The Government of Canada's proposals capture important demands made by Quebec's English-speaking community during consultations related to the modernization of the Official Languages Act.
There is a reason for optimism around proposals to strengthen the role of Treasury Board in the coordination of the act and expand the powers of the Commissioner of Official Languages to ensure compliance.
We also welcome the transfer of the court challenges program into the act, thus securing this important mechanism for protecting language rights before the courts.
There are opportunities for increased support to our communities institutions and provisions for more transparency on federal transfers directed toward our vitality, proposals that are tempered, unfortunately, by the need for provincial co-operation in our province.
Frankly, Quebec does not have a good track record on either front. Centralizing the management and control of health and social services institutions has severely impacted community participation in the leadership of our hospitals. Bill 40 attempted to strip us of section 23 minority language education rights, a fight that continues before the courts.
Now the Government of Quebec is floating the idea of placing enrolment caps on English CEGEPs, which will have a direct impact on resources available to those colleges.
Quebec has never agreed to binding linguistic clauses or transparency provisions on federal transfers. There is no reason to think it will do so in the future.