Chair, I respectfully ask my colleague not to play politics with the Official Languages Act. As the President of the Treasury Board, my responsibility is to ensure that the Official Languages Act is implemented across the federal public service institutions.
He should allow me.... Yes, I can't speak French. I'm learning; I'm taking lessons. This is my sixth language. I am learning, so you don't question my ability to learn French. I am learning and I don't want to take that personally, but the act provides the charter right to every Canadian to receive any communication or services in the language of their choice. Any person, any Canadian, has a similar right and can choose to communicate in either French or English because of equal rights in the act.
If you want to get technical, I can ask my secretary, Bill Matthews, to give you more information, but you don't question my learning of French. I am committed to bilingualism, because that remains the core of our Canadian identity.
Now I can pass this on to my secretary to respond to that specific question.