Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the member for Drummond for giving me an opportunity to recap what the Government of Canada has done to promote our two official languages.
Language of work in the federal public service is an important matter. Federal institutions must ensure that their workplaces are conducive to the use of both official languages. The federal public service must reflect the Canadian population it serves. Although much progress has been made over these years, more work and efforts are required before we can reach our goals and our vision.
The Clerk of the Privy Council has taken the initiative to examine the use of Canada's official languages in the federal public service, and to propose concrete measures to further foster the use of both official languages in the workplace. That is a good thing.
The Government of Canada has pledged to develop a new multi-year action plan for official languages that will come into effect on April 1, 2018. To that end, we held Canada-wide consultations on official languages, which allowed us to identify courses of action and initiatives that will inform the development of the next action plan for official languages. The plan will re-energize the government's efforts and strengthen the tools it can use.
The Government of Canada is tangibly reaffirming its commitment to improving the delivery of federal services in both official languages. For example, we announced a revision of the official languages regulations on communications with and services to the public. The President of the Treasury Board and the Minister of Canadian Heritage are working closely to ensure that we are considering the best options to modernize the official languages regulations in an open manner, based on the consultations with all concerned parties.
The member for Drummond is undoubtedly aware that there will be a technical briefing on progress in this regard on Monday morning, at nine o'clock, at 131 Queen Street. We sincerely hope to see him there.
I will use the member for Drummond's question as an opportunity to remind the House of a few facts. This year, we held an interdepartmental forum that engaged the provinces and territories on francophone immigration issues and develop a concrete strategy to strengthen francophone communities outside Quebec.
This initiative was just one of the many concrete actions we have taken to support official language minority communities, such as the restoration of the long-form census, new investments in the Canada Council for the Arts and in our film industry, and the modernization of the court challenges program of Canada.
May my colleague, the member for Drummond, be assured that the Government of Canada is taking practical measures to protect our official languages, promote their use in Canadian society, and support the vitality of official language minority communities.