Official Languages Committee on Oct. 22nd, 2009

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

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Good morning, commissioner, Ms. Tremblay and Ms. Charlebois.

You said that some $7.5 million had been set aside for translation. That announcement was made in the newspapers. Is that money being well used? Do the people of Vancouver feel they now have the resources to do this, or is this simply an amount of money that has been announced? It is possible to make an announcement and then make it so that, afterwards, the money doesn't follow. There is a difference. I hope this isn't a program where you have to wait until May to receive money or that will require a cheque from an MP bearing a government letterhead.

Was that announcement made a number of weeks ago? In concrete terms, what can be done with that $7.5 million?

[Graham Fraser]

To state specifically how that $7.7 million is allocated, I will say that $5.3 million is provided for translation. If I understand the method correctly, cheques have not been sent to people for them to spend as they wish. An agreement was reached with the Translation Bureau to ensure that the translation is done. I can tell you that the Translation Bureau has an international reputation for quality.

There were some fears that VANOC might want to hire students or proceed without requiring the necessary level of professionalism. The committee asked me a number of questions on the discussions with the Translation Bureau. I was pleased to learn that they were underway.

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

They are underway, but has an agreement been signed?

[Graham Fraser]

I don't know. On the other hand, I know that the Translation Bureau is trying to find a way to have documents translated remotely. To arrive at these figures, there were very detailed talks during the summer to establish the timing for the arrival of documents such as the biographies of all the athletes, for example. In some cases, those documents won't arrive before December 31 because the teams of the various countries are selected at the end of the year. The number of documents is therefore considerable. I was very pleased to learn that the process was being established.

Funding is also provided for permanent signage which, as Mr. Nadeau said, will be a permanent legacy. Yesterday I was told that the engineers were preparing the drawings for the Richmond Oval and other signs. A discussion is also being held today with the mayor of Whistler and the mayor of Vancouver concerning signage on municipal land.

That's more delicate, and that's why I put the emphasis on the spirit of cooperation in my report. Technically, in the act, this is a municipal jurisdiction. So there's no obligation. It takes a spirit of cooperation to succeed.

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

In fact, these discussions should have been held before the Games were awarded to Vancouver. If they aren't prepared to abide by all these rules, they shouldn't have been awarded the Games.

Apart from the Olympic Games, does Vancouver Airport receive more than a million people a year?

[Graham Fraser]

Absolutely.

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

So that means the act is being violated and not only in the context of the Olympic Games.

[Graham Fraser]

It's a permanent and constant problem.

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

Commissioner, —

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Thank you, Mr. Godin. We can come back to that. Your time is already up.

Now we'll move on to Ms. O'Neill-Gordon.

[Tilly O'Neill-Gordon, Conservative, Miramichi, NB]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Welcome to all.

As you mentioned, the federal government announced $7.7 million in additional funding. That would be for such things as translation and interpretation services at the 2010 games, realizing that VANOC would not be able to fulfill all the requirements without this. This amount was intensely negotiated with VANOC. It wasn't just a spontaneous decision based on the publication of your report.

Are you happy with the amount announced?

[Graham Fraser]

I was very pleased by the announcement, and we are continuing to follow as closely as possible the steps that are being followed to make sure that this is not just an announcement but that there is follow-through and the money is spent in the areas for which it has been designated.

This whole exercise in which you've all been involved, in many ways as much as we have, is one to make sure that we get it right, that the games are a success in terms of Canada's face, the way in which we greet the world. Rather than simply arriving afterwards with a clipboard and listing the mistakes that have been made, this whole exercise, which started two years ago, really, has all been designed to focus on the results in terms of what happens in February and March.

I was pleased by the announcement and I am following very closely what is actually done.

[Tilly O'Neill-Gordon, Conservative, Miramichi, NB]

We too, of course, want to see that it is a big success, and to be proud of Canada.

Do you think the government made a wise decision by dealing directly with the Translation Bureau?

[Graham Fraser]

Yes, I do.

