Evidence of meeting #38 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 research.

A recording is available from Parliament.

On the agenda

MPs speaking

Also speaking

David Graham  Provost and Vice-President, Academic Affairs, Concordia University
Lorraine O'Donnell  Coordinator-Researcher, Quebec English-Speaking Communities Research Network (QUESCREN), Concordia University
Heather Stronach  Executive Director, Regional Association of West Quebecers
John Buck  Executive Director, Community Economic Development and Employability Corporation
Françoise Enguehard  President, Société nationale de l'Acadie
Noel Gates  President, Regional Association of West Quebecers
Grant Myers  Provincial Economic Development Officer, Community Economic Development and Employability Corporation
Éric Mathieu Doucet  Executive Director, Société nationale de l'Acadie

10:30 a.m.

NDP

Pierre Jacob NDP Brome—Missisquoi, QC

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

My first question goes to Ms. Enguehard and Mr. Doucet, from the Société nationale de l'Acadie.

Is your organization feeling the effects of the recent budget cuts at Radio-Canada or elsewhere? Are you concerned by those cuts?

10:35 a.m.

President, Société nationale de l'Acadie

Françoise Enguehard

Yes, we are concerned by the Radio-Canada budget cuts because the corporation has an important community mandate to broadcast in regions where it is not economically viable. That is true in Acadia and in the four Atlantic provinces. There are also a lot of cuts in local production. It all concerns us a lot.

The reduction in staff in various departments is also clearly a concern for us in terms of delivering services and programs. Here is something I can tell you at the moment. It is about a situation that we at the Société nationale de l'Acadie have already experienced. Some cuts, for example, were made a long time ago and had very serious repercussions. That was the case when the open democracy program at the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade was abolished and all our work at international level was put into jeopardy. So it is a situation that we have often experienced.

10:35 a.m.

NDP

Pierre Jacob NDP Brome—Missisquoi, QC

Thank you.

Do you want to add anything, Mr. Doucet?

10:35 a.m.

Executive Director, Société nationale de l'Acadie

Éric Mathieu Doucet

No. I think that Ms. Enguehard covered it well.

10:35 a.m.

NDP

Pierre Jacob NDP Brome—Missisquoi, QC

My second question goes to Mr. Graham and Ms. O'Donnell, from Concordia University.

I thank all the witnesses who have come to provide us with their comments. But I have to point out that the first university I went to was Sir George Williams, in Montreal, now known as Concordia. After that, I made the rounds of all the universities in greater Montreal.

I represent the riding of Brome—Missisquoi, in the Eastern Townships, where the anglophone community is very active, I must say. I also want to stress that it lives in harmony with the francophone community. The two communities share the same values: protecting the environment, respecting our architectural heritage, volunteering at the BMP hospital in Cowansville, arts and culture. The first library dates from 1893; perhaps you know it—the Pettes Memorial Library in Knowlton. It is an architectural jewel, but it is also a source of cultural vitality, both for the anglophone and francophone communities. Still in Knowlton, a small village, you can find a campus of Bishop's University that specializes in the arts. They have the Tour des arts, they have community radio, and so on. They are very committed people, you can see.

Could you tell me if Concordia University, or any other anglophone university, is doing any studies on that extraordinary community? In particular, are they identifying needs? Earlier, you mentioned myths. Have you found any? You talked about poverty and wealth. What have you come across in your research on that community?

I took part in a seminar in my constituency in Brome—Missisquoi. It was about what could be done to keep the young people in the area. They go away to study at places like McGill, Concordia, Champlain College, John Abbott College, Macdonald College and so on. But how can we make sure that they come home again so that the people there can benefit from what they have learned? Have your researchers looked at that question?

10:35 a.m.

Provost and Vice-President, Academic Affairs, Concordia University

David Graham

Sir, with your permission, I would like to say a few words before we move to Ms. O'Donnell.

Let me first say that I very much appreciate your question. John Graham, my first Canadian ancestor, was from Scotland. He settled in the Eastern Townships more than 200 years ago. So our roots go deep. From what I know about them, the students at Concordia and young anglophones in Quebec—and I go back to something Ms. O'Donnell said—are anything but unilingual. They are as bilingual as they come. The great majority of them know French as well as they know English. Talking about an anglophone minority does not represent our current reality, and far from it.

Ms. O'Donnell probably has things to add about the other part of your question.

