Evidence of meeting #20 for Official Languages in the 40th Parliament, 3rd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was immigrants.
A recording is available from Parliament.
NDP
Yvon Godin NDP Acadie—Bathurst, NB
The myth is that the government is embarrassed about bilingualism.
Executive Director, Fédération acadienne de la Nouvelle-Écosse
Yes, I am embarrassed to say yes.
NDP
Yvon Godin NDP Acadie—Bathurst, NB
Two weeks ago, Minister Moore stated openly, over the airwaves, that the bill providing for bilingual Supreme Court justices was dividing Canada.
Executive Director, Fédération acadienne de la Nouvelle-Écosse
Yes, I read that.
Executive Director, Fédération acadienne de la Nouvelle-Écosse
No, on the contrary, it is uniting Canada. Linguistic duality in Canada means that the two communities can be strong. They can work together and develop. I think that is healthy for a society. I really don't think that linguistic duality is dividing Canada.
NDP
Yvon Godin NDP Acadie—Bathurst, NB
Mr. Duncan, do you believe that language unites people or divides people?
Executive Head, Metropolis Project, Department of Citizenship and Immigration
I think this is an extraordinarily complex question. Researchers who have been looking at not just the francophone minorities in Canada but also at other linguistic minorities in Canada, especially now that some of them are growing so large, for example, the Chinese and Indian enclaves in Toronto--
NDP
Yvon Godin NDP Acadie—Bathurst, NB
I understand that, but we have two peoples who have built this country, though, right?
Executive Head, Metropolis Project, Department of Citizenship and Immigration
Yes. My point was simply going to be that you're seeing tensions in both ways and trends in both ways: that the bilingualism is working, even in those communities, as both a force of separation and a force of unification. I think what researchers are finding is that it depends on how the communities themselves decide how they want to take advantage of the plurality of language in their city.
So it seems to me that most researchers would argue that if a community decides it is an advantage to be linguistically diverse, this is something they can take to their advantage. Toronto is an example of a city that has taken diversity--
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Steven Blaney
Thank you, Mr. Godin. That was even more than what we are allowed.
Monsieur Généreux.
Conservative
Bernard Généreux Conservative Montmagny—L'Islet—Kamouraska—Rivière-du-Loup, QC
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I would simply like to clarify one thing. The Minister of Canadian Heritage did not say that bilingualism was dividing Canada; rather, he said that your bill, Mr. Godin, was dividing Canada. There is a very big difference.
Even though I missed their presentation, I have some questions for the witnesses representing the Metropolis Project. In March, Metropolis held a national conference on immigration and a pre-conference session on the specificities of Francophone immigration in Canada, which was intended to be a stock-taking exercise and an opportunity to determine exactly what the current situation is.
In fact, I would like to commend you for organizing it. This format allowed for extensive exchanges of views between stakeholders from different communities. We have already had some feedback. It was appreciated. Part of the pre-conference session took the form of a forum involving pre-determined questions, including this one: what policy and program changes would improve the community's ability to engage in partnerships which meet the ever-evolving needs of users, who are increasingly diversified? What is the role of non-government organizations when it comes to attracting, integrating and retaining French-speaking newcomers to Canada?
I would like to know what came of the forum, particularly with respect to that issue, and whether other important points were raised on that occasion. Perhaps you could tell us about that.
Deputy Executive Head, Metropolis Project, Department of Citizenship and Immigration
Mr. Chairman, I would just like to refer to the Montreal report, that we would be very pleased to share with the committee. If you would like to have it, I should tell you that it is a report which includes a summary of all the comments that were made, including those in relation to the questions you just asked.
In terms of the role of the community, we noted, based on studies carried out by researchers associated with the Metropolis Project, that the community plays a critical role in integrating and, especially, retaining immigrants. Once immigrants have been economically integrated into the community, they must feel welcomed by members of that community. That is where community organizations play a very important role. That day, we also concluded that municipalities can play a greater role, and that they often do not have enough information, are not properly trained or prepared, and do not have access to enough resources to handle the arrival of French-speaking immigrants.
Conservative
Bernard Généreux Conservative Montmagny—L'Islet—Kamouraska—Rivière-du-Loup, QC
If you don't mind, Mr. Chairman, I would just like to point out that I was the Mayor of a city in my riding in the Kamouraska region. The neighbouring town had welcomed 30 or more Colombian families to work in a hog slaughterhouse. These immigrants included doctors and lawyers. For them, that job was a way of coming to Canada.
Earlier, you talked about recognizing credentials. However, it is important to understand that, when people do not speak a word of French and only speak Spanish, there must be minimal integration into the community. In our case, they had a lot of trouble, despite that fact that they had jobs. They had a lot of trouble with even minimal integration into the community. Two years later, they all left. They decided not to stay, despite all the efforts made by the municipality.
I understand that municipalities should be very much involved in facilitating immigrant integration. When we talk about the communities, we are basically talking about local communities that can play a very significant role. I believe strongly in that; there is no doubt that this is important.
I would like to come back to the forum. There were quite a few people in attendance. Since we have been examining this issue in committee, I have noted two very important things. In terms of integration, we are really talking about employability, meaning that immigrants have to have access to potential jobs and be properly received by the community. These are two extremely important pillars, as well as education—in other words, training people when they arrive in the chosen community.
These two very important issues—education and employability—came through in our committee hearings. Did these two issues turn out to be as important at your last conference?
Deputy Executive Head, Metropolis Project, Department of Citizenship and Immigration
That was especially the case in terms of the research. At the pre-conference sessions, economic integration was identified as a critical component. Our researchers also regularly made the same point. It was also noted that, in order to find a job in a minority community, English is often a requirement. As well, it was mentioned that language acquisition services should be provided by Francophone community organizations. That would afford an opportunity to learn English—albeit, through a Francophone community organization, which could also give rise to new connections with the Francophone community.
Moreover, when parents realize that economic integration is difficult, they often decide that it would be more beneficial for their children to speak English. At that point, they register them in an English-language school, and that is when they become assimilated into the majority Anglophone community. That's why it is important to encourage them to register their children at French schools.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Steven Blaney
Thank you, Mr. Généreux.
We now start our second round, with Mr. Bélanger.
Liberal
Mauril Bélanger Liberal Ottawa—Vanier, ON
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Léger, I would like to welcome you to the committee. First of all, I want to extend my sincere thanks for the clarifications—let's describe them that way—that you provided with respect to the efforts made by the provincial government in Nova Scotia, and particularly, the lack of services in French or the non-availability of such services. That may not have been the impression that we were given when we met with certain individuals. So, I appreciate those clarifications, because they will be helpful in preparing our report.
I also note a desire that you expressed earlier. You said that you would like to see the government refugee initiative—which has been tested in Manitoba—extended to other areas. I do hope this will be featured in our report and our recommendations. That remains to be seen.
I would like to ask a question about targets. I discussed this in particular with the representative of the Nova Scotian government or agency. I wanted to know whether, like myself, you would like there to be a target. If so, is it your intention to approach government officials to discuss this?