Mr. Speaker, I was very surprised to hear my colleague say that language has no place in the Canada Labour Code. I would like to point out that in terms of workplace safety, it is a definite must to have safety standards posted in the language of the worker. It greatly improves the work conditions and prevents many accidents.
What is more, world renowned specialists, small- and medium-sized businesses and the holder of the research chair at Trois-Rivières, Pierre-André Julien, tell us that the creativity of entrepreneurs is improved and they are more likely to come up with something productive when they are expressing themselves in their own language and culture.
It should be no surprise that the members of the Bloc Québécois want to share this language and allow everyone to work in it. We appreciate anglophones and their language; that has nothing to do with it. However, for us, it is important to keep our language and culture alive. While working as part of the Standing Committee on Official Languages, I saw wonderful initiatives all across Canada, from daycare centres in Vancouver to French health care services. There is something shocking happening in Canada: the people taking the most French courses in western Canada are of Asian origin. They have a vision, they understand.
I have a question for the member. Is French not a necessary evil for the Conservative Party? It cut the court challenges program, which allowed francophone communities to assert and defend themselves. That is not a vision for the future, in our opinion. Before lecturing us, the Conservative Party needs to do its homework.