Sure. As I said, it would have to be a tripartite plan. Who will represent the minority? It's the people elected by the universal suffrage who sit on the school board. You are federal elected representatives. There are provincial elected representatives who represent the minority, but they aren't even at the bargaining table. They're not even being adequately consulted. Some provinces consult them, but most do not. It's certainly not an effective consultation.
Who speaks on behalf of minorities, who are supposed to have eight exclusive powers, but aren't even exclusive? Section 23 has been around for 40 years. Since 1990, in principle, we're supposed to have full school management, but in reality, that isn't the case. We're floundering. We know what the eight powers are, but no school district or school board in the country exercises those exclusive powers. Are they really “exclusive” if they're shared with the government? It seems to me that, at some point, we have to stop and say whether these are exclusive powers or not. If they are exclusive, let's give them to the minorities, school boards and their elected representatives.
It's a bit like saying that if the province didn't want to decentralize its powers to school boards, school boards would have to assume powers even if it means getting sued by the province. The problem is that the funding isn't keeping up. It would be a good idea for school boards to exercise their eight exclusive powers, such as setting school curricula and spending public funds on culture and identity. If the means don't follow the obligation of the secession case or the Beaulac decision, it's difficult to exercise these powers. You're not going to raise enough money to carry out these mandates through church collections. The provinces should get serious and at the negotiating table.
My last comment is this. I've been working with the Acadian community and the department for two years. I don't want to denigrate the provinces. The Government of New Brunswick is very supportive. In fact, it's in the process of co-constructing the French-language school system. The department is divided in two in New Brunswick; there is a francophone deputy minister and an anglophone deputy minister. The francophone deputy minister is fully prepared to find solutions and establish full school management. It's coming. It will probably be done within the next year or two, depending on the new government. That bodes well. It's not everywhere; it's in New Brunswick, where the situation is different.
Nova Scotia has led the way with the development of the programs. It's the only territory where the school board develops the programs, which is really the crux of the matter. What are you teaching your students, and how? Nova Scotia is a leader in this regard. New Brunswick will eventually lead the way when it comes to full school management. Perhaps it will snowball for the other school boards.