Official Languages Committee on Dec. 6th, 2022

[The Chair, Liberal, René Arseneault]

Go ahead, Mr. Godin.

[Joël Godin, Conservative, Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier, QC]

I'd like to clarify how much time we will be allowed before the end of this first hour. We were suspended for 22 minutes, and I'd like to organize my questions accordingly. Will that time be added to the second hour?

[The Chair, Liberal, René Arseneault]

We normally get through two complete rounds of questions in one hour; that's all.

We could add 22 minutes, but I don't know what arrangements Ms. Fortier has made. We can start the next round of questions, but I'll have to cut us off somewhere because we won't have time to… Let me do the calculation.

[Joël Godin, Conservative, Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier, QC]

You said we had until 1:30 p.m.

We can divide the question time between the Conservatives and the Liberals. There will be 15 minutes left after the two and a half minutes for the Bloc Québécois and the NDP. After that, there'll be five minutes each for the Liberals and the Conservatives, and then we'll come back with the Conservatives and Liberals.

I just want to clarify the situation.

[The Chair, Liberal, René Arseneault]

We had agreed that we would extend time. We can have another round of questions from the Conservatives and Liberals and then another round. Then we will have to adjourn the meeting.

[Joël Godin, Conservative, Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier, QC]

Will each of us have a five-minute round?

[The Chair, Liberal, René Arseneault]

Yes.

[Joël Godin, Conservative, Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier, QC]

All right.

[The Chair, Liberal, René Arseneault]

I gave Mr. Beaulieu the floor before Mr. Godin's point of order.

I'll restart the clock.

You have the floor for two and a half minutes, Mr. Beaulieu.

[Mario Beaulieu, Bloc, La Pointe-de-l'Île, QC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Minister, earlier you said that francophone immigration was important everywhere.

Were specific measures recently taken to increase francophone immigration to Quebec?

[Sean Fraser, Liberal, Central Nova, NS]

Yes, definitely.

We've made a considerable effort to increase the number of francophone newcomers outside Quebec.

[Mario Beaulieu, Bloc, La Pointe-de-l'Île, QC]

Minister, I'm referring to francophone immigration to Quebec.

[Sean Fraser, Liberal, Central Nova, NS]

Pardon me, but the interpreter said the opposite.

I think it's essential that we cooperate with the provincial government. As you very well know, the decision to establish immigration thresholds is up to the Quebec government. My job is to process cases.

[Mario Beaulieu, Bloc, La Pointe-de-l'Île, QC]

We were told that procedures that the federal government had put in place were undermining francophone immigration to Quebec. For example, employers outside Quebec enjoy a very simplified process for hiring francophone temporary foreign workers, but that process isn't available to Quebec employers, which increases the pool of francophone temporary foreign workers eligible for the permanent selection program outside Quebec.

We've heard that some people who are already settled here under temporary permits will be moving to other provinces so they can acquire permanent residence sooner.

Are you prepared to make that mechanism available to Quebec employers to facilitate permanent residence in Quebec?

[Sean Fraser, Liberal, Central Nova, NS]

The committee has to understand certain important factors.

We intend to offer former Minister Boulet's Quebec international mobility program plus in order to simplify the process for temporary workers.

However, there's a process that's specific to Quebec, but it was the Quebec government that decided that.

As for the number of newcomers who have acquired permanent resident status in Canada, it's very important to understand that the level of permanent residence in Quebec is determined by the Quebec government.

I understand the people who want to settle in other provinces. They can do that given the mobility right in Canada.

[The Chair, Liberal, René Arseneault]

Thank you, Minister.

Ms. Ashton, you have the floor for two and a half minutes.

[Niki Ashton, NDP, Churchill—Keewatinook Aski, MB]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

My question concerns the services that new immigrants need.

Do you intend to offer francization courses to newcomers, even if they've decided to take English-language courses?

