Official Languages Committee on Nov. 1st, 2023

[Etienne-René Massie]

In our call for tenders, when we award funding for offering services to entrepreneurs in official language minority communities, our guides set out our expectations regarding official languages, which are part of our evaluation criteria.

For example, when we do an entrepreneurship program, if the bidder says it will not offer the service in the minority official language, the evaluation ends right there, because this is a statutory obligation that is part of our work.

[Marc Serré, Liberal, Nickel Belt, ON]

Ms. McMicking, you stated that your department was responsible for Statistics Canada. We have heard repeatedly that there was a shortage of data regarding official language minority communities in Canada. You also said earlier that there was a Statistics Canada report and that you were going to follow up with them.

What kind of questions are you going to ask them? We would like to know so we can make recommendations directly to Statistics Canada or make sure that certain specific questions are asked.

In addition, what is the date of the next Statistics Canada census? When we examine the data, we are always five to ten years behind.

[The Chair, Liberal, René Arseneault]

Please answer in less than 20 seconds, if you would.

[Marie-Caroline Badjeck]

We are currently in negotiations about this new mandate. For that reason, unfortunately, I cannot tell you about it, but we hope to have an agreement over two years to produce the data we consider to be important, based on our consultations with the OLMCs, including in rural and urban areas. We also want to update the data based on the 2021 Census. We should be able to give you an answer by the end of your study, but for now I want to be careful what I say, because we are in negotiations with Statistics Canada.

[Marc Serré, Liberal, Nickel Belt, ON]

Thank you.

In Ontario, 80% of Statistics Canada employees are in my riding and they are bilingual. We have to make sure that continues to be supported.

[The Chair, Liberal, René Arseneault]

Thank you, Mr. Serré.

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

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

I am going to go back to my question.

Since 2020, and in the new act, the government has recognized that francophones in Quebec are a minority in Canada and North America and that it has a responsibility to protect the French language. To your knowledge, in the Action Plan for Official Languages 2023‑2028, is there money provided for the economic development of the francophone community in Quebec, specifically?

[Kasi McMicking]

To be honest, I can't speak to the entirety of the action plan. That is a very large amount of money that cuts across a very large number of departments. I can't speak for those departments.

The economic development initiative, which I described earlier and which our colleagues from the regional development agencies will speak to, is part of that. That's the $30.5 million over five years. That is specifically for economic development, in the sense that it is the work we do with data evaluation, research and engagement.

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

No money is provided specifically for the economic development of the francophone community in Quebec under the Action Plan for Official Languages 2023‑2028.

[Marie-Caroline Badjeck]

Under the economic development initiative, the focus is on official language minority communities.

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

It talks about linguistic minorities by province, so it is English in Quebec, period.

[Marie-Caroline Badjeck]

Yes, it is English. Once again, in the context of the official action plan, there are various departments that work in all the provinces. So if you want to extend it, that goes beyond the OLMCs.

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

Right.

At the same time, however, because you are using first official language spoken, it includes English-speaking newcomers. That is also the language indicator chosen by Statistics Canada in order to inflate the numbers. Does the fact that there are specific strategies for English-speaking newcomers or for anglophones create discrimination in the case of Quebec?

[The Chair, Liberal, René Arseneault]

That is an excellent question, Mr. Beaulieu, but your time is up.

Two and a half minutes go by very fast.

Ms. Mathyssen, the floor is yours for two and a half minutes.

[Lindsay Mathyssen, NDP, London—Fanshawe, ON]

Thank you.

You were talking about issues in terms of the labour market, finding that it's consistent all over Canada in many communities. Does your department work in ways to better inform overall government policies, or what have you, in terms of francophone immigration to address the needs of the minority francophone communities and specifically those businesses you're looking to support?

[Kasi McMicking]

Thank you for that question.

At our department, we aren't focusing specifically on francophone immigration. It is certainly an issue we look into and one that we are discussing with our partners.

You probably would be better off to ask that question of our partners at IRCC.

[Lindsay Mathyssen, NDP, London—Fanshawe, ON]

Is it entirely siloed in terms of those conversations you have? Is it not shared? Do they take that information and learn from what you do?

[Kasi McMicking]

Absolutely. As we described previously, part of what we do is serve as a bit of a one-stop shop for the entrepreneurs and also as part of the federal family. We share information that we learn from the entrepreneurs and the groups that we speak to with our colleagues in other departments. We are very specific to the economic development side, rather than other issues.

[Lindsay Mathyssen, NDP, London—Fanshawe, ON]

Certainly that would inform how successful the program is, so sharing information would be pretty key.

[Marie-Caroline Badjeck]

At the working level, there are interdepartmental working groups led by IRCC and we are part of that. We're not leading those; they're leading them. For example, my director general is part of one of those interdepartmental working groups.

There is sharing of information, especially on those really important issues. It's just that it's not the focus of our work. Of course, it's part of the discussion of labour shortages.

[Kasi McMicking]

There are a lot of different actors who will share this type of information with the various departments that are engaged in these issues.

[The Chair, Liberal, René Arseneault]

Thank you, Ms. Mathyssen.

For the next questions, we will be very short.

Mr. Généreux, you have the floor for two and a half minutes.

[Bernard Généreux, Conservative, Montmagny—L'Islet—Kamouraska—Rivière-du-Loup, QC]

Thanks to the witnesses for being here.

Out of the budget of $30‑some-odd million spread over five years, if I understand correctly, what is the actual portion that will go to entrepreneurs and businesses once the administrative and management expenses of the program have been paid and the organizations themselves have paid their own administrative expenses? What percentage of the money they receive goes to cover administrative expenses and how much do they have left at the end?

[Kasi McMicking]

In terms of the money that ISED spends, of that $30.5 million over five years, we spend $1.6 million over five years. Our funding is very specific to operating, so our money does not go to entrepreneurs.

When our colleagues from the regional development agencies are here to speak to you—when we are finished—I think they would be the people who could probably answer your question.

[Bernard Généreux, Conservative, Montmagny—L'Islet—Kamouraska—Rivière-du-Loup, QC]

What accountability is there at that point? Is it done to all the federal economic development agencies everywhere in the country? Are they the ones to whom the money paid to businesses and entrepreneurs will have to be accounted for?