Official Languages Committee on May 11th, 2010

[Richard Nadeau, Bloc, Gatineau, QC]

Meaning that they are for anglophones who want to learn French. I was saying earlier that children can go to French school anywhere in Nova Scotia, inasmuch as immersion schools or Acadian schools are considered the same thing.

[Joëlle Désy]

There are wholly francophone schools in all the Acadian regions of Nova Scotia. Students can go to them. Transportation is provided too.

[Richard Nadeau, Bloc, Gatineau, QC]

So they are all over the province.

[Joëlle Désy]

There are 19 Acadian schools.

[Richard Nadeau, Bloc, Gatineau, QC]

So there are 19 schools in Nova Scotia for a population of about a million people?

[Joëlle Désy]

Nova Scotia has just under a million people. Not all of them are francophone.

[Richard Nadeau, Bloc, Gatineau, QC]

I am a little skeptical about all this because I am from Saskatchewan myself where we have a similar situation. I worked long and hard to get French schools and, for a population of about a million people, we have around ten schools. In some parts of Saskatchewan, it is not true that there is automatically an FFL, French-first-language, school as opposed to a French-second-language school. I know that Nova Scotia is smaller.

[Joëlle Désy]

That is the aspect I wanted to bring up.

[Richard Nadeau, Bloc, Gatineau, QC]

But the fact remains that, if you start off in Yarmouth to go to school in Dartmouth, that is quite a hike.

[Joëlle Désy]

But there are francophone schools—

[Richard Nadeau, Bloc, Gatineau, QC]

I am going to stop there, but it is still something to consider if you want to attract people. It is one of the main factors. In Saskatchewan, they wanted to bring students to the French school in Saskatoon. For example, when Atomic Energy of Canada employees moved to Saskatchewan, their first question was about where the French school was located. There was one in Saskatoon, but it was the only one. If they moved somewhere else, like Yorkton, there wasn't one.

The situations are different and I am not going to take it any further. But what you are saying is interesting.

At another session on immigration and French-speaking Canada, we were told that the Citizenship and Immigration Canada—Francophone Minority Communities Steering Committee was supposed to meet yesterday. Did you have representatives at that meeting in Manitoba? In terms of the future, what came out of it?

You know that our committee is going to table a report and that it could include what we say here. So maybe we can give you a hand to get things moving forward.

[Joëlle Désy]

Nova Scotia is a new member. We have been part of the Citizenship and Immigration Canada—Francophone Minority Communities Steering Committee since 2009. Yesterday, there were statistical presentations by Citizenship and Immigration and by Metropolis. They adopted three priorities for the 2010-2011 year.

[Richard Nadeau, Bloc, Gatineau, QC]

What are the three priorities? Can you tell us what they are? Perhaps Mr. Lemoine is more up to speed.

Go ahead, Ms. Désy.

[Joëlle Désy]

Okay.

The priorities are: to strengthen provincial and territorial immigration networks; to support the economic integration of French-speaking immigrants into francophone minority communities, as well as promotion and recruitment. They were adopted.

[Richard Nadeau, Bloc, Gatineau, QC]

But Nova Scotia is still the original Acadie. Today, in fact, we know that the deportation started in Nova Scotia. I am a bit surprised to learn that this jewel of Acadie... Nova Scotia is just starting to deal with the francophone side of immigration, immigrants it wants to attract. Did things happen beforehand or are you really starting from scratch?

[Joëlle Désy]

When the Office of Immigration was established in 2005, the Acadian community came to us immediately. It was part of our initial strategy. So we are not starting today. The Office of Immigration has been working closely with the French-speaking and Acadian community since 2005. It provides it with funding for francophone immigration matters.

[Richard Nadeau, Bloc, Gatineau, QC]

The France-Acadie scholarships have been of great benefit to education. Are they just in New Brunswick or can Nova Scotians also apply?

[Joëlle Désy]

They have them in Nova Scotia as well, at the Université Sainte-Anne.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Thank you, Mr. Nadeau.

That ends our third round. Do you want a fourth round? If not, Ms. Glover and Mr. Bélanger have asked to speak.

Okay.

Ms. Glover.

[Shelly Glover, Conservative, Saint Boniface, MB]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Welcome, everyone. I am going to speak in English to make things quicker. I actually have several comments to make.

