Official Languages committee  It would be my pleasure, Mr. Chair. Amendment LIB‑30 proposes that there be oversight or that the Governor in Council may issue instructions for the implementation of two provisions of part VII of the act. The first is to consider the inclusion of language clauses in federal, provincial and territorial agreements, and the second is the taking of positive measures.

Official Languages committee  I should point out that everything must be consistent with Treasury Board's enabling statute.

Official Languages committee  Thank you very much for the question. Under amendment CPC‑41, Treasury Board would be responsible for “federal programs for the implementation of this Act”, that is, the Official Languages Act, “including the government-wide strategy on official languages”. I would like to point out that, earlier in this study, the Standing Committee on Official Languages approved a provision of the bill that gives this role to the Department of Canadian Heritage.

Official Languages committee  Yes, the committee may choose the parts of the Official Languages Act in respect of which Treasury Board may make regulations. I should note however that part of Treasury Board's mandate is relevant in this regard. I will let my colleagues from Treasury Board speak to this.

Official Languages committee  Thank you very much. When the act makes a minister responsible for something, the minister mentioned is responsible. In this case, it would be the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship.

Official Languages committee  I will let Mr. Newman take that question.

Official Languages committee  I can start off, and I'll see if my colleague Warren Newman wants to add anything. Thank you for your question and for listening to the answer. Here I would say that “taking into account the diversity of the provincial and territorial language regimes” is really, in the context of proposed section 45 on the consultation and negotiations, that we shall take into account the linguistic regimes of the different provinces and territories.

Official Languages committee  I'd like to thank the member for his question, Mr. Chair. My colleague has just reminded me that right before paragraph 45.1(1)(a) of the bill, it says "including that".This is followed by some examples of what already exists in terms of Canada's language regimes. The list is not necessarily exhaustive.

Official Languages committee  I want to make one small correction. We're talking about collaboration with the provinces and territories and not necessarily about the offering of services. Therefore, this is to say that, in collaboration with the provinces and territories, we take into consideration this legislation and other legislation that may not be listed here, like the policy for services in Ontario.

Official Languages committee  Thank you for your question. In my opinion, the scope of amendment LIB‑20 was quite clear. This can be implemented, and when a provision about properties is involved, we need to make sure that the following people are notified and consulted in this order: other federal institutions, the provinces and territories, including municipalities which include official language minority communities, and indigenous groups.

Official Languages committee  I'll pass it to my colleague, Warren Newman.

Official Languages committee  Thank you very much for the question, Mr. Chair. The only issue of concern has to do with the commitment to provide funding to an "organization, independent of the Government of Canada, responsible for administering a program". The issue has to do with disclosing the transfer of funds coming from Canadian Heritage.

Official Languages committee  Thank you for the question. I would like to give the floor to my colleague, Mr. Fallu.

Official Languages committee  The question was raised more than once during committee discussions. When we say "the necessary measures", their necessity must be proven. Often, a stakeholder must prove that a specific measure is necessary, or the minister must be persuaded of its necessity, which can add needlessly to the burden of proof.

Official Languages committee  Amendement LIB‑20 repeats what is written in the Directive on the Management of Real Property. The directive, which was developed by the Treasury Board, clearly states that its purpose is to address issues of this kind and to ensure that sales or transfers of excess real estate must comply with five conditions, in a specific order.