Will newcomers be able to learn both languages, regardless of where they live in Canada, but especially if they live in communities with a strong francophone presence?

[Sean Fraser, Liberal, Central Nova, NS]

That's a good question.

The federal government doesn't provide that service directly, but it supports institutions that offer those services in the communities. We've increased the number of organizations in the francophone communities from 50 in 2018 to 80 today.

It's actually hard to determine which organizations can provide French-language training in rural anglophone communities. If that service exists, it's a good idea for the organizations to be able to provide services. However, that's not possible in every community.

We're going to open a new office in Dieppe, New Brunswick, which will help promote innovation in francophone immigration to Canada. It's a good thing for New Brunswick, but also for the country as a whole.

[Niki Ashton, NDP, Churchill—Keewatinook Aski, MB]

I would add that this demand is coming from the communities. We know that the Department of Immigration doesn't provide the services, but it does invest in them, and we must definitely invest in them. We can't invite people to come here thinking they're going to stay if they don't have access to the services they need on the ground.

Do you intend to enhance integration programs, including French literacy programs?

Do you intend to work in partnership with the communities and community organizations that provide French-language training across Canada?

[The Chair, Liberal, René Arseneault]

Thank you, Ms. Ashton. That's a good question, but your time is up.

Mr. Dalton, you have the floor for five minutes.

[Marc Dalton, Conservative, Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge, BC]

Thank you very much.

Thank you for your testimony, Minister.

I'm a member from British Columbia, like Mr. Vis, who is with us virtually.

I can tell you that we rely on francophone immigration in the west and across Canada, not just in Quebec. There's a lot of interest in it. You can see it particularly in our schools, where French immersion programs are very popular. So francophone immigration is essential.

You said that francophone immigration had increased to 4%. Do you have any statistics on how many of those immigrants have settled in the west, in Alberta or British Columbia, for example?

Do you have the data, or do you just have the overall percentage?

[Sean Fraser, Liberal, Central Nova, NS]

I don't have them to hand, but it would be easy to send them to the committee.

[Marc Dalton, Conservative, Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge, BC]

Okay, thank you.

Last year, during the COVID-19 pandemic, we heard testimony on the lack of services for newcomers. The federal government was missing in action. Consequently, in our region, the Fédération des francophones de la Colombie-Britannique and the provincial government, among others, took over, together with our riding offices, to bridge that major gap.

The department now has way more officials to process applications, and there are fewer applications than there were before the pandemic, but waiting times are increasingly long, which is very hard for people trying to immigrate.

Could you tell us a little about what you're doing to expedite the process? I know that many people want to know this because they're still expressing their frustration at our offices. I'd mainly like you to tell us about immigrants from francophone countries.

[Sean Fraser, Liberal, Central Nova, NS]

Thank you.

The pandemic caused a lot of problems. When we shut down the borders, we continued accepting applications, and applications were backloged more than normal. We were also responding to the situations in Afghanistan and Ukraine. The number of applications also rose because Canada is a very popular destination.

We're making investments to expedite application processing.

In the fall economic statement last year, there was $85 million. We're now in the process of hiring 1,250. We've almost completed that hiring blitz, and we've seen the productivity go up. We relaxed a whole suite of policies, from an administrative point of view, and have embraced technology to speed it up.

Having a lack of limits in the TR to PR program for francophone newcomers creates an opportunity for those who are already here to stay. We continue to work with different countries with large francophone populations, in order to try to spread information about this.

I'm trying to go as fast as I can, because I sense I'm almost out of time. We're going to continue to make what investments we can to process more cases.

Next spring, we'll be able to select candidates in the express entry system who have the necessary language skills and who intend to travel to a particular region or the regions that have major labour shortages. We'll have that new flexibility to increase the number of francophone newcomers starting in the spring of 2023.

[Marc Dalton, Conservative, Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge, BC]

Thank you.

You mentioned productivity, and that's very important because the bureaucracy is as slow as molasses.

If I have a few seconds left—