LANG Committee Report

IMMIGRATION AS A TOOL FOR THE DEVELOPMENT
OF OFFICIAL LANGUAGE MINORITY COMMUNITIES

1.         IMMIGRATION AND THE OFFICIAL LANGUAGE COMMUNITIES: RECENT DEVELOPMENTS

In the early 1990s, the Fédération des communautés Francophones et acadienne du Canada (FCFA) began a review of immigration’s role in the demographic renewal of Francophone minority communities. In 1991, a study entitled Facing Pluralism: The Future of Francophone and Acadian Communities in a Pluralistic Society¹ set out the issues. In 2000, the FCFA coordinated a cross-Canada tour it called “Dialogue” which — as the name indicates — was designed to be a forum where the Francophone and Acadian communities could meet and exchange ideas with the other components of Canadian society (Anglophones, Francophones in Quebec, Aboriginal people and ethnocultural groups).

The Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages is involved as well. In her first annual report, Commissioner Dyane Adam expressed the view that federal immigration policy “should be consistent with a demographic policy that respects the government’s commitments set out in Part VII of the Official Languages Act”.² More recently, in 2002, the Commissioner’s Office published two major studies on this issue. The first, prepared by Jack Jedwab, showed that immigration hurts Canada’s Francophone population, and especially its official language minorities. Recruitment efforts will be needed to help official language minority communities increase their numbers.³ The second of these studies, entitled Official Languages and Immigration: Obstacles and Opportunities for Immigrants and Communities,⁴ stressed the need to smooth immigrants’ integration into minority communities after they arrive in Canada.

Nor has Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) been inactive. In March 2002 its Minister, the Honourable Denis Coderre, announced the creation of the Citizenship and Immigration Canada — Francophone Minority Communities (CIC — FMC) Steering Committee. This consultative body was set up to determine the needs of Francophone minority communities with respect to immigration. On first appearing before the former Standing Joint Committee on Official Languages on 29 April 2002, the Minister said he hoped that creating the Committee would make possible the formulation of an action plan that would facilitate the recruitment, selection, reception and integration of new arrivals within Francophone minority communities.⁵ Such an action plan is now being developed and will be tabled later in 2003.

Significant progress has also been made on the legislative front. The new Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, which came into force on 28 June 2002, contains new interpretation standards for official languages in section 3:

3.(1)       The objectives of this Act with respect to immigration are

(b)     to enrich and strengthen the social and cultural fabric of Canadian society, while respecting the federal, bilingual and multicultural character of Canada;

(b.1)  to support and assist the development of minority official languages communities in Canada;

   (3)       This Act is to be construed and applied in a manner that

(d)     ensures that decisions taken under this Act are consistent with the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, including its principles of equality and freedom from discrimination and of the equality of English and French as the official languages of Canada;

(e)     supports the commitment of the Government of Canada to enhance the vitality of the English and French linguistic minority communities in Canada.⁶

In addition, the practical and procedural details of implementing the Act found in the first version of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations were revised by CIC to take knowledge of both official languages into account. The selection grid in the new Regulations gives more points to worker applicants who know both French and English. In addition, a new language assessment level, giving an applicant credit for “basic proficiency” in the two official languages, has been added to the three existing proficiency levels (high, moderate, none). The Committee welcomed CIC’s decision to retain the weighting suggested by the Commissioner of Official Languages when she appeared before the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration in February 2002.⁷

2.         THE WORK OF THE STANDING COMMITTEE ON OFFICIAL LANGUAGES

Since last spring, the Committee has heard from a great many witnesses on what immigration means for Canada’s official language communities. One constant emerged from our proceedings: the Francophone minority communities are not receiving a large enough proportion of Francophone immigrants to ensure their demographic renewal. This observation was made by the Commissioner of Official Languages,⁸ the FCFA,⁹ the Société franco-manitobaine and the CIC — FMC Steering Committee.¹⁰ The Honourable Denis Coderre also spoke of the importance of giving the official language minority communities a voice in the decision making.¹¹

Table 1, presented by Statistics Canada’s representatives when they appeared before the Committee on 19 February 2003, shows that few Francophone immigrants settle outside Quebec, and that this has been true since the 1970s. Table 2 shows in real numbers the distribution of immigrants by province and territory in 2001.

TABLE 1:
Knowledge of official languages among immigrants to Canada within the past
10 years, excluding Quebec

                Source: Statistics Canada, 1981, 1991 and 2001 censuses.

