Official Languages Committee on Feb. 10th, 2026

[Kelly Burke]

It's important to encourage young people to study in French and to attend post-secondary education in French. For that, we need to show them the benefits of French-language education. It would allow them to work in French and English, for example. I think we have to do more to persuade them, use real-world examples to show them that those who can work in both official languages have better job opportunities, particularly in French.

There's also the question of funding. Obviously, the survival of post-secondary institutions, or any institution for that matter, depends on funding. We must keep convincing governments to fund education institutions to ensure French-language programs survive.

You gave the example of Laurentian University. Senior management's approach to the problem was based on financial issues. The first thing they did was cut French programs. We must do everything we can to stop that from happening.

That means the government must offer funding. In fact, the government must recognize the major benefits of a francophone and anglophone population for Canadian society. We need to put a lot of focus on that.

[Jim Belanger, Conservative, Sudbury East—Manitoulin—Nickel Belt, ON]

Okay, thank you.

You raised the question of funding. I spoke to some education institutions in my area about this, and they said funding is not always guaranteed. That's why they're looking for permanent funding to consolidate and grow their offer. If I understood them correctly, they only know what funding they'll get for two or three years down the road. After that, they don't know.

What can we do to fix this issue, so they can plan for the long term?

[Kelly Burke]

The issue might require a more detailed study on budgets within the provincial government.

What I understand, however, is that sustained funding would help secure the financial stability of francophone and anglophone post-secondary institutions. Anglophone institutions are also undergoing major cuts at the moment, which leads to financial challenges.

[Jim Belanger, Conservative, Sudbury East—Manitoulin—Nickel Belt, ON]

Regarding French in Ontario, based on your work with the Government of Ontario, you said that the province has the largest number of francophones outside Quebec and that Ontario is rich in its francophonie. I'm a bit jealous of New Brunswick, since it's the only officially bilingual province.

What can we do to have the province of Ontario be recognized as officially bilingual? Is that possible?

[The Chair, Liberal, Yvan Baker]

You have 40 seconds left.

[Kelly Burke]

That issue is closely linked to the Canadian Constitution. As you know, bilingualism in New Brunswick is a constitutional right.

What would it take for Ontario to be recognized as officially bilingual? I don't know. That said, let's put aside the question of official bilingualism in Ontario. What we're really aiming for is equality within the province's language regime. That was one of my main focus as French Language Services Commissioner: equality, immediately. It has served me very well.

I'll give you a tangible example. Before I intervened in the matter, Amber alerts and emergency alerts in Ontario were in English only. I argued that this needed to change, because there was already a lack of French-language services offered, especially during the pandemic. Services weren't offered in both languages in Ontario, despite the fact that it's not an officially bilingual province.

What I realized—and I do this all the time now—is that I could ask the deputy minister concerned if he recognized that there was a problem. He said:

“Kelly, we have to do better.”

Sometimes it takes—

[The Chair, Liberal, Yvan Baker]

The time is well up now.

[Kelly Burke]

Okay.

Sometimes, it takes a voice and a conviction that go beyond the issue of official bilingualism. A comparable service offer can sometimes be enough. It depends on who you work with.

[The Chair, Liberal, Yvan Baker]

Thank you.

Mr. Deschênes‑Thériault, you have the floor for five minutes.

[Guillaume Deschênes-Thériault, Liberal, Madawaska—Restigouche, NB]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

During earlier exchanges, you talked about compliance issues and how you'll promote compliance with the obligations under the act. However, we know that some organizations find it a little more difficult to comply. We see in the commissioner's annual reports that some organizations receive the same number of complaints year after year.

What will your approach be with these organizations for which compliance is sometimes a bit more difficult? In other words, can we expect a commissioner with some bite?

[Kelly Burke]

I've had bite before. I hope to have some in the future as well.

You're right. Based on the outgoing commissioner's annual report, 22% of complaints are related to language of work, and 66% are related to service delivery and communication.

What I'm focusing on is the causes, and there are many: lack of planning, leadership, resistance, linguistic insecurity, lack of resources, oversight. What is really needed is a change in culture within federal institutions. The federal government needs to be accountable. Language rights must be integrated into governance systems. I think the new version of the Official Languages Act will allow us to make progress in that regard.

Official languages must be at the heart of priorities, all of the government's priorities, at all times. However, the government needs to have the necessary tools. What I'm seeing more and more is that the motivation is there, but there are no tools. That's where the commissioner can play a significant role and introduce opportunities so that there are tools available to ensure better compliance. That's what I did in Ontario.

[Guillaume Deschênes-Thériault, Liberal, Madawaska—Restigouche, NB]

I come back to the institutions that can be more challenging in terms of compliance.

You're going to have expanded powers, such as order-making and sanctioning powers, so you'll have access to various tools. How do you intend to use these new tools to ensure institutions that have had a harder time complying in recent years can improve?

[Kelly Burke]

Regarding the new tools, the exercise of powers is done gradually. There are things that can be done right from the start, when the complaint is filed, and even if there is no complaint, mechanisms that can be used, including education, that can lead to solutions. Compliance agreements can be negotiated. Findings and solutions that can come out of this negotiation are the result of good collaboration. The co‑operation between the parties involved is what really allowed me get results in Ontario.

[Guillaume Deschênes-Thériault, Liberal, Madawaska—Restigouche, NB]

The Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages publishes an annual report that provides an overview of the situation and highlights themes, but specific reports can also be commissioned to highlight certain issues. I'm thinking of research reports on francophone immigration, linguistic insecurity or the action plan for official languages.

Are there any research themes that interest you specifically, topics that you think would be worthwhile for the office of the commissioner to draft reports on to highlight specific issues?

[Kelly Burke]

One specific issue I see is the digital universe. Studies could be done on that.

With respect to compliance in particular, there could be studies related to government communications. I'm thinking more and more about compliance in terms of how the government communicates with the general public. There's also the issue of press briefings. I think that was evident during the pandemic, as you saw in Ontario, but it was the same across the country. The level of communication in French and English was not comparable.

[The Chair, Liberal, Yvan Baker]

You have 40 seconds left, Mr. Deschênes‑Thériault.

[Guillaume Deschênes-Thériault, Liberal, Madawaska—Restigouche, NB]

This will be my last question for you, then.

Between your first day in the position and the last day of your mandate, what improvement would you like to make? Is there one thing in particular you'd like to see changed? What contribution would you like to make?

[Kelly Burke]

Do you mean at the office or in Canada?

[Guillaume Deschênes-Thériault, Liberal, Madawaska—Restigouche, NB]

In Canada.

[Kelly Burke]

I would like both Canada and the federal public service to be truly bilingual. That's a vision I have: real equality that allows for both official languages to be used in real-world situations across the country.

[Guillaume Deschênes-Thériault, Liberal, Madawaska—Restigouche, NB]

Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Yvan Baker]

Thank you very much.

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

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

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Very quickly, I'll continue the interview.

Have you ever donated to a political party?

[Kelly Burke]

No, never.

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

Okay.

I'm going to ask you some questions and, as much as possible, I'd like a yes or no answer.

If we show you that no new measures have been adopted for French in Quebec, will you agree that the federal government violated its own act?