To hear the mirth of our Conservative colleagues, clearly they do not take this very seriously at all. Furthermore, the members of the Conservative Party, the Prime Minister and other Conservative members, seem to find this motion on the Quebec nation laughable. We all heard them laughing at this motion, which I talked about very seriously and somewhat emotionally, I might add.
For the Bloc Québécois and for Quebeckers, being recognized as a nation is extremely important. Yet this government did so flippantly. It was a cheap ploy to react to the Bloc Québécois' initiatives in an attempt to trick the Bloc at every turn. It was a meaningless motion on their part, which we now see. It was a means of manipulating public opinion.
However, public opinion is not so easily duped. Quebeckers are not fooled by this clumsy tactic by the Conservatives, who now find is so amusing. They are laughing at their own tactic and the trick they tried to play on Quebeckers.
A nation has privileges. The word “nation” carries considerable weight. It implies fundamental rights. A nation means a common history, common institutions, a common territory and language. When it comes to language, Quebeckers do not joke around.
The purpose of the Bloc Québécois' bill is to force the Conservative government to give concrete expression to the recognition of the Quebec nation, to stop laughing about it to people's faces—which is so insulting—and, lastly, to ensure that Quebec's Bill 101 is respected by the federal government.
The federal government, its institutions and businesses laugh at Quebec's Bill 101. They do not respect it. The Canada Labour Code should be amended so that Quebec workers have the right to be respected, have the right to work in French and have the right to receive employee notices in French. All bulletin board postings must be in French, as well as the work schedule.
In my riding, workers have shown me their schedules, written in English by Canadian businesses. This government is doing nothing for the respect of the French language in Quebec.
Employee manuals should be written in French. Invitations to employees should also be in French. Even the gifts they receive should have French text on them. Some employees return gifts to their employers because the text is written in English. How insulting would it be to receive a gift in recognition of 25 years of service that does not respect French, the language we speak, and the raison d'être of Bill 101? These Conservative members must stop making a mockery of this in front of everyone.