Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to rise today to table a petition on behalf of Canadians who are deeply concerned about the future of indigenous languages.
The petitioners draw the attention of the House to the fact that reconciliation requires urgent action to address the devastating loss of language and culture that indigenous peoples have experienced. Petitioners note that while more indigenous people are seeking to learn their languages, the number of fluent speakers continues to fall. They further raise concern that recent changes to federal funding, especially in British Columbia, put language preservation and revitalization at risk.
Petitioners are therefore calling on the Government of Canada to ensure fair, adequate and long-term funding for indigenous language programming so this vital work can continue before it is too late, and to fix the changes that affect indigenous languages, indigenous language speakers and preservation needed in British Columbia in particular.