Thank you, Mr. Chair. I want to inform you right off the bat that I'll be sharing my speaking time with my colleague from Beauport—Limoilou.
Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for welcoming me to your committee.
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to your House of Commons. Thank you very much for the quality of your documentation. I'm just passing through today, but it's a profitable passage because your documentation provides a lot of information per square inch.
I just want to ask one question further to what Mr. Arseneault asked earlier.
Subsection 46(2), under the title "Powers of Treasury Board", in part VIII of the Official Languages Act, states: "…the Treasury Board may…" You would like to replace the word "may" with the word "shall".
You said at the outset, and the chair said it as well, that the official languages have a special status because they constitute a national element of major importance. Would you like the Treasury Board to be required to issue specific directives respecting some federal or provincial transfer in any particular field, or do you think that should apply solely to official languages?