TABLE 2:
Distribution of immigrants by province and territory — total, 2001

In her second report, entitled Official Languages and Immigration: Obstacles and Opportunities for Immigrants and Communities,¹² the Commissioner of Official Languages notes that when all factors have been taken into consideration, the minority Francophone communities receive less than a quarter of the volume of immigrants received by the Anglophone communities.

At a time when Francophones’ minorization and dispersion appear likely to worsen in all Canadian provinces outside Quebec; when linguistic transfers from French to English are continuing; when the number of young Francophones in certain provinces is shrinking from one generation to the next, and the birthrate within the Francophone community remains low, even lower than the Canadian average; when the number of Anglophones in Quebec is dwindling, it seems more and more urgent to encourage immigration as a lever for the demographic renewal of official language minority communities. The Government of Canada has an obligation to support the efforts undertaken by the official language minority communities in this regard, in order to respect its commitment in Part VII of the Official Languages Act to the vitality and development of those communities.

Our report is divided into five sections. The first four sections are based on the divisions in the report released by the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages in November 2002, entitled Official Languages and Immigration: Obstacles and Opportunities for Immigrants and Communities.¹³ That document breaks the immigration process down into four phases: selection, settlement, adaptation, and contribution. The first of these takes place in the immigrants’ home countries, while the other three take place after their arrival in Canada. If immigration is to strengthen Canada's linguistic duality, and contribute to the development and vitality of both of Canada's official language groups, the Government of Canada and its departments and agencies must support all phases of the process, from promoting immigration abroad through integration into the host community. The fifth and final section of our report is devoted to the special immigration needs of Quebec’s Anglophone community.

3.         PROMOTION AND SELECTION ABROAD

3.1       The role of the Department of Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC)

Too often, Francophone immigrants interested in coming to Canada have only an incomplete picture of this country. Quebec is presented to them by immigration officers as the only place where French is spoken in Canada; there is a failure to explain that the French fact is present from sea to sea. (This criticism applies only to CIC officers, since Quebec’s immigration officers are perfectly entitled to promote their province to Francophone immigrants under the Canada-Quebec Agreement.)

It is urgent that something be done at the very start of the immigration process to change this. Immigration officers must inform Francophone immigrants of the existence of official language minority communities ready to welcome them. When she appeared before the Committee, the Official Languages Commissioner suggested that a Web site be created that would provide information on the official language minority communities and that could be used as an interactive communications tool by representatives of those communities, immigration officers and potential immigrants.¹⁴

RECOMMENDATION 1

The Committee recommends that immigration officers be required to inform Francophone potential immigrants of the existence of official language minority communities throughout Canada.

RECOMMENDATION 2

The Committee urges CIC to create a Web site that would provide information on the official language minority communities and that could be used as an interactive communications tool by representatives of those communities, immigration officers and potential immigrants.

It also seems necessary to set out exactly what objectives are to be achieved over the next five years with respect to the recruitment of immigrants speaking the language of the minority. CIC could define these objectives in collaboration with the official language communities. Moreover, the action plans formulated by CIC for implementation of Part VII of the Official Languages Act must make it possible to assess the progress achieved in this regard, while respecting the objectives set by Quebec and the other provinces.

RECOMMENDATION 3

The Committee recommends that the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration set objectives to be achieved over the next five years in selecting, and retaining within minority communities, immigrants who speak the minority language. The annual reports prepared by CIC as part of its obligations under section 41 of the Official Languages Act must provide information in this regard.

The Committee reiterates the importance of CIC support for the official language communities in their involvement in immigration issues. The Committee recommends that the Government of Canada ensure the permanence of such support, that the funding allocated to CIC in the coming years reflect a long-term strategy for the development and promotion of immigration for the benefit of the official language minority communities and that this objective be reflected in the Department’s action plan.

3.2       The role of the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade

While CIC is the key player in immigration, it was clear from our consultations that other federal institutions have a role as well, depending on their respective mandates. For example, the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade (DFAIT), through its network of embassies and consulates, has a duty to reflect Canada’s duality more accurately.¹⁵ The promotion of Canada abroad must demonstrate that French and English are both used throughout the country. DFAIT has this responsibility in any event under Part VII of the Official Languages Act.

