Thank you, Mr. Chair.
My motion reads as follows:
That the Committee expresses its disappointment at the behaviour of Conservative MPs, notably the MP for Lethbridge and the MP for Brantford—Brant, toward Francophone ministers and toward the entirety of the Canadian population that speaks French, an official langue of Canada; That the Committee remind all MPs of their right to speak in whichever of the two official languages at all times in Parliament; That the Committee request that the MP for Brantford—Brant apologises in the House to the Minister of Public Services and Procurement of Canada, to the 4,000 Franco-Ontarians in his riding, and to all Francophone MPs and all the Francophones in Canada; That the Committee recognises that French is just as important to Canada’s bilingual status as English, and that French is indispensable to the Canadian identity; That the Committee denounce the inaction of the Conservative leader in face of repeated antiFrancophone remarks by his MPs.
I would first like to remind my colleagues, in particular the members of the Official Opposition, of subsection 16(1) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which states:
16(1) English and French are the official languages of Canada and have equality of status and equal rights and privileges as to their use in all institutions of the Parliament and government of Canada.
I see that my colleague opposite is wondering why I am reading that. He may have forgotten, so I will remind him that the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms exists today and contains that section, which refers to the official languages of Canada. I also want to point out that the peoples of the two founding nations of Canada, anglophones and francophones, came together under the umbrella of our Confederation, and that respect for francophones is in no way optional.
On October 24, after the member for Brantford—Brant asked the Minister of Public Services and Procurement his question and the minister answered in French, the member for Brantford—Brant said to the minister:
...my question is in English, but I digress.
It is the duty of every parliamentarian to uphold our Constitution.
Furthermore, it is shameful for a Canadian elected member to rise in the House of Commons to criticize a minister for answering him in French.
I find it hard to understand the inertia on the part of opposition members, whether from the Bloc Québécois, the Conservative Party or the NDP, and particularly on the part of members from Quebec and of Franco-Ontarians and Acadians, in the face of this crude insult from the official opposition. I hope that instead of protecting their Conservative friends who have been so disrespectful of francophones, they will denounce this insult and call for the member for Brantford—Brant to apologize.
It is time to show your true colours and demand unconditional respect for French in this House.
Thank you, Mr. Chair.