First of all, I would like to extend my regards to our colleague Monique Guay.

I would like us to come to a consensus and maybe even pass this motion.

However, there is one word I would like to define, it is the word “francization” in the third line of the motion. Rather than use this word, I would like us to talk about respect for and the promotion of linguistic duality. I believe this is more inclusive and achieves the same goal.

Thank you.

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Honoré-Mercier, QC]

Yes, perfect.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

I fully agree.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

How would that motion read as amended?

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Honoré-Mercier, QC]

In English?

[Royal Galipeau, Conservative, Ottawa—Orléans, ON]

I will read it in French.

That the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages send to the Official Languages Committee, a regular update to be provided, at minimum, every three months, on the respect and promotion of the linguistic duality of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games as a whole, including the VANOC Advisory Committee on Official Languages, the broadcasting of the Games, and the compliance with the multi-party agreement clauses on official languages.

Rather than saying "the status of the francization", we would be saying "respect and promotion of the linguistic duality".

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Very well, that was the amendment.

Mr. Lemieux on the amendment.

[Pierre Lemieux, Conservative, Glengarry—Prescott—Russell, ON]

Yes, that is a good amendment from my colleague; thank you very much. I would also like to say that this is a good motion.

Members of this committee are working very hard here to ensure the Olympic Games are bilingual and an accurate reflection of our linguistic duality.

I strongly support this motion, because we need to maintain the momentum we have achieved thus far. We could try for a quarterly follow-up, although there is not much time left, unfortunately. Thankfully though, we can create a process, as set out in your motion. So, you have my support.

Thank you.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

Thank you.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Thank you.

Mr. Godin.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

This sounds like the Supreme Court, you've come a long way, my friend Pierre.

[Some members]

Oh oh!

[Pierre Lemieux, Conservative, Glengarry—Prescott—Russell, ON]

What?

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

I think we may have forgotten one point. I just want to start a discussion. I may present a subamendment if it is possible to do so.

I'd also like us to add a section on the Internet, the web. It seems as though we've forgotten about it, yet it has become important. We are discussing television and radio broadcasting, but the Internet has become extremely important. Young people walk around connected to the Internet. It doesn't take anything away, we haven't really—

[Daniel Petit, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

Multimedia?

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Where?

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Honoré-Mercier, QC]

On the various platforms.

[Daniel Petit, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

On line four.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

So: "...the broadcasting...".

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Honoré-Mercier, QC]

On the various broadcasting platforms—

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

We could say "and multimedia".

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Honoré-Mercier, QC]

If we say "the various platforms" it covers everything: the web, television, radio—

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Television is important. In my opinion television and radio—

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

Broadcasting—

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

—and multimedia.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

—and multimedia, that would cover—

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

—bilingual websites, etc.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

Multimedia covers everything.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

It covers everything.

I would say we can adopt a subamendment, without having a procedural issue. We have a motion, an amendment, and you are suggesting a subamendment.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

All right.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

If there are no further comments, I am prepared to call the question.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

I would like to hear what Mr. Rodriguez said. Sometimes, Pablo can be wise.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

What did you say Mr. Rodriguez?

[Pablo Rodriguez, Liberal, Honoré-Mercier, QC]

What I am saying is that when we are referring to broadcasting, we always use the terms "the various broadcasting platforms". Conservatives referred to that a great deal in the new Media Fund, to extend broadcasting to all platforms. So, the web is a platform—

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

I would like to see the word "television" included.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

Television, radio broadcasting and other means.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

And multimedia. I would support that suggestion.

[Jean-Claude D'Amours, Liberal, Madawaska—Restigouche, NB]

To say "various platforms" includes everything.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

I will reread the subamendment once.

[Royal Galipeau, Conservative, Ottawa—Orléans, ON]

Mr. Chairman I think we are having a small discussion on—

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

—on the subamendment.

[Royal Galipeau, Conservative, Ottawa—Orléans, ON]

—on linguistics, vocabulary, or terminology. Our colleague Mr. Petit has a suggestion which could be comprehensive if we were to use the word "multimedia".

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

No, what I have just said is—

[Daniel Petit, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

That's what we've just said.

[Royal Galipeau, Conservative, Ottawa—Orléans, ON]

All right.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

The subamendment would read "...the broadcasting and multimedia of the games, and the compliance...".