[Tilly O'Neill-Gordon, Conservative, Miramichi, NB]

Are you satisfied that French will have equal dimension and status for the signage?

[Graham Fraser]

Again, one of the challenges in terms of signage is that the Olympic experience doesn't just happen on the Olympic site. It happens when the traveller goes through airports, gets on planes, takes taxis, deals with provincial organizations, goes past municipal areas, and finally, at the end of the day, arrives on the Olympic site itself, but having gone through a whole series of visual and oral experiences. So I was pleased with the changes that VANOC made to its signage.

The federal government itself has been pretty consistent on signs. There is a challenge in terms of ensuring that other levels of government that don't have language obligations respond to the spirit of the games and the spirit of hosting an international event.

It's going slightly broader than simply the question of physical signs. You have the issue of the Internet, where, with one click of a finger, you move from a federal site to a provincial site to a municipal site, without necessarily being aware that you've shifted jurisdiction with one click. So it's a challenge, extending the spirit of the act beyond the jurisdictions where the act formally applies.

[Tilly O'Neill-Gordon, Conservative, Miramichi, NB]

Yes, I realize that too. I also know that the government was upset as well when they saw that the signage was not going to be the same as the English.

How is my time?

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

You have about 20 seconds.

[Tilly O'Neill-Gordon, Conservative, Miramichi, NB]

I just have one more question.

In your opinion, should the Privy Council Office intervene to ensure that services are available in both French and English; and if yes, why?

[Graham Fraser]

In terms of the games, I think the Privy Council has a role of supervising activities of government as a whole. In the past, I have commented on and reflected on some of the problems; that the specific coordinating responsibility for official languages was transferred from Official Languages to Canadian Heritage. But I think that's a much more complex issue than dealing just with the Olympics.

If you want, we can refer you to some of the studies we've done on that governance issue.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. O'Neill-Gordon.

Now we'll continue with Mr. Trudeau.

Welcome to the committee, Mr. Trudeau.

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Papineau, QC]

Thank you very much.

It's a pleasure to be here today to see what is going on and it's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Fraser.

For some time now, we've seen in the news that, as a result of the economic situation, there is less budget. The Olympic Games won't be as grand. Has that affected the balance or the presence of French on the ground or in the budget?

[Graham Fraser]

At the outset, it had an impact on the planning and priorities, I believe. Two years ago, there was a kind of enthusiasm among organizers, which has since declined a little under the impact of the loss of sponsors, the economic problems. It was more a question of priorities. For example, when there was a housing crisis, that was a major concern for organizers, for understandable reasons.

I think that may reflect the cracks in the organization that we identified in our first report. That may explain the need that was met by the government announcement.

[Justin Trudeau, Liberal, Papineau, QC]

One of the things we talk about a lot in this committee, and we hear from you a lot, is how important it is to present a bilingual country to the world. The identity of Canada is wrapped up in its two official languages and it's something we absolutely need to showcase properly for the greatness of this country and its perception in the world.

When you're out there in Vancouver—I spent five years as a French teacher in Vancouver, so I'm aware of the difficulties with the French language in Vancouver—is it perceived as a hassle by people that they have to provide French, that they have to deliver in French? Have we managed to communicate the larger vision and the opportunity it represents, or are people just seeing it as a responsibility, something they have to go through even though they sort of roll their eyes about it?

[Graham Fraser]

I've actually been pleasantly surprised on that front. I think from the outset VANOC took the view that they would surpass any technical obligations. They saw this as something that they would be very proud of, but I don't think they realized just what an organizational challenge it would be. And then when the financial crisis hit and there were other problems, they began to realize that some of their budgeting predictions had not been sufficient.

If you look at the degree to which parents in British Columbia are desirous of having their children in French immersion, if you see the degree to which the Chinese community is seeking French language training and availability, my sense is that in British Columbia.... There is, of course, a realization that you can live a very successful life in British Columbia without learning French, but there's also a realization that if you want to play on the national stage, it's a critical asset.

So I think there is that sense that British Columbians who want to play beyond the provincial boundaries at a national level realize how important bilingualism is.