Premièrement, we spoke, Mr. Rempel, about some of the things that are available not only Manitoba, but in St. Boniface, and I'm wanting to know if you are familiar with the René Deleurme Centre in St. Boniface.

No? I don't mean to put you on the spot. It's because it's in the education department, so I would say to some of my colleagues, although you are giving us a wonderful presentation on the immigration portions, there are some other things happening within education that address many of the needs of our communities, our francophone communities who come to our wonderful province.

René Deleurme Centre is actually in Lavallee School. It is very much there to address the situations like Mr. Bélanger mentioned with the Congolese community. The René Deleurme Centre accepts immigrants and refugees. They're brought to the centre, where an evaluation is actually done, an assessment of what grade level they may be at, because many refugees of course have interrupted education. They assess the family needs as well, because counselling is something that many of these families require.

It takes generally about three to four weeks for these families to be assessed, for the children to be assessed, and then for them to be placed in an appropriate school, in appropriate counselling services, etc., to allow them to integrate properly. I'm very proud that the Government of Manitoba also funds this kind of a centre, but it is through education. So the Congolese community is very much engaged in that. I would suggest that we invite the René Deleurme Centre here to be heard on that issue.

With regard to education as well, we have a summer program that the Congolese community takes advantage of. It's in a school, so that they can catch up to the grade that their chronological age is set at. Through the Canada summer jobs program, they've been able to actually access some funding--and so then helped last year--and some people to help them with that.

Of course, with French language services, you talked about Collège universitaire de Saint-Boniface, but many French language courses are offered through organizations like Pluri-elles. So it's not the only service in the province. It's just the one you're familiar with because you're involved in the immigration area, but Pluri-elles, SFM, got $112,00 last year specifically for refugees so that they can integrate better. There are a number of things that are involved.

I did want to make a comment as well on the census, because what Mr. Weston mentioned is so imperative for us to understand while we're doing this very topic. Because I am not counted in the census, yet I'm completely bilingual. Many of our families who are born in Manitoba, who are considered Franco-Manitoban families, are not counted in the census as being French. Many of our families speak both languages in their homes. That is how they are working. Yet there is no category, there is no definition for them, when they complete their census. So we've lost a whole sector of francophones because they don't meet the definitions.

So we have been talking previously about adjusting the definition that the census uses so we don't lose those numbers. Therefore, assimilation is not, again, the only criteria we should be looking at, because there are families like mine who actually elevate the numbers. The immersion students elevate the numbers of people who would like to have French services. I would like to be counted. I would like my children to be counted, and I think they ought to be counted, so that French services are looked at more broadly rather than just looking at whether your mother tongue or your second official language is French.

So I would ask you, what are your thoughts on a change in definition to count those people who are not counted but deserve the benefit of being counted?

[Ben Rempel]

Not being the department that in many ways would be called upon to increase the funding to those services, which would inevitably flow from that, I'd say that I'd support it very much. I think we need, minimally, a more accurate representation of our community size and extent on the ground. I think it would, as you said, tell a much better story.

My daughters both went through immersion schools and are fully bilingual. I suspect that when they have children it will be the same thing. There are elements of growth and expansion in the francophone community that are not captured in some of these data sources. I would love to see the kinds of improvements you've talked about.

[Shelly Glover, Conservative, Saint Boniface, MB]

Thank you.

Ms. Mills.

[Elizabeth Mills]

I agree that we really do need more accurate information in order to do better planning. To set a target, you really need to know what is the reality here and what is achievable. So I totally agree and I think that it's very difficult when you're relying on statistics information only.

[Shelly Glover, Conservative, Saint Boniface, MB]

Very good.

I think that in St. Boniface that is part of why we are so successful. It's because we embrace not only the French mother tongue Franco-Manitobans, but we embrace and have, I guess, a linguistic harmony with those people who want to be a part of French culture. And we want to be counted.

We do want to be counted, because we want to help to continue this success story, which is a wonderful story. I am so proud today to hear again about how Manitoba has moved forward. Gary Filmon is actually in the building today. He is going to be testifying, and he was the Premier of Manitoba when le juge Chartier put forward his initial plan to provide these services. I'm very proud today.

[The Chair, Conservative, Steven Blaney]

Thank you, Ms. Glover, for this enthusiastic comment.

We've taken down your suggestion to have the René Deleurme Centre people here. We'll discuss it at our next steering committee.

Now, Mr. Bélanger, I think you want to add something.