Official Languages Committee on Nov. 1st, 2018

[The Chair, Liberal, Denis Paradis]

I think it's important that someone take care of the international Francophonie. In terms of funding, Canada is the second largest contributor in the world, after France. Then there are countries such as Switzerland and Belgium, in particular, which contribute less. We have an important role to play, through the OIF, in the Americas and around the world in promoting the Francophonie.

[Mélanie Joly]

Yes.

[The Chair, Liberal, Denis Paradis]

In your opinion, could the draft of the new legislation mention that Canada will indeed continue to play this role, that is, to promote the international Francophonie?

[Mélanie Joly]

First of all, I think Canada has an important role to play in the international Francophonie. You are absolutely right and, as minister responsible for the international Francophonie, I thank you for your work.

At the last congress of the Organisation internationale de la francophonie (OIF), we were able to demonstrate how our government can play a leadership role on this issue. We talked about the importance of protecting the French fact on the Internet. We are currently working with France and various countries to come up with concrete solutions to protect the French fact on the Internet.

In his speech to the OIF, President Macron recognized Canada's leadership in this area. That's good news.

On your more specific question, I think it would be worth having that conversation. There has rarely been a link between the international Francophonie and the Canadian Francophonie in our legislation. However, from one government to the next, Canada has always recognized the importance of promoting the international Francophonie. I think it would be worth having that conversation. I see it in a very positive light.

Let us remember that OIF is the second largest organization in terms of membership after the United Nations. In this sense, it is a very credible organization that we want to continue strengthening because, as a country and as a government, we have said that we want to strengthen our multilateral organizations and Canada's presence in the world. We are part of the international Francophonie and the Commonwealth, the two great networks that distinguish us as a country.

[The Chair, Liberal, Denis Paradis]

Minister, thank you very much for your presentation and for answering our questions.

[Mélanie Joly]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, everyone.

[The Chair, Liberal, Denis Paradis]

We'll suspend for a few minutes and then continue with the people accompanying you for the second hour.

[The Chair, Liberal, Denis Paradis]

Please take your seats.

We'll continue our meeting until 10:30 a.m. Then we will suspend the meeting again to sit in camera to discuss the work of the committee for about 10 minutes.

We are now pleased to welcome Yvan Déry, France Fortier and Denis Racine.

Welcome to the second part of the study on the Action Plan for Official Languages 2018-2023: Investing in our Future.

We have about half an hour with you, so we'll start right away.

Mr. Clarke, you have the floor.

[Alupa Clarke, Conservative, Beauport—Limoilou, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

In the renewed mandate letter that the minister received this summer, we are still pleased to note that the Prime Minister requires her to begin an examination towards modernizing the act. However, the mandate letter does not say whether this will happen this year, next year or after the next election.

Could you, who work on this every day in the department, tell us what is happening right now? Could you tell this committee whether the examination has begun? Is the department currently working on launching, undertaking, starting this examination, in short, moving towards modernizing the Official Languages Act?

[Denis Racine, Director General, Official Languages Branch, Department of Canadian Heritage]

Yes, the department is getting down to work on it.

It is actually a complex process that takes some time. We are currently weighing the different options on how to do this. Of course, the minister will have to decide which route she wants to take.

[Alupa Clarke, Conservative, Beauport—Limoilou, QC]

So you talk to each other about it?

[Denis Racine]

There is of course the whole legislative process, but well before that, it may be necessary to hold consultations on certain fundamentally different, but complementary, parts of this complex legislation. Some parts are directly aimed at the public, while others are much more directed at the machinery of government.

Those different amendments may require parallel activities, but they will have to be combined at some point. We need to assess what we can do in the coming months and year and determine how far the minister can go within the current mandate. Then we will determine the next steps and establish a critical path. That is what we are studying.

[Alupa Clarke, Conservative, Beauport—Limoilou, QC]

Let me interrupt you, Mr. Racine.

Let's assume that the government has good intentions and does want to modernize the act. Based on your understanding of the time and the steps required to do so, have we reached the eleventh hour? From an objective, bureaucratic and rational point of view, do you think it is possible to modernize the act before the next election?

I'm sure it's difficult to answer that question. Are we going to modernize the entire act or just parts of it? Assuming that we make significant enough changes to the act to modernize it from top to bottom, which is what the OLMCs want, will it be possible to do so by the next election or is it too late to do so?

[Denis Racine]

We can certainly start the exercise very soon. However, it is too ambitious to believe that we can introduce a new bill before the next election. There are steps to be taken between now and then that will take some time.

