I call this meeting to order.
Welcome to meeting number 29 of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Official Languages.
The committee is meeting to hear witnesses for the study on government measures to protect and promote French in Quebec and in Canada.
To ensure an orderly meeting, I would like to outline a few rules to follow. First, I would like to take this opportunity to remind all participants to this meeting that screenshots or taking photos of your screen are not permitted.
Members and witnesses may speak in the official language of their choice. Interpretation services are available for this meeting.
Before speaking, click on the microphone icon to activate your mike. When you are done speaking, please put your mike on mute to minimize any interference.
I remind members and witnesses that all comments should be addressed through the chair.
For the sake of the interpreters, when speaking, please speak slowly and clearly.
Unless there are exceptional circumstances, I believe all participants are equipped with a headset and a boom microphone.
The witnesses will be with us this afternoon for the entire meeting. I would now like to welcome them. First, I would like to thank them for accepting our invitation.
We welcome, as an individual, Robert Leckey, dean and Samuel Gale professor, Faculty of Law, McGill University; also as an individual, Anne Michèle Meggs, former director of research at the Office québécois de la langue française; and finally, both from the Fédération des travailleurs et travailleuses du Québec, general secretary Denis Bolduc, and union advisor Gilles Grondin.
Each witness or group of witnesses will have seven and a half minutes for their speech. As always, I will show a yellow card to let you know you have one minute left. When you see the red card, that will mean that your speaking time, or that of the committee member addressing you, is up.
We will start with Professor Leckey.
Professor Leckey, you have the floor for seven and a half minutes to deliver your speech.