Official Languages committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair, vice-chairs and honourable members, for the invitation. It is a privilege for me to share the podium with the representatives of the French for the Future group, Ms. Kolodziej and Ms. Leurent. We are here to discuss Bill C‑13. I hasten to point out at the

Official Languages committee  I am the one who thanks you.

Official Languages committee  I have thought about it and I do not believe that there would be any problems on the constitutional level, on the contrary. For the reasons that Ms. Kolodziej mentioned, I think that Treasury Board is the appropriate body to exercise a cross-cutting coordinating power over the en

Official Languages committee  My parents taught me to always care about doing things right, which fits with the proverbial “what's worth doing is worth doing well”. If it takes a little more time to tighten the screws, to implement the excellent recommendations submitted by the Fédération des communautés fran

Official Languages committee  I can only refer you, once again, to the well-reasoned and reasonable proposals by the FCFA.

Official Languages committee  Yes, of course. Substantive equality is the concept that applies to language rights. When it comes to equality between Canada’s official languages, section 16(1) of the charter states that: English and French are the official languages of Canada and have equality of status and

Official Languages committee  That is an excellent question. I see elements in the proposed amendments to part VII that would ensure constant and sustainable investment by the federal government for the future of francophone post-secondary education in minority communities. This could apply to the Universit

Official Languages committee  Between Bill C‑32, the first version of the bill, and Bill C‑13, there was a change in the preamble. In Bill C-13, there is now a sentence stating that the Official Languages Act applies “during emergencies“. I think it’s the very last sentence in the preamble. The pandemic taug

Official Languages committee  The bill contains a new section that would apply to the private sector in Québec as well as regions with a strong francophone presence. That’s notable. It’s an innovation brought forward by the act…

Official Languages committee  I do not see it that way, Mr. Beaulieu. If I understand correctly, the bill seeks to establish a balance, to determine where the federal government may legislate, such as businesses under federal jurisdiction, while leaving to the provinces, including the province of Québec, th

Official Languages committee  I don’t know where to start with that statement, but I do share your opinion about the fact that French is in decline. Statistics Canada revealed it in its new study this summer. It is declining everywhere, including Quebec. That is why Canada is proposing, with this bill, to tak

Official Languages committee  In my opinion, yes.

Official Languages committee  : I don’t want to infringe on Ms. Kolodziej’s ideas about immigration policy. However, I also think we need to establish a detailed immigration policy at the federal level to increase the demographic weight of francophones in Quebec and throughout the country.

Official Languages committee  That’s a very good question. I think it’s a good start. The proposed changes to part VII are necessary and beneficial. I will follow up on the idea that Ms. Kolodziej just raised about the importance of language provisions. Indeed, there is nothing yet in this regard. This

Official Languages committee  I agree. Ms. Kolodziej and I are really on the same page. Treasury Board must definitely be designated as the sole agency responsible for the implementation of the act. Mandatory linguistic provisions must definitely be included in the Official Languages Act, and immigration po