Official Languages Committee on Nov. 20th, 2025

[Geneviève Tellier]

The location was my other comment on that. The speech was given in front of students at the University of Ottawa. We were just talking about young people. The speech was made after the article from Radio-Canada came out. That is why I had some concerns and analyzed the speech. That same evening, I was commenting on it in the media and the limited amount of French jumped out at me. The speech was given at the University of Ottawa, with an audience that was not bilingual. Not all students are bilingual. Some students are francophone and others are anglophone.

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

What is the status of the University of Ottawa in terms of official languages?

[Geneviève Tellier]

It is a bilingual post-secondary institution.

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

Earlier, you talked about the content and the audience. It is only natural that, when 100% of the audience is anglophone, only part of the speech is in French and most of it is in English. That is what we are seeing in Quebec. When the Prime Minister visits Quebec, more French is spoken in his speeches.

However, in this case, it was an audience in a bilingual university campus in Canada's capital, Ottawa, the home of Canada's Parliament and the government that runs our country and is responsible for the future of Canadian society. It would have been normal for him to speak more in French, correct? Is this not indicative of his lack of will and lack of concern for the French language?

[Geneviève Tellier]

I am not privy to his wishes or his intentions.

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

This is an interpretation you and I are having.

[Geneviève Tellier]

Is it indicative of the Prime Minister's concern or the concern of his team as a whole? That said, the Prime Minister is the head of that team.

This issue is concerning, particularly because, at the University of Ottawa, we often need to fight to receive services in French. I would have expected a slightly higher percentage of French in the Prime Minister's speech on campus.

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

This was a great opportunity where he could have demonstrated his intentions and his concern for the French language, as well as his willingness to speak it.

You correctly stated that the person occupying the role of prime minister is not off the hook for the actions of his or her team. We are told that the Prime Minister's team speaks a lot in French, but given that the team did not draft the speech in French, that is a weak statement. To me, that is very telling.

Do you think it is telling?

[Geneviève Tellier]

In my view, the fact that the content of the Prime Minister's speeches is not treated equally between the two languages is problematic. It is particularly problematic when it comes to the economy because this topic is generally discussed in English. I believed that such issues had been resolved, but this topic is discussed at a greater length in English.

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

You said that, in the Prime Minister's speech, the proportion of French was higher only when he was talking about social programs. Is that correct? Are my notes correct?

[Geneviève Tellier]

Yes.

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

Okay. So I will not discuss that subject any further.

[The Chair, Liberal, Yvan Baker]

Mr. Godin, you have 50 seconds left.

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

Thank you.

Aside from the Prime Minister's speech, there is the issue of those around him.

There was a cabinet minister who held a press conference in English only. Last week, a press release sent out by the Department of Transport was riddled with errors in French. Clearly, there is a lack of will. In addition, Ms. Tellier, when the Prime Minister set up his first cabinet, he did not appoint a minister of official languages. He later appointed a minister of Canadian identity and culture who is responsible for official languages, among other things.

Do you think that sends a positive signal to francophones in Canada?

[The Chair, Liberal, Yvan Baker]

Please answer in 10 seconds.

[Geneviève Tellier]

That is not a good start. We hope this issue will be rectified. Like you, I also noted the absence of a minister responsible for official languages in the first cabinet.

[The Chair, Liberal, Yvan Baker]

Thank you Ms. Tellier.

Thank you Mr. Godin.

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

[Louis Villeneuve, Liberal, Brome—Missisquoi, QC]

Thank you Mr. Chair.

Mr. Godin, I think I might take some classes with you on how to encourage people to say what I want to hear. You have an exceptional talent.

My questions are for both of you, Ms. Vaillancourt and Mr. Thériault.

I am very pleased to have young people with us today. When I see people like you, I feel younger.

I read your brief and noted some questions, but I will not have time to ask them all.

I want to discuss the issue of access to jobs in French. As you mentioned earlier, your data show that the lack of jobs in French is pushing young people into anglophone environments.

What are the priority areas where the federal government could encourage job creation in French?

[Simon Thériault]

That is a very good question.

The Government of Canada announced a number of job programs in its budget. The youth climate corps comes to mind. When employment programs like these are created, it must be recognized that francophone youth experience a different reality in the labour market. Indeed, it is often more difficult to have access to jobs in French.

Applying a francophone lens to these programs would make jobs available to francophone youth in minority communities across the country. That is one measure among many, but I think that this francophone lens could be applied to a number of employability programs under the youth employment and skills strategy to ensure that the funding allocated to youth is also available to francophone youth in minority communities across the country.

[Louis Villeneuve, Liberal, Brome—Missisquoi, QC]

I think that AI and the future of work are important topics for you as well. You note that the impacts of AI threaten traditional jobs for young people.

How can the federal government better support francophone youth in this technological transition that is heading our way?

[Simon Thériault]

Once again, that is a very big question, but I obviously have very little time to answer it.

I think that there are a number of ways we can support youth in the use of AI. In particular, we could ensure that we have better regulations on the ethical use of AI. I think that remains a challenge and a priority for youth because, right now on social media, we are seeing images being created by AI and misinformation being generated by AI. Fake news and misinformation put democracy and the country at risk.

In terms of employment, we need to look at the use of AI in the ranking of applicant files, which is a reality today. Your application can be discarded because you may not have all the skills and without a human even having read your résumé. This is a reality that many youth are experiencing today. Applications require significant work experience but, through volunteer work and similar experiences, we can sometimes build that experience without having five formal years of experience. However, because of AI, the résumé is discarded and the young person will not even have a chance to explain and discuss their skills.

I think that there are a number of ways to look at the use of AI today. We need to give it some serious thought and make sure that everybody is using it ethically.

[The Chair, Liberal, Yvan Baker]

You have 50 seconds left.

[Louis Villeneuve, Liberal, Brome—Missisquoi, QC]

Thank you.

I also wanted to tell you that I agree with my colleague Mr. Godin. You are important. Youth are not just the future, they are also the present, so thank you for being with us.

I do not have a lot of time left to ask a large question. You talked about systemic barriers for youth. Can you identify which barriers are the most pressing and how the government can address them?

You do not have a lot of time, but I wanted to put that question to you anyway.

[The Chair, Liberal, Yvan Baker]

You have about 25 seconds left.

[Simon Thériault]

If we are talking about systemic barriers in terms of access to post-secondary education in French, francophone post-secondary institutions do indeed exist in minority communities to address this issue. However, very few programs are often offered. In addition, young people often have to move in order to study in these programs, which makes it more difficult. Studying in French leads to additional costs for francophone youth in minority communities, as well as higher student debt.