Environment committee  Those who believe that the future is in hydrocarbons are definitely wrong, in my opinion. We shouldn't wait until we've pumped out all the oil on the planet before we start acting. The study report published by the IEA this week is interesting. We learned that the energy transition will create 14 million jobs, but that 5 million jobs will be lost in the fossil fuels sector.

Environment committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair. My name is Denis Bolduc. I'm the general secretary of the Fédération des travailleurs et travailleuses du Québec, or FTQ. I'm joined by Mr. Rondeau, a union advisor for the Environment and Just Transition. I'll be giving the presentation. I want to acknowledge all the committee members.

Official Languages committee  I would unhesitatingly say that the vast majority are not.

Official Languages committee  The government needs to say it loudly and clearly. As I was saying earlier, the government needs to lead by example. It needs to implement measures that strengthen public servants' right to work in French in Quebec. The very idea may seem rather basic, but that's where it all starts.

Official Languages committee  Thank you for your question, Mr. Beaulieu. You won't be surprised to hear a director of the FTQ say that with respect to language and several other areas, Quebec needs to be autonomous. Autonomy would enable us to do a better job of protecting our language. Quebec is the only francophone territory in North America, and it is drowning in an anglophone sea.

Official Languages committee  You have to accept that the situations are different if you're in Quebec or elsewhere in Canada. Can anyone seriously claim that English needs the same protection as French across the country, mainly in Quebec? The answer's obvious.

Official Languages committee  A lot of them do. That's the case in the communications sector in particular. You also have to include sectors where the longshoreman of the Port of Montreal operate, as well as other Quebec longshoreman who are members of the FTQ, and members of the Public Service Alliance of Canada.

Official Languages committee  Yes, indeed. Earlier I cited the example of federal public servants who work in Gatineau. They're uncomfortable—and I mean "uncomfortable"—speaking French in the workplace. I don't think that should be the case in Quebec. People should speak French in a francophone workplace. As I said, when I attended national union meetings in and outside Quebec, people often spoke English if there was a single anglophone in the room.

Official Languages committee  Yes, we have the same responsibility when people enter a business in Quebec.

Official Languages committee  When someone answers us in English, we have a responsibility to ask that person to respond in French too.

Official Languages committee  I often say that, as parents, our responsibility to our children is to set an example. I'll say offhand, without thinking about it too much, that, if the federal government set an example, in its institutions and the public service, regarding French in Quebec, that would be part of the solution.

Official Languages committee  I didn't understand the question because I lost my Internet connection.

Official Languages committee  I was too young to go to school. I think the decline of French has continued over the past 10 years. I live in Quebec City and work in Montreal. The situation of French is undeniably deteriorating in Montreal. Businesses increasingly demand that their employees be bilingual or that they at least speak English.

Official Languages committee  It would definitely help. The vast majority of businesses in Quebec have 100 or fewer employees. These are small and medium-sized businesses. A requirement for small businesses to establish francization committees would obviously be welcome and would help promote and protect the French language in Quebec.

Official Languages committee  We were happy to see in the white paper that the federal government had finally acknowledged the decline of French across Canada, including in Quebec. Only two or three months ago, I was contradicted when I said that French was in decline in Quebec. Now I think it's obvious. The simple act of writing it down in a government document constitutes a welcome recognition that can help protect French.