Official Languages Committee on Feb. 22nd, 2016

[Paul Lefebvre, Liberal, Sudbury, ON]

We are throwing out various topics pell mell. All of the topics raised are important, but I would like to go back to the point I made earlier, which was that I would first like to hear the stakeholders. The list is very long. We could combine our suggestions and produce a very long list.

As a francophone lawyer in a minority environment, I think that access to justice in French in Ontario is already an issue. There are not enough bilingual judges. In short, access to justice in French outside of Quebec is another topic we could study.

I would like to mention something as an aside, Mr. Chair. Today the Government of Ontario offered a formal apology to Franco-Ontarians for Regulation 17. I thought it important to mention this in the Standing Committee on Official Languages. I am happy to thank this government for having apologized for this decision taken in the 1910s and 1920s, as well as for its consequences on the francophones of Ontario, on my family, among others, in Northern Ontario. It was very difficult to obtain schooling in French. Today we are very fortunate, but there is still work to be done. I simply wanted to highlight the fact that the Government of Ontario had apologized to Franco-Ontarians today.

[The Chair, Liberal, Denis Paradis]

Are you moving a motion, Paul?

[Paul Lefebvre, Liberal, Sudbury, ON]

I'm not sure that this can be expressed as a motion. I don't know how to formulate it.

[The Chair, Liberal, Denis Paradis]

The intent is to congratulate the Government of Ontario.

[Paul Lefebvre, Liberal, Sudbury, ON]

Yes.

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

Would it be possible for the committee to send a letter to the government thanking it?

[The Chair, Liberal, Denis Paradis]

I think that if we adopt a motion of congratulations, we could issue a press release about it rather quickly.

I wonder if Ms. Forget could look into that.

Are we equipped to distribute such a message quickly?

[Chloé Forget, Committee Researcher]

I can check, but I can also draft a letter.

[Paul Lefebvre, Liberal, Sudbury, ON]

I think it would be appropriate to draft a motion to acknowledge the Ontario government's apology to Franco-Ontarians for the effects of Regulation 17 on Ontario francophones.

[The Chair, Liberal, Denis Paradis]

That's good.

Could you write something up?

[Paul Lefebvre, Liberal, Sudbury, ON]

Yes, we are going to work on it together.

[The Chair, Liberal, Denis Paradis]

I am told that if everyone is in agreement, we can issue this as a press release.

[Greg Fergus, Liberal, Hull—Aylmer, QC]

Excellent.

[Some hon. members]

Fine.

[The Chair, Liberal, Denis Paradis]

So, we are agreed.

Does that suit you, Paul?

[Paul Lefebvre, Liberal, Sudbury, ON]

Yes, thank you very much.

[The Chair, Liberal, Denis Paradis]

I'd like to raise another topic. I realize that if we consider our mandate in a somewhat broader way it could also be our role to promote a bilingual Canada. Let me explain.

In the past, I was the Secretary of State responsible for the Francophonie. At the time, I remember being struck by something. I realized that a lot of Americans speak French or define themselves as francophiles.

A few years ago I asked someone to do a study or prepare a report on the number of francophones or francophiles on the other side of the border, in the United States. I was told that there were almost 10 million francophones or francophiles in the United States. So there are more than in Canada. Often, these people feel isolated.

If we wanted at a certain point to play a somewhat broader role, we could extend this recognition of a bilingual Canada to the other side of the border. Perhaps it could help the francophone communities that are a bit lost over there. I am just mentioning this in passing.

The same is true at the UN. Canada is bilingual. We can only hope that our delegation at the UN uses both of Canada's official languages. I think that this would be well received by the new ambassador, who is of francophone extraction.

It may be important to promote the value of Canadian linguistic duality both here and elsewhere. That was simply an aside.

Bernard, you have the floor.

[Bernard Généreux, Conservative, Montmagny—L'Islet—Kamouraska—Rivière-du-Loup, QC]

I'd simply like to inject a note of humour. My mother would often say: “Do not bite off more than you can chew”. Our mandate should not be too broad.

I don't disagree with you, but we have a lot of work to do here, in Canada, regarding official languages.

Of course we are ambassadors for Canada's two official languages. It is important to promote them at all times, every day. However, the committee has to make sure it works effectively. Inevitably, if we have too many irons in the fire, we run the risk of dissipating our energies.

[The Chair, Liberal, Denis Paradis]

Are there any further comments?

We have all expressed our thoughts, but we will see during the next meetings where we want to intervene and at what speed we should do that. This will help us to chart our course.

I would like to specify that things remain open; this is not a closed list. At a given point situations may arise that you had not thought about and that you would like to submit to the committee's attention. I like the fact that our committee can be open in that way.

François, you have the floor.

[François Choquette, NDP, Drummond, QC]

I'd like to point out two things.

First of all, I found the exact name of the group that represents anglophones in Quebec: the Quebec Community Groups Network, or the QCGN. Mr. Fergus put us on the right track. We could invite the group to appear, of course.

Second, I was wondering whether the subcommittee on agenda and procedure was scheduled to meet anytime soon.

[The Chair, Liberal, Denis Paradis]

I'll check with the clerk and let you know.

My preference would be for us to identify our key issues or future business, rather than have the subcommittee do it. It may be necessary for them to meet, however. I'll discuss it with the clerk and see whether, in the short term, the subcommittee should hold a meeting.

Go ahead, Darrell.

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

I'd like to comment on Mr. Généreux's point. I simply cannot let the opportunity pass without saying something. He mentioned doing a study on the shortage of spots in schools offering immersion programs.

I was the superintendent of Nova Scotia's only Acadian and francophone school board for 11 years, as well as the national president of all French-language school boards outside Quebec. And I can certainly confirm that many francophone schools all around the country lack enough spots.

If we were to undertake such a study, we could examine French both as a first language and as a second language in immersion programs, hand in hand. Nova Scotia has a major shortage in that regard. Over the last 10 years, the student population in our school board rose by 22%. In the same region, the student population in all seven English-language school boards combined dropped by 15%. That's a difference of 37%. There is no question about the lack of spots in these schools in Acadian and francophone regions all over the country.

Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Denis Paradis]

Thank you, Darrell.

Greg, you may go ahead.

[Greg Fergus, Liberal, Hull—Aylmer, QC]

When I was young, I had the opportunity to meet people from francophone communities outside Quebec. As an English speaker who grew up in Quebec, I found it quite something to meet French speakers outside my province.

Like you, I agree it would be important that, during its mandate and as required by the studies it undertakes, of course, the committee visit francophone communities outside the country in order to gain a better understanding of the challenges they face. That would be wonderful. I think it would certainly give us a lot to talk about and enrich our work.

[The Chair, Liberal, Denis Paradis]

Thank you, Greg.

If we do travel, we'll have a decision to make. Will we go during the periods when we are in our ridings or when the House is sitting?

If we go when the House is sitting, we'll have to make sure that the number of members is the same on both sides, for voting purposes.

We'll provide you with that information when the time comes.

Would anyone else like to say something?

Go ahead, Dan.