Official Languages Committee on April 10th, 2014

[Jean-Pierre Gauthier]

It will be a pleasure to send you the report, which is quite substantial and comprehensive.

With respect to the markets and marketing area of intervention in the integrated action plan, efforts are being made to promote project development, particularly under the EDI, which is provided for under the roadmap. The report also suggests that entrepreneurship should be promoted. Several Employment and Social Development Canada programs are designed precisely to support development of business skills and the labour market. That includes entrepreneurial skills.

There is work to be done on the areas of the integrated action plan. The plan does not just call for government involvement. It also calls on the communities and the business community, which must organize its own situation. One of the factors we felt was important when we spoke at the forum was the development of an approach to encourage community empowerment. That is somewhat the responsibility of the private sector, which must state its priorities and needs in cooperation with the local communities.

There is a need for dialogue, which must always be improved to ensure that the community takes action on its own. We indicated on several occasions during the discussions that we were very open to that. I am thinking once again of the intergovernmental working group, which can receive suggestions, projects and specific proposals and subsequently present them to the various authorities in order to advance the plan. Dialogue and discussion have taken place. We hope that more actual results can be achieved.

We talked about creating a directory of business people to promote networking in the Canadian Francophonie. I know that at least two groups are working on ideas for that purpose. We are talking to them so that we can follow up. We will be able to consider those ideas at a later date once the projects have been developed and presented. Together with our federal government colleagues, we will be able to see who is in the best position to support them.

We are already addressing various aspects through some initiatives by our department. Others must be conceived, and the community must take some of the initiative.

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

Thank you.

I would like to hear what a representative of the Department of Employment and Social Development has to say about this initiative. How do you complement each other?

[Stephen Johnson]

Representatives from RDÉE Canada and CEDEC previously mentioned that they were working together to develop a plan. They discussed how the plan might harmonize with the other strategy. As far as I know, it is very consistent, particularly in the entrepreneurship and employability areas.

Rather than establish the overall objectives of a strategy, the idea is to be more precise and to define the activities specific to each community. That will result in a more specific action plan that can be put in place.

I see it all as very consistent, but every community has to be made to understand what that means for it.

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

Thank you.

My next question is for Mr. Gilbert.

The program to promote French immigration to Canada is working well. What makes the French come and settle in our great country?

[Rénald Gilbert]

There are many reasons. Unfortunately for France, its economy is not doing very well. Its unemployment rate is very high, particularly among young people. Many people are very well educated and, in many instances, have good work experience, but they have a history of contract work and do not have permanent jobs. They are looking at other opportunities elsewhere, in Europe, first of all, I have to admit.

However, there is enormous interest in Canada. People are regularly interviewed, and newspapers regularly publish articles that cast Canada in a very positive light.

First, we try to take maximum advantage of that to make people understand that not all francophones live in Montreal, in Quebec. Of course, Montreal is often the first focal point. Second, we tell them that it is possible to succeed as a francophone elsewhere in Canada, outside Quebec.

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

How do you promote Canada's major regions? Apart from the big cities, many jobs are available in all regions of the provinces. How do you tell the French to go and discover Canada and the opportunities it affords?

[Rénald Gilbert]

We organize regular training sessions. We hold 80 to 100 information sessions a year at the Canadian Cultural Centre. We have started organizing webinars, not just for the French, but for all francophones who want to register.

We attend job fairs during the year and give talks at those events. Every November, we organize an entire week called Destination Canada. Canadian employers from various provinces come to them. In recent years, representatives from seven or eight provinces and one territory have attended together with employers to offer opportunities to young French, Belgians, Swiss and others wanting to settle in Canada. We do not target just France. There is a Destination Canada website where people can find information.

We receive many information requests and direct people to the opportunities available in Canada. The embassy in Paris receives an average of 1,000 information requests a week. We are not the only ones. Many things are being done to promote French Canada in France, but also elsewhere in Europe and francophone Africa.

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

Do you have any statistics on the retention of these young people? Do they stay in Canada or do 50% of them return to France?

[Rénald Gilbert]

That is very hard to say. I would doubt very much that it is 50%. Since there are no exit controls in Canada, we do not know how many of these young people return to France after the fact.

We do know that the French community in Canada is growing. Every year we see an increase in the number of immigrants, temporary workers and students. However, I regularly meet people who have lived in Canada for 5, 10 or 30 years and who have returned to France to take care of their parents or something like that.

We do not know what percentage of French return to France, but I think it must be quite small given that economic conditions in France currently offer few opportunities.

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

Are families trying this or is it only single individuals?

[Rénald Gilbert]

In general, young families try it. Young people often go to Canada as through programs such as International Experience Canada. Under an agreement we have with France, 14,000 French youth can enter Canada with a work permit and stay for a limited period of time, from 12 to 18 months, depending on the kind of sub-program under which they have applied. In many of these cases, these young people acquire experience in Canada, come back to France and return to Canada a few years later, in some instances with their spouses and children.

[The Chair, Conservative, Michael Chong]

Thank you, Mr. Gilbert and Mr. Gourde.