However, the exercise can get under way quickly.

[Alupa Clarke, Conservative, Beauport—Limoilou, QC]

I'm sure.

You must be following the work of the Standing Senate Committee on Official Languages, which has just published a preliminary report.

As mandarins who know the official languages well, what advice can you give us? What do you think we should be looking at here at the Standing Committee on Official Languages, since we have about six or seven months left? We had thought about studying the granting of enforcement powers to the commissioner, or the positive measures mentioned in part VII of the Official Languages Act. What do you propose that we do? If you were in our shoes, what would you do? What would you focus on in particular, especially in light of the comprehensive study being conducted in the Senate?

By the way, my question is for all of you.

[Denis Racine]

I may not be in a position to advise you.

[Alupa Clarke, Conservative, Beauport—Limoilou, QC]

You are in a very good position.

[Denis Racine]

However, various exercises are under way, and it would be ideal if they could be completed. As you said, the Senate committee is conducting an extensive in-depth study. The commissioner conducted an online consultation. In both cases, some aspects may not have been discussed enough.

[Alupa Clarke, Conservative, Beauport—Limoilou, QC]

In your opinion, what aspects have so far not been studied by the Senate and the commissioner?

[Denis Racine]

The act has various aspects. For example, it is undeniable that part VII is being extensively discussed everywhere. However, the act also deals with concepts such as linguistic duality that should be further studied. There may be other aspects of the act that would be worth exploring.

[Alupa Clarke, Conservative, Beauport—Limoilou, QC]

In the wake of the worrisome decision in Fédération des francophones de la Colombie-Britannique v. Employment and Social Development Canada, were there any directives from the Department of Canadian Heritage or from senior officials of the Minister of Tourism, Official Languages and La Francophonie on how to apply the act in the future?

The commissioner himself told us that, for all intents and purposes and to his great dismay, he was no longer receiving complaints related to part VII of the act, if I am not mistaken. Is that right, Mr. Choquette?

I am addressing Mr. Choquette because he is well versed in this area.

As for you, in your respective departments, have you had to take any administrative actions to that end?

[Denis Racine]

The Department of Canadian Heritage has a very specific role, which is to promote part VII of the act and coordinate its implementation by supporting federal institutions.

Within the federal public service, there are various governance mechanisms and networks, including the official languages champions and those responsible for part VII. Tools have been developed, and we continue to do so every day, as we did before the decision. Promoting part VII and supporting its implementation in the federal public service continues as before. The Official Languages Branch of the Department of Canadian Heritage will always continue to do so.

[The Chair, Liberal, Denis Paradis]

Thank you very much.

Mr. Samson will now be sharing his time with Mrs. Fortier.

[Darrell Samson, Liberal, Sackville—Preston—Chezzetcook, NS]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

I therefore refrain from any preamble.

First of all, thank you for being here.

Mrs. Fortier, it has been a while.

I know Mr. Déry very well, but this is the first or second time I have met Mr. Racine, I believe.

You play a very important role in the official languages file and the ensuing work. I have comments on three topics.

The first is research, an issue that always concerns me when it comes to minorities, because if we don't have the necessary data, we can't justify our arguments. Earlier, I mentioned the “by” and “for” francophones. When it comes to tourism, I don’t want to hear that we are going to do this for tourism first and then do that for francophones. I would like planning to be integrated. I'm just putting the idea out there for you.

Finally, the minister has just announced changes to the official languages regulations to confirm that more bilingual services would be available across the country, particularly at airports and stations in provincial capitals. As an example, I would like to mention Halifax airport, which, for five or six years, has had a reputation for being the worst in terms of French-language services. How will you do that? How will you ensure that you can honour that commitment?

[Yvan Déry, Senior Director, Policy and Research, Official Languages Branch, Department of Canadian Heritage]

We discussed research before the committee resumed its meeting. The need for research is very real, and different organizations are funded to do the research. However, the programs of the Department of Canadian Heritage were not designed to fund research in the communities. But the organizations to which we provide core funding can use it to pay for research contracts.

In the past, we have used an endowment fund to create the Canadian Institute for Research on Linguistic Minorities, based in Moncton. This was not done as part of our programs, since it was a separate decision by the government. In summary, we financially support the circulation of research to a degree, but not research as such.

You mentioned my title as a policy and research officer. When we need to do research for our programs or for the government, our approach is to award research contracts, such as to Statistics Canada or to our in-house researchers. However, this mechanism cannot fund the activities of institutes that conduct research for communities. That is the current situation, and I am aware that this may be a challenge or a shortcoming.