Official Languages committee  I agree wholeheartedly with what was said about the importance to be given to the teaching of basic French, or, as it is known in English, core French. We must not forget that 1.1 million students in English Canada are learning French, and only 300,000 of them are in French immersion programs.

Official Languages committee  That is the Canadian Heritage Report.

Official Languages committee  One of the recommendations that I made regarding Canadian Heritage was that the accountability system should be reviewed. I made that recommendation partly because of the changes to the governance system. Responsibility for coordination and oversight used to fall under the purview of the Privy Council, but was transferred to Canadian Heritage.

Official Languages committee  I believe that Canadian involvement is very important. Furthermore, I heard recently that the French government support of TV5 was less than certain. If I'm not mistaken, the Canadian and Quebec governments acted together to try to convince France to continue supporting TV5. I always feel at home when I watch Canadian programs broadcast on TV5 when I'm abroad.

Official Languages committee  It is a phenomenon that we're aware of and that I find a particular challenge for minority communities, to welcome French-speaking immigrants to the school system and the other elements of the community.

Official Languages committee  I was not aware of the specific cases you described. The systemic problem, which I described in response to other questions, occurs again and again. I heard similar testimonies regarding Quebec institutions, as well as institutions in other parts of the country. I've taken good note of the problem.

Official Languages committee  Mr. Chairman, it was a fascinating day that we spent in Toronto, and we had representatives from a wide variety of ethnocultural groups, English-speaking and French-speaking. It enabled us to have a better sense of their concerns. We were also struck, and it confirms the comment the member made, by the degree of interest and support there is for the principle of linguistic duality in Canada.

Official Languages committee  As Ms. Tremblay pointed out, there is a difference between legal aid and the Court Challenges Program, and that has to do with the importance of the rights Canadians have under the charter. I think that by definition, a right defined in the charter is not just an individual right of the person who brings the case forward.

Official Languages committee  Obviously...

Official Languages committee  One of my current themes is leadership. So, if I am right in saying that mastering both official languages is an essential component of leadership, it follows that deputy ministers who, by definition, are public sector leaders, should by all means learn to speak both official languages.

Official Languages committee  I take note of it and I would like to thank the honourable member for having reminded me of the 39th recommendation, which is consistent with the position that we put forward in your report and with what we hope to be able to bring before the courts when they deal with the scope of part VII.

Official Languages committee  Mr. Chairman, if I said something that might give one the impression that learning a second language is a step towards becoming assimilated, then I apologize. I will read the transcript to see if I erroneously gave that impression. That is exactly the opposite of what I meant. I believe that the knowledge of a second language represents an asset, and a bridge towards other languages.

Official Languages committee  Yes.

Official Languages committee  Yes.

Official Languages committee  That is a very good question. I should have reread the report before coming here today. One thing that I did read, though, Mr. Chairman, was the government's response to the recommendations. What I found surprising was that the 38 recommendations dealt with things that the government should do, while, in response, the government listed what had already been done, with the notable exception of a program related to challenges surrounding access to employment.