Any further comments?

We will now vote on the subamendment.

(Subamendment agreed to.)

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

If you are ready, we will now proceed to the vote on the amendment replacing "status of the frenchization" with "respect and promotion of the linguistic duality".

(Amendment agreed to.)

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Finally, we can vote on Ms. Guay's motion, as amended.

(Motion as amended agreed to.)

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

If there are no further comments, we will suspend the meeting. Mr. Godin?

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

I would like to say that the Association franco-ontarienne des conseils scolaires catholiques—I do not know if some of its representatives have spoken to you as well—would really like to meet with the committee to discuss federal funding granted to the provinces for education. Their representatives have been asking to meet with us for a number of months.

Could we, at this point, consider it? I could present the request as a motion, if needed, or we could perhaps agree to set aside one hour and put this meeting on our agenda.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

I would say that we can set the matter aside for now, and depending on how long it takes to complete our study on post-secondary institutions and adopt the report, we may have some meetings left over.

In fact, if you have witnesses to suggest on the various subjects, do so. There is, among other things, the subject Mr. Nadeau raised on the National Defence Official Languages Program Transformation Model.

Personally I'd like to recommend having Mr. Semianiw as a witness, his testimony would be relevant given that he is the armed forces specialist in the area.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

With respect to the AFOCSC, I will provide the clerk with the person's name and the organization's name.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Very well.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

I would appreciate that.

Thank you.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Perfect.

There is one last thing. Someone from UBC would like to come and meet with us pursuant to our study on post-secondary institutions, specifically to discuss multimedia. It would be a two-hour meeting with four witnesses. We could spend the first hour and a half hearing from the three witnesses who would actually physically be in the room, and hold a teleconference over the last half hour, with a ten-minute presentation and five-minute rounds for each political party, if that suits you.

[Jean-Claude D'Amours, Liberal, Madawaska—Restigouche, NB]

Mr. Chairman, I would just like to make a comment.

In other committees we have already held this type of meeting simultaneously. Each group made its presentation and the questions were put to the individuals concerned. Sometimes, more questions are put to some groups than to others, but there is very little time. So, if we have them all here for the two-hour stretch, we may ask questions of whomever we choose.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Very well.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

We can have them for a two-hour meeting, on multimedia, at the same time as the witnesses—

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Could you check?

In the case of Vancouver, there is a three-hour time difference. If it is 10:30 here what time would it be in Vancouver?

[An hon. member]

Seven-thirty.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

There are three witnesses, including Mr. Owen from UBC. Would you like to have him with the others?

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Rivière-du-Nord, QC]

I think so, yes.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

We could suggest it to him.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

We will do that then, and if that does not suit him he will have his own time slot.

Mr. Petit.

[Daniel Petit, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

Regarding the study on francization or linguistic duality in the Canadian Forces, a report was tabled by the ombudsman. Last time around, we were stymied precisely because we had no supporting documents.

I would like the researcher to get the report and all the textbooks given to military personnel in Borden studying trades. Members of the committee could then peruse them.

You probably know that Saint-Jean has reopened. I would like us to obtain all the documents distributed there to the non-commissioned officers for teaching French, so that we could have a complete overview of the issue. The last time we looked at the issue at Borden, we extended our study to include Saint-Jean. For Borden, the documents were not available.

Last time around, four members of the forces complained that they did not have access to French textbooks to learn their trades, specifically mechanics. It would be important to have these documents before we hear from witnesses.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

You cannot possibly mean... You mean all textbooks?

[Daniel Petit, Conservative, Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, QC]

That is what we will be discussing. Some francophone military personnel in Borden to learn a trade complained that, during their training, there were not enough textbooks in French.

The ombudsman at the time said the issue would be dealt with, one way or another. I think we have to base what we do on what he said last time he appeared before the committee. We have not met with him since, and it would be important to have all of that available, so that we may ask relevant questions. Otherwise the issue will not be clear to us.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Our analyst has taken note of your question. We will check with the armed forces. If there is anything at all, we will let you know.

Mr. Godin.

[Yvon Godin, NDP, Acadie—Bathurst, NB]

We had said we wanted to meet with the ombudsman.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Indeed. It was on the Official Languages Program Transformation Model at National Defence.

Thank you very much.

This meeting is adjourned.