Evidence of meeting #28 for Official Languages in the 41st Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was languages.
A recording is available from Parliament.
10:30 a.m.
Executive Director, Official Languages, Treasury Board Secretariat
We're obviously working every day.
10:30 a.m.
NDP
Yvon Godin NDP Acadie—Bathurst, NB
There is a new policy. It wasn't you who issued it; it was the government. You're here, you do your job, and you're paid.
10:30 a.m.
Executive Director, Official Languages, Treasury Board Secretariat
That's indeed what we do.
10:30 a.m.
NDP
Yvon Godin NDP Acadie—Bathurst, NB
Is something missing? It went from 50 persons to 11. There must have been something missing somewhere.
It's all well and good to have a Roadmap and to allocate millions of dollars to it—
10:30 a.m.
Executive Director, Official Languages, Treasury Board Secretariat
Mr. Chairman, I have been in my position for seven months. I am in the process of assessing the team's circumstances and planning for the future.
10:30 a.m.
NDP
Yvon Godin NDP Acadie—Bathurst, NB
We will ask Mr. MacLeod. For how many months have you been there?
10:30 a.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Governance Planning and Policy Sector, Treasury Board Secretariat
I have been here for nearly two years now. When I arrived, 11 persons were assigned to the Centre of Excellence. There has since been an increase of 10 persons.
10:30 a.m.
NDP
10:30 a.m.
Conservative
Jacques Gourde Conservative Lotbinière—Chutes-de-la-Chaudière, QC
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I'm going to take 30 seconds to ask you my question so as to leave each person a minute and a half to answer it. We like to work in a positive and constructive manner. This is an important study for the future of the Roadmap.
Would you have any recommendations to make or examples to cite to improve service delivery?
Thank you.
10:30 a.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Governance Planning and Policy Sector, Treasury Board Secretariat
As regards services, we would put the emphasis on horizontal advice to departments to assist them in discharging their responsibilities under the act.
We would like to be able to ensure that the departments have the opportunity to exercise their true responsibilities under the Official Languages Act to provide the best possible services for Canadians.
10:30 a.m.
Director, Research and Development, Canada School of Public Services
This is somewhat in the same vein as the comment made earlier. The idea for us would be to continue contributing to service improvement. We will see how matters go, but some tools are being offered under the pilot project. There is a horizontal contribution across the country in places where it might be more difficult to learn or practise the second language. This is a positive initiative that could continue to produce results, depending on funding conditions, to the extent that it would be among the government's priorities.
10:30 a.m.
Senior Assistant Deputy Minister, Strategic Policy and Research Branch, Department of Human Resources and Skills Development
Thanks for the question.
We actually need to learn from the four initiatives we're involved in now. We have to learn from our partners through the horizontal aspects of the road map, and then we have to continue to engage with the OLMC. We have to listen to the official language minority communities to ensure that what we're doing is consistent with what they need.
10:35 a.m.
Conservative
10:35 a.m.
Conservative
Jacques Gourde Conservative Lotbinière—Chutes-de-la-Chaudière, QC
I would simply like to make a brief comment. I want to thank you personally. Your comments were very interesting, and they will help us continue developing our study. I think we have worked constructively here, in a manner respectful of the witnesses, and we sincerely thank you. You have made a significant effort in contributing to this study.
Thank you.
10:35 a.m.
Conservative
10:35 a.m.
Liberal
Mauril Bélanger Liberal Ottawa—Vanier, ON
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Tremblay, Mr. MacLeod, I believe that 56 persons dealt with official languages at the Treasury Board in 2006. Is that correct?
10:35 a.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister, Governance Planning and Policy Sector, Treasury Board Secretariat
Yes.
10:35 a.m.
Liberal
Mauril Bélanger Liberal Ottawa—Vanier, ON
Could you give us some specific year-over-year figures reflecting developments since 2006?
10:35 a.m.
Executive Director, Official Languages, Treasury Board Secretariat
We could send you those figures, but there has essentially been a gradual decline due to the refocusing of programs, cancellations or the fact that projects terminated. When funding disappeared, the figures changed.
10:35 a.m.
Liberal
Mauril Bélanger Liberal Ottawa—Vanier, ON
It isn't necessary for that to go into September, is it? Can you get those figures quite quickly?
10:35 a.m.
Liberal
Mauril Bélanger Liberal Ottawa—Vanier, ON
Can you tell us which of the duties you performed in 2006 you no longer have today?
10:35 a.m.
Executive Director, Official Languages, Treasury Board Secretariat
They mainly involve individual advice to institutions. We had portfolio specialists. The model was somewhat similar to what we have already heard, that is to say that the official languages officer in a department phoned the centres of excellence to get an answer to all his questions. He was not required to think a lot about what his questions implied. His automatic reaction was to telephone.
10:35 a.m.
Liberal
