Official Languages committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair. I must thank you for your visit to the west, and particularly to Alberta, so that you can meet with our communities. I also must thank you for inviting us to testify as part of your study on access to early childhood services in the minority language. My n

Official Languages committee  In fact, we are already seeing that the policy is bearing fruit. Alberta's French Policy was adopted by the Alberta government in June 2017.

Official Languages committee  It's completely new. However, in my opinion, its implementation depends on the Alberta government's good faith. It does not create an obligation as such. Instead, it is a policy that encourages all departments to develop French-language services that do not entail additional cost

Official Languages committee  My understanding is that there is a federal envelope. However, it already exists. In order for Alberta to obtain funding, we must essentially take money from other provinces. So there is a need—

Official Languages committee  My understanding is that there is a fixed budget envelope for provinces that provide services in French. Alberta has just adopted a francophonie policy, and the budget envelope has not increased. So if Alberta is going to get funding, it will do so to the detriment of the other p

Official Languages committee  Yes.

Official Languages committee  I no longer have the figures in front of me.

Official Languages committee  A very large proportion of francophones are immigrants.

Official Languages committee  Yes.

Official Languages committee  I don't have those statistics.

Official Languages committee  I’m sorry; I don’t know.

Official Languages committee  Yes, Mr. Arseneault. The ACFA is the representative of Albertan francophones. The ACFA speaks on behalf of all French-speaking Albertans. It wants to advance matters that affect the francophonie, including early childhood services. We work with all the other organizations, includ

Official Languages committee  I think so, and I will let my colleagues in attendance today express their point of view on the issue. To come back to what Mr. Arseneault and Mr. Généreux raised earlier, I would say that direct funding for communities would ensure a more efficient use of funds. Right now, the

Official Languages committee  I'm sorry. The question was what kind of relationship our organizations have with the provincial government?

Official Languages committee  Overall, our relationship is good right now, as evidenced by the announcement last June of a policy on the francophonie. As to early childhood in particular, I will let Ms. Anderson answer.