Ms. St-Denis, you have the floor.

[Lise St-Denis, Liberal, Saint-Maurice—Champlain, QC]

My question is for Ms. Gareau and Mr. Johnson.

Mr. Gauthier talked about empowerment, what you call "social finance" in your documents, which means capital mobilization. You described that as the mobilization of private capital to guarantee a social dividend in order to empower the communities.

There are not a lot of francophones in the western provinces. They represent 1%, 2% or 3% of the population. It is 2% in Alberta.

Are anglophone communities investing in francophone projects? Do they agree to invest or do they want to have nothing to do with them? What do you do if francophone communities cannot find financing? Have you planned to help them?

The projects are great, but what is the reality?

[Stephen Johnson]

Social innovation comes in several forms. It is quite new, not only in Canada, but around the world as well.

Our department is moving forward quite slowly in this field. For example, we are conducting pilot projects in an attempt to do a better job of solving the problems. In many cases, these are problems for which the conventional mechanisms do not work. As far as I know, we are not proposing to replace all our programs with social financing. I wanted to clarify that point.

However, one or two principles of the enabling fund work well and reflect certain social financing principles, particularly the concept of partnership involving the private sector, not-for-profit organizations and various levels of government. In a way, it all boils down to agreeing that governments do not always have all the solutions. This is a collaborative effort. It is already being done.

Leverage is another important aspect of social financing. The idea is to find other financing sources and solutions through those partnerships.

[Lise St-Denis, Liberal, Saint-Maurice—Champlain, QC]

Are you talking about francophone communities? Generally speaking, this is a great principle that should be applied everywhere, but is it also effective for francophone communities? Are partnerships being established or are francophones ultimately unable to find money? You have to admit that the francophone communities in those provinces are often poor.

[Stephen Johnson]

I am going to give you a general answer. My colleague Ms. Gareau may perhaps add some details.

In fact, it varies from one community to the next. In the context of the enabling fund and of the support fund that preceded it, we have observed for at least the past 10 years that all communities are able to find other financing sources. They may be other federal departments or agencies, the provincial or local government or the private sector. I should point out that there has been little private sector funding to date. We also want to focus more on that and encourage employers to participate more. After all, they are the ones that have jobs to offer. So it is very important to continue encouraging them.

There have nevertheless been successes virtually everywhere.

On average or overall, they leverage $2 for every $1. Everywhere people are doing this leveraging. It is different in each community, but it has been possible for all communities.

[Lise St-Denis, Liberal, Saint-Maurice—Champlain, QC]

This week Radio-Canada broadcast a program on which people complained that they were absolutely unable to obtain French-language medical services. One case in particular involved a mother with an autistic son. I think that was in British Columbia.

Does the government intend to find solutions to this kind of problem through your organization?

I think Mr. Gauthier should answer the question since it concerns a language matter.

[Jean-Pierre Gauthier]

We are very much aware that one of the primary concerns of minority communities is obtaining services in their own language. In health, that means services offered by the provinces. We therefore encourage them very strongly to develop an offer of service in French. We establish agreements with them and we encourage them, with a little funding, to design plans to expand the scope of their French-language services. The fact remains that it is up to the provinces to make their choices and to set their priorities.

[Lise St-Denis, Liberal, Saint-Maurice—Champlain, QC]

The Official Languages Act provides that we must offer services where numbers—

[Jean-Pierre Gauthier]

The federal government must provide those services.

[Lise St-Denis, Liberal, Saint-Maurice—Champlain, QC]

That is correct.

[Jean-Pierre Gauthier]

However, we are talking about provincial government services here. Strictly speaking, the Official Languages Act does not compel the provinces to provide these services in French. The approach is one of encouragement. A provision in the Official Languages Act calls for Canadian Heritage to encourage the provinces to do so. That is where our agreements come in.

Furthermore, Health Canada has established programs under which the government is trying to train more French-language health professionals in the minority communities. It is trying to involve the members of those communities, the francophone minority communities, whose professional health qualifications are in French.

We hope to see the offer of service improve, but that will depend first on the province.

[Lise St-Denis, Liberal, Saint-Maurice—Champlain, QC]

Everyone knows that francophones in New Brunswick and Quebec are going to Alberta, for example, to work. Are you involved in establishing francophone structures in those new communities?

[Jean-Pierre Gauthier]

Yes, it is a bit like what I was saying about services.

We strongly support the provinces in the area of schools so they can offer service where they have a constitutional obligation to do so. We support that directly. That may include the construction or renovation of schools, the purchase of equipment and teacher training. We do a lot of work with the provinces in this field because education is, of course, a provincial jurisdiction. We help them and that becomes part of the community infrastructure. The communities often present education as the starting point for community infrastructure.

[Lise St-Denis, Liberal, Saint-Maurice—Champlain, QC]

Are there any recurring programs for the remote communities, the ones that are in greater difficulty? For a community that is not very well developed or is having trouble taking charge of its situation or living in French, for example, are there any recurring programs for community groups or do they have to hope they can obtain a grant each time, from one year to the next? Is there a recurring programs principle?