RECOMMENDATION 4

The Committee recommends that the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade take appropriate steps to ensure that Canada’s embassies, consulates and diplomatic missions reflect, in the course of their work of promoting Canada abroad, Canada’s linguistic duality and in particular the existence of French-speaking and English-speaking communities throughout the country. To achieve this, the Committee recommends that Canada’s embassies, consulates and diplomatic missions give equal space to both official languages on their Web sites, among other actions.

3.3       The Multiculturalism Program

In 1969, the Bilingualism and Biculturalism Commission devoted one of the volumes of its report to the cultural contribution made by ethnic groups other than the two founding linguistic groups.¹⁶ In 1971, a multiculturalism policy was introduced, two years after the passage into law of the first Official Languages Act. In 1988, the federal government brought in the Multiculturalism Act, the same year as the newly amended Official Languages Act. The two policies have thus been evolving in tandem for 30 years.

The Committee considers that the multiculturalism and bilingualism policies and the programs that ensure their promotion should be mutually reinforcing. It is time to consider how greater convergence between the bilingualism and multiculturalism policies could be made possible. Within the Department of Canadian Heritage, the personnel of the Official Languages Support Program and the Multiculturalism Program would benefit from working more closely together, so that the Multiculturalism Program could respond to the specific needs of Francophone ethnocultural communities already established in Canada. It would also be a good idea to explore how the Department's Multiculturalism Program could support certain intercultural initiatives within the official language communities, and make service providers more aware of the needs of Francophone immigrants. It is important to remember that all sectors within the Department of Canadian Heritage are required to ensure the implementation of section 41 of the Official Languages Act. The Department's 1999-2002 action plan on implementation of section 41 provides in its fifth objective that the Multiculturalism Program should assist “the Francophone racial and ethnocultural communities to integrate harmoniously with the country's Francophone minority communities”.¹⁷

RECOMMENDATION 5

The Committee recommends that those in charge of the Official Languages Support Program and the Multiculturalism Program of the Department of Canadian Heritage strengthen their collaborative relationships so as to meet the needs of the Francophone ethnocultural communities.

3.4.      Federal-provincial agreements on immigration

For the past 30 years, the Government of Canada has been promoting the signing of agreements on immigration with the provinces and territories. Section 8 of the recent Immigration and Refugee Protection Act stipulates that the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration “with the approval of the Governor in Council, may enter into an agreement with the government of any province.”¹⁸

At the present time there are three types of immigration agreements between the federal government and the provincial and territorial governments: framework agreements, provincial nominee programs (PNP) and agreements on settlement services. A framework agreement gives a province the right to exercise specific powers over immigration and selection, or provides for a collaborative mechanism, including exchange of information, plus the obligation of the signatories to hold consultations on any amendments made to legislative measures, policies or programs. The provincial nominee programs (PNP) allow provinces and territories to designate a predetermined number of applicants every year who could make a significant contribution to their economic development. Settlement services agreements transfer to the provinces and territories responsibility for the design, administration and delivery of services for new arrivals settling on their territory.

Some of the agreements contain provisions on official languages. Table 3 is a summary of a detailed analysis done by the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages. It is important to note that the Canada-Quebec Agreement on Immigration (also known as the McDougall-Gagnon-Tremblay Agreement) allows Quebec to select independent immigrants and refugees on the basis of its own points system, subject to federal statutory requirements with regard to health, criminal records and security. To achieve its immigrant selection objectives, Quebec has opened offices in nine cities: Bangkok, Brussels, Buenos Aires, Hong Kong, Lisbon, London, Mexico City, New York and Paris. Three of these offices use Canadian embassy premises while the other six are located separately. Integration services are Quebec’s responsibility exclusively, which entails a transfer of federal funds to the province.¹⁹

TABLE 3:
Summary listing of federal-provincial-territorial immigration agreements

A preliminary analysis of the content of these agreements reveals that there are variations in the commitments to promote linguistic duality and protect minorities. For example, the framework agreements reached with British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Prince Edward Island and Yukon refer to official languages. Three of the nine provincial nominee program agreements (with Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Nova Scotia) also include official languages. Only two settlement services agreements have been concluded so far (with British Columbia and Manitoba), and they provide that the official language needs of new arrivals will be taken into consideration and that the organizations representing the official language minority will be consulted.

The Committee wants to reiterate the importance of ensuring that all federal-provincial-territorial agreements to be signed in the near future include the signatories’ commitment to promote linguistic duality and the vitality of official language communities. The Committee wants to see provisions on official languages systematically included in each federal-provincial-territorial agreement on immigration.

