Official Languages committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair. I will try not to take the full 10 minutes and give my presentation as quickly as possible, so I can answer questions from Committee members. Mr. Chair and members of the Committee, once again, thank you for welcoming me here today and inviting me to shar

Official Languages committee  If we look at the legislative and constitutional texts, we find that it is recognized that both languages should be on an equal footing. Both languages should be given the same consideration by federal institutions. Unfortunately, in practice this is not the case, and this is evi

Official Languages committee  I think that is part of the culture, in a sense. Obviously, there are more English than French speakers in the public service. Moreover, there are probably more unilingual English officials in the public service than unilingual French speakers. There is then a certain culture w

Official Languages committee  Yes, indeed.

Official Languages committee  I worked at the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal for 10 years. I remember very well that, at the time, when I wrote my decisions, if the case was argued in English, I wrote in English, and if it was argued in French, I wrote in French. The translator's contribution was invaluable i

Official Languages committee  I have concerns about the message being sent to the public and to other outside institutions. We are talking about a federal institution that has always been the authority on Canada's language policy, and I worry that it is sending a message to the private sector and to other pro

Official Languages committee  I am not sure I understand the question.

Official Languages committee  —of software?

Official Languages committee  I have never heard of any. The only province that has a law on official languages and that has a constitutional obligation is New Brunswick. I have never officially heard of the use of tools there, but I have gotten enough correspondence from the Government of New Brunswick to k

Official Languages committee  I have been lucky with the federal government, but in New Brunswick, I have gotten communications from public servants that had been translated, not by Portage, but by another tool that is very well known but that I will not name. The French version was incomprehensible.

Official Languages committee  The Official Languages Act makes it clear that both official languages are equal. The equality of both languages is the basic principle or foundation of the Official Languages Act and the constitutional provisions, such as section 16 of the charter. Equality does not mean that o

Official Languages committee  There is always a debate on the meaning of linguistic duality. I know that the federal government uses the expression “linguistic duality” to refer to bilingualism and the two official languages. In New Brunswick, linguistic duality also has a political and administrative meani

Official Languages committee  There you have it, in 30 seconds.

Official Languages committee  Your question has several components. With respect to the consultation of groups from outside Canada, we know that there are people who are very interested in translation in Europe and the United States, but not in the same context. They do not even have the same constitutional

Official Languages committee  I find that dynamic quite worrisome. I will use the example of the translation of court decisions. The federal government has an obligation to translate court decisions. Obviously, as a francophone lawyer, I want to ensure that the translation of a decision is done by language pr