Thank you, Mr. Chair.
One of the proposals we've been hearing about is to amend the Official Languages Act to meet Quebec's demands. It's important to understand that the territorial model Quebec is trying to implement is designed to make French the common language in the workplace, the common language in the province, and the language of newcomers. However, this is not the objective of the Official Languages Act, which instead offers a free choice and guarantees a form of bilingualism. This proposal is impossible in the rest of Canada, where francophones really are in the minority.
The reason why preference should be given to the intent of Bill 101 rather than bilingualism, is that its goal is to make French the common language. By promoting bilingualism, the message sent to newcomers is that they don't need to learn French to integrate into our society, because they can do so equally well through English.
What are your thoughts on this, Mr. Côté?