Moreover, these agreements must comply with the requirements of the Treasury Board Secretariat’s Alternative Service Delivery Policy, whose Annex C stipulates that it is necessary “to obtain a commitment to support the development of the official language minority communities affected, to consult those communities with regard to their needs and interests and to take concrete measures accordingly”²⁰ when services are transferred from one level of government to another.

RECOMMENDATION 6

The Committee recommends that from now on a language clause be included in all federal-provincial-territorial agreements on immigration, providing for the input of official language communities on all issues involving promotion, recruitment and immigration of new arrivals whose first language is that of the minority.

4.         SETTLING IN CANADA

The importance of the upheaval involved when individuals leave their country and move to a strange country is too often underestimated. Even in the happiest of circumstances, this is not a painless transition. There are many challenges to meet, whether learning a new language or finding a place in the labour force. For many potential immigrants, the mere thought of the efforts they would have to make if they decided to move permanently to another country is enough to discourage them. Settling in Canada means being able to respond rapidly to such basic needs as housing and education for the children.

In Quebec, Carrefours d’intégration²¹ [meeting places for integration] are available to connect immigrants with a wide range of reception and integration services, in particular information about making contact, the process of settling in Quebec, health, education and employment. The carrefours assess new arrivals’ French-language skills and give them access to appropriate language training, whether in situ, in an educational institution, or within a community framework.

The Committee believes that we must be on the look-out for new ways of facilitating the transition from one life to another. For example, consideration could be given to the possibility of taking an entire group of families together. Transition and integration might be facilitated and culture shock reduced. The President of the Société franco-manitobaine, Mr. Daniel Boucher, told the members of the Joint Committee in May 2002 about an experiment that was tried in Manitoba.²² Under a pilot project supported by both the province and CIC, some 30 families from Morocco, Algeria and the Congo have come to settle in Manitoba since 1998-99. Local community leaders had previously gone to Africa to “sell” the merits of their part of Canada. This initial experiment has made it possible to determine what challenges are involved in such a project and to prepare an action plan for welcoming and integrating Francophone immigrants.

RECOMMENDATION 7

With a view to facilitating the transition and integration of immigrants, the Committee recommends that CIC study the approach put forward by the Société franco-manitobaine and look into the possibility of targeting individuals and families in order to increase the chances of successful settlement in the same community.

5.         ADAPTING TO THE HOST COMMUNITY

While settling in Canada necessarily involves meeting basic needs, it is in the adaptation phase that new immigrants really begin to become part of their new country, in particular through joining the labour force. Three issues in particular emerged from the evidence heard by the Committee: recognition of credentials and skills acquired abroad, integration into the labour market, and the learning of two official languages.

5.1       Entering the labour market

A number of witnesses described the resistance that is encountered when it comes to getting recognition for diplomas and skills acquired abroad. The situation has repercussions both for the individual and for the community. It can undermine new arrivals’ self-esteem and complicate their integration into the Canadian labour market.

Universities, professional associations and governments have been aware of the problem for many years. Yet this is an issue that should be treated as a priority, not only to enable official language communities to benefit from new blood, but also to allow the Canadian economy to benefit fully from the arrival of skilled and qualified human resources. Francophone immigrants’ inability to find work in their area of expertise emerged as one of the largest obstacles to successful settlement, a phenomenon explained to a considerable extent by non-recognition of foreign credentials and professional experience. The Committee calls on the Government of Canada to show leadership in this issue and to convince the other players (provincial governments and professional associations) to resolve this impasse by proposing solutions that would ensure equitable recognition for Anglophone and Francophone immigrants throughout the country.

RECOMMENDATION 8

The Committee recommends that the Government of Canada take steps to ensure that the provinces and regulatory authorities treat foreign credentials equitably whether dealing with Francophone or Anglophone immigrants.

Over and above non-recognition of their credentials and experience, newcomers run into other problems when they attempt to join the labour market or gain access to language or work-related training services. A combined approach involving initial work experience and adequate training is essential if new arrivals are eventually to be able to find work corresponding to their occupational profile. More programs are needed that respond to these needs. The different levels of government should help employers, especially those in minority Francophone communities, create opportunities for new arrivals. These employers, if better informed, could take advantage of subsidy programs that cover a portