Evidence of meeting #119 for Official Languages in the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was brunswick.
A recording is available from Parliament.
9:35 a.m.
Outgoing Chair, Conseil scolaire francophone de la Colombie-Britannique
I just want to tell you that we met the Commissioner of Official Languages and suggested a change to the act. We could send it to you.
9:35 a.m.
Outgoing Chair, Conseil scolaire francophone de la Colombie-Britannique
It could help you.
9:35 a.m.
Executive Director, Fédération culturelle canadienne-française
I'd like to add a comment on the first part of your question concerning the spirit of part VII, spirit in the sense of "development" and "reinforcing the communities". This is why the FCCF is advancing the idea of a preamble that would set the tone for the act as a whole and that would really be consistent with the idea of developing the communities and reinforcing their identity.
Here's an example. I did a little exercise. I searched the act, and certain words don't appear in it. They're the words "culture", "art", "pride", "community", "fundamental" and "Canadian values". This is why we're saying that the tone should be set for this act so it's truly structural for our communities and the representation of the Canadian identity we want to adopt. I think the spirit of part VII could serve as an inspiration for the tone to be set for the act as a whole.
9:40 a.m.
Conservative
9:40 a.m.
NDP
François Choquette NDP Drummond, QC
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I'd like to go back to the census idea. It's extremely important to enumerate rights-holders. I think everyone has said something about this. As far as I can remember, this is the first time I've heard about the wish to add a section concerning the census to the Official Languages Act.
I think it's far from being a bad idea, but I'd like to know what it would add, since it's already in the charter. What would be added by including it in the Official Languages Act?
I'd like to hear from the two school board representatives on that subject.
9:40 a.m.
School Counsellor, Southern Vancouver Island, Conseil scolaire francophone de la Colombie-Britannique
It would add a dimension of duration to the act. The method used to conduct the enumeration and who should be enumerated wouldn't change with the party in power. By adding it directly to the act, provided it's properly worded, we would ensure that all classes of rights-holders would be indefinitely enumerated. That would only help us as francophone communities.
9:40 a.m.
Chair, Conseil des écoles fransaskoises
While we agree on the idea of updating the act, making it more dynamic, modernizing it and bringing it into step with the times, I think it would be easier to include this in the Official Languages Act than to reopen the Constitution. The latter solution would indeed be more difficult. Here's an example. In Saskatchewan, some 40 new schools have been opened across the province. Believe me, they all look like five-star hotels. They're beautiful, but not one of them is intended for francophones. That's sad and unfortunate. However, everything is based on the potential return on investments associated with the construction of a school. As I've already said, I'm not here to criticize anyone, just to help bring about changes.
I'm sorry...
9:40 a.m.
Chair, Conseil des écoles fransaskoises
I just wanted to say that you, as the federal government, already have to establish conditions for the transfers. We see that some of them, in health, for example, no longer go through the provinces and are forwarded directly to the institutions. Those examples are already out there, and I think you would do well to draw on them.
9:40 a.m.
Conservative
The Vice-Chair Conservative Alupa Clarke
Ms. Lapierre, I wanted to tell you not to worry. You've all submitted briefs, but, if information spontaneously comes to mind, you can probably pass it on to us during subsequent turns. Otherwise you can email the committee's analyst or the clerk. We receive these messages all the time.
Now I turn the floor over to Mr. Samson.
You have six minutes, sir.
9:40 a.m.
Liberal
Darrell Samson Liberal Sackville—Preston—Chezzetcook, NS
Thank you very much.
Thanks to the witnesses for their presentations.
We've clearly chosen good witness panels for this morning's meeting. You live on the ground, you see the act's strengths and weaknesses, and you're comfortable telling us about them. We can't ask for anything more.
The key word that comes to my mind is "consultation". It appears there was no consultation at any level, which is disturbing. So we'll have to resolve the consultation issue.
In addition, another thing is bothering me in everything we've heard, and that's the transfer of responsibility from the federal government. Whether it's health, where transfers are made directly, education, employability or early childhood, the federal government doesn't ensure that the final product is the one that was expected, whereas it should do so under subsection 41(2) of the Official Languages Act. That's serious.
Like you educators, I'm very familiar with this file. I think we'll have to explore this part in much greater depth. There were no minority school boards when the charter was drafted. It was in the 1990s that the Supreme Court determined that an official language minority community had a right to education and to control and manage its educational institutions. However, you completely control their management. You control programming, but you don't have control over enumeration, properties or funding. So we're facing major problems in that regard.
The new regulations on French-language services will be helpful because they apply where there are French-language schools. We're talking about 600 additional offices. Arts and culture are extremely important in that they define us. I would like each of you to comment on the language clause that implies there is a language-related responsibility. I'd like to know how you think transfers could be structured so that the organization that provides a service for the federal government has the same responsibility. We didn't have that with Air Canada.
Please go ahead. Each of you can answer in turn.
9:45 a.m.
Chair, Conseil des écoles fransaskoises
All right.
I'll start by evoking the subsidiarity principle. The government closest to the people is in the best position to meet their needs. I think it all boils down to that.
We are consulting ourselves on the future OLEP. As chair of the school board, I declare that I haven't yet been contacted by my government, despite several follow-up letters to the minister requesting a meeting.
9:45 a.m.
Liberal
Darrell Samson Liberal Sackville—Preston—Chezzetcook, NS
Thank you.
We'll move on to the next person since time is limited.
9:45 a.m.
President, Fédération culturelle canadienne-française
I'm going to answer by raising two points.
First, we're obviously in complete agreement on the "by and for", but we're taking it further and making it "by, for and with". We don't want the government to just send us money for projects and then tell us they aren't what it wanted. If we start working together more, in a much more comprehensive way, by and for the community and with the governments and the various stakeholders, we'll have a far better chance of producing a result that's satisfactory for everyone.
Second, to respond to your comment, Mr. Samson, I would say that, yes, arts and culture are important, but we must not forget areas of activity where arts and culture are important. If culture is a community's identity, that identity automatically changes when new people arrive. So that includes immigration. Culture in education is important—I know you know that—but culture can also be a way to integrate newcomers. Culture also has a role to play in health.
I think arts, culture and cultural industries must be acknowledged as an important element, at least in the preamble to the act.
9:45 a.m.
Liberal
9:45 a.m.
Executive Director, Société de l'Acadie du Nouveau-Brunswick
You have to start by respecting the levels of government we've created. We've created a federal government, provincial governments, municipalities and school boards.
When you create a level of government with resources and responsibilities entrenched in laws, you have to abide by those laws. In the case of school boards, there are charters that carry a significant legal weight in the country, and you have to start by complying with them.
As for the francophone communities, the only organizations that have the same administrative discipline as governments are the school boards, their auditors general and all that. You have to use them.
9:50 a.m.
Liberal
9:50 a.m.
Outgoing Chair, Conseil scolaire francophone de la Colombie-Britannique
I just want to confirm what was just said. When money is provided to purchase a product, there has to be a product, but that's not the case at the moment. There's no consultation or accountability. There was a choice of six courses in English for high school students but only one for francophones. The school boards therefore told the Ministry of Education that that made no sense and that they couldn't offer a choice of six courses in English and only one in French. Four courses are now offered in French, but that's because we took action to get them.
9:50 a.m.
Conservative
The Vice-Chair Conservative Alupa Clarke
Thank you very much.
Now I turn the floor over to Ms. Fortier, and then we'll take a five-minute break. It will be Mr. Généreux's turn when we come back.
Ms. Fortier, please go ahead.