10:40 a.m.

Coordinator-Researcher, Quebec English-Speaking Communities Research Network (QUESCREN), Concordia University

Dr. Lorraine O'Donnell

I work closely with a number of researchers from Bishop's University, specifically with those in the Eastern Townships Resource Centre. They are doing a lot of research into topics specific to the Eastern Townships. I could mention a Townshippers' Association project. That is a case where there are myths. There is an image of a deeply-rooted English-speaking community, if I can put it that way. But you also find immigrants and people coming from elsewhere. The Townshippers' Association welcomes those migrants and helps them become integrated into the majority. I know that Michèle Vatz Laaroussi, from the University of Sherbrooke, is doing research into that program.

10:40 a.m.

Conservative

The Chair Conservative Michael Chong

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Jacob.

Mr. Gourde, the floor is yours.

10:40 a.m.

Conservative

Jacques Gourde Conservative Lotbinière—Chutes-de-la-Chaudière, QC

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

My question is for John Buck, from CEDEC.

Has your organization had the opportunity to work with the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec on various projects?

10:40 a.m.

Executive Director, Community Economic Development and Employability Corporation

John Buck

Thank you for the question, Mr. Gourde.

I will reply in English because the notes I have with me are in English and they contain the details.

If we look at the regions, as you're well aware, and particularly in your area, for example, Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions operates in such a way that they make decisions about investments in a very local way, so respond very directly to the different needs. With an organization with that presence throughout the province, we have the privilege of being able to deal with many of the offices associated with Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions. In fact, in the briefing notes that we'll share with you, we've probably done about $1.67 million worth of business with Canada Economic Development over the past year or so.

One of the largest initiatives that we've undertaken is the CEDEC small business support network, which is actually a multi-region initiative with a presence in all parts of the province, working to enhance vitality, in particular working on the area of small and medium enterprise creation and expansion of those businesses. That's probably been the largest area of direct work that we've pursued with Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions.

10:40 a.m.

Conservative

Jacques Gourde Conservative Lotbinière—Chutes-de-la-Chaudière, QC

The Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec has about 14 points of service in different regions. In which regions do you mainly conduct your activities?

10:40 a.m.

Executive Director, Community Economic Development and Employability Corporation

John Buck

When we look at our precise area, we have nine office locations, predominantly in areas where we would see a significant pocket of English speakers, so of course in some of the major urban areas, like Montreal, like Sherbrooke, like Quebec City. Of course, some of the ones that are perhaps a little less evident would be in areas like Blanc-Sablon, in the lower north shore, or perhaps Shawville, for example, in the Outaouais is a good example of this. We are very much in touch with where we would see the English-speaking communities. In fact, if we do a comparison of our different points of service with where the 990,000 English speakers are located, we are able to be within relatively close proximity to virtually 100% of the linguistic minority communities.

10:40 a.m.

Conservative

Jacques Gourde Conservative Lotbinière—Chutes-de-la-Chaudière, QC

Does your organization pay particular attention to developing an entrepreneurial spirit in the younger generation? In Quebec, with both anglophones and francophones, that entrepreneurial spirit is weaker than in the rest of Canada. We have to make particularly sure to develop that spirit in our young people who want to enter the business world.

10:40 a.m.

Executive Director, Community Economic Development and Employability Corporation

John Buck

I'm very pleased that you asked that question because I think so frequently the notion of entrepreneurship gets immediately tagged to small business owners or business creation. In fact, one of our principles, one of our values, is to talk about entrepreneurial culture and those entrepreneurial attitudes that will enable communities ultimately to be sustainable and to thrive. One thing we do, for example, with young people across the province is we support something called National Entrepreneurship Day. We do that in partnership with various CLDs throughout the province, with the Province of Quebec—largely with the Province of Quebec in fact for that particular initiative. That's something that is part of National Entrepreneurship Week, which happens across Canada.

So there's a large effort to introduce these notions of entrepreneurial culture at an early stage and then support it throughout one's life, including for mature workers, where we do a tremendous amount of work in the area of entrepreneurial development as well.

10:45 a.m.

Conservative

The Chair Conservative Michael Chong

Thank you very much, Mr. Buck and Monsieur Gourde.

Thank you to all of our witnesses for appearing and for your testimony today. It's been helpful. Thank you very much.

Without further adieu, this meeting is adjourned.