Official Languages Committee on Nov. 1st, 2018

[Mélanie Joly]

Thank you very much.

As you said, when we held consultations on official languages in 22 cities across the country, we really heard the heartfelt pleas from community media, including community radio. We saw the extent to which hearing one's own particular voice on the radio helps to build local and regional pride. It generates their feeling of being a proud francophone or a proud anglophone, even though they live every day in the language of the minority.

I was really touched by the issue and I wanted to work with my colleagues to make sure that it was recognized. To support community media, we have developed a strategy with funding of $14.5 million that includes two programs.

First, $4.5 million goes to Young Canada Works, so that young Canadians can work in community media and become the next generation of journalists, which is so important for our democracy and our communities.

Then, we wanted community media to operate “by and for communities”, and independently, of course. So we worked with the Association de la presse francophone, the Association des radiodiffuseurs communautaires du Québec and the English-language Arts Network, ELAN, the anglophone organization that has created a consortium of community media in Quebec. Working with those organizations, we are going to allocate $10 million to special projects that will really respond to community media requests. That is how we are going to support them.

This official languages initiative is added to those that I announced as Minister of Canadian Heritage, including $50 million to support local media all across the country. In his mandate letter, my colleague, the Minister of Canadian Heritage and Multiculturalism, received a strong mandate to support the country’s media.

[The Chair, Liberal, Denis Paradis]

Thank you very much.

We move immediately to Mr. Rioux.

[Jean Rioux, Saint-Jean, Lib.]

Good morning, Madam Minister.

You know that I am from Saint-Jean, a military town.

[Mélanie Joly]

Yes.

[Jean Rioux]

Each year, the base takes in 5,000 recruits who come to immerse themselves in a francophone environment. We also have the Collège militaire royal de Saint-Jean. For me, that was the main reason why I went into politics. People wanted university education back and our government announced it last year. The first officers are already at the college.

What is the impact of the College militaire royal de Saint-Jean on bilingualism in Canada?

[Mélanie Joly]

One of the first announcements we made, in fact, was to bring back university education to the College militaire royal de Saint-Jean. University education was provided in Kingston, mostly in English, but it was not provided in French at the military college in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec. It had a direct impact on the advancement possibilities for members of the Canadian Armed Forces.

We were able to see the first university cohort enter last September. Let me take this opportunity to congratulate you, Mr. Rioux, for all your fine work on this file. Finally, members of the military will be able to take university education in French. That will help us not only in ensuring a better presence of French in the Canadian forces, but also, internationally, to have troops going into French-speaking conflict zones.

When the previous secretary general of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie went to the UN Security Council, she noted that half the conflicts where the blue helmets are present are occurring in French-speaking locations. For us, it is important to have senior officers who can speak French and command armed forces in French.

[The Chair, Liberal, Denis Paradis]

Thank you very much.

It is now Mrs. Boucher's turn. She will be sharing her time with Mr. Clarke.

[Sylvie Boucher, Conservative, Beauport—Côte-de-Beaupré—Île d’Orléans—Charlevoix, QC]

Mr. Chair, yes, I will be sharing my time with Mr. Clarke, because I have just come from a major trip to Africa and I am a little tired.

I am sorry, Ms. Joly, but you are going to bear the brunt of that.

[Mélanie Joly]

I am ready.

[Sylvie Boucher, Conservative, Beauport—Côte-de-Beaupré—Île d’Orléans—Charlevoix, QC]

Ms. Joly, I am very happy that you have joined us today, but I am going to correct certain statements you have made.

I was elected in 2006 and I have been fighting for official languages ever since. So I am asking for an apology to the Conservatives here who fight for the official languages on a daily basis, just as much as your Liberal colleagues and our New Democrat colleague.

You said earlier that the Conservatives did not give a darn about official languages. That is false, Madam Minister, and I want an apology now. I have been fighting like everyone else since 2006. Our committee is not political. We are fighting for the same rights, the rights of minorities all across the country.

If you have not had questions from Mr. Blaney, it is perhaps because we do not get proper answers from you, Ms. Joly. I will not stand for you saying such things, while the people around this table are fighting with your colleagues to achieve the same goal.

That is all I have to say to you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Denis Paradis]

Over to you, Madam Minister.

[Mélanie Joly]

I understand my colleague's point of view, but the Conservatives have nothing to teach me about official languages.

You must know that, during the 10 years they were in power, they slashed more than $675 million from CBC. That had a direct effect on the vitality of minority language communities.

They also abolished the court challenges program, which is critical for the advancement of language rights in the country. The court challenges program is cut every time a Conservative government gets into power.

In addition, we know that the Conservatives eliminated the long-form census, which is critical for the understanding of language rights and the reality of language communities in the country. When no information is forthcoming from Statistics Canada, the government, Liberal or Conservative, does not have the data it needs to properly respond to the needs of our communities.

I understand my colleague’s comments and I respect her commitment. However, in reality, the facts speak for themselves. In official languages issues, we are investing $2.7 billion. We have modernized the regulations to Part IV of the Official Languages Act. We are going to modernize the act itself.

So I have no lessons to learn from my colleague.

[The Chair, Liberal, Denis Paradis]

Mr. Clarke, the floor is yours.

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

In a number of places in Canada, Canada Post uses Shoppers Drug Mart as a subcontractor. Where I live in Beauport, it happens to be a Familiprix.

A number of places where Canada Post subcontracts its services to Shoppers Drug Mart are in locations with the 5% of the population needed to get bilingual services. But, clearly, the employees at Shoppers Drug Mart, a subcontractor, often do not have the ability to provide bilingual services in those specific locations.

What do you think about that? Do you not see it as a problem? I have received a number of emails on the matter saying that we should make sure that, when Canada Post uses subcontractors, provision is made for bilingualism.

I think it’s something that warrants examination.

[Mélanie Joly]

I know that my colleague Carla Qualtrough is currently working on the Canada Post issue.

There were a lot of cuts to Canada Post under the Conservative government, and we wanted to make sure that home delivery was maintained and that better services are provided for Canadians in all regions.

I recognize that modernizing the Official Languages Act is important for all members of the committee. We can certainly discuss Canada Post being able to provide bilingual services everywhere in the country and having an active offer.

Personally, as Minister of Official Languages, I would be perfectly fine with that.

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

Perhaps it would be good to write to the subcontractor to tell them about the problem.

In addition, how do you explain the fact that the court challenges program has been inactive for eight months? No requests have been accepted. There is a lot of unrest in the communities about this. How is it that the program has not been working for eight months?

[Mélanie Joly]

I do not want to add insult to injury, but we first had to re-establish the court challenges program, because the Conservatives had abolished it

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

It is not working.

[Mélanie Joly]

We have agreed on a contract with the University of Ottawa. They have developed a centre of excellence and have started hiring people. We have a committee that has conducted all the interviews.

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

All the requests have been rejected, have they not?

[Mélanie Joly]

I will be making the appointments very quickly and then cases will finally be able to be heard through the court challenges program. Our government knows that it is important.

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

When I was appointed spokesman for official languages a year and a half ago, you provided me with the opportunity and the privilege to go to your department. I did not meet with a deputy minister there, but with one of the directors, and I no longer remember his name.

[Mélanie Joly]

It may have been Hubert Lussier, who unfortunately has retired.

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

Yes, he was very well placed.

[Mélanie Joly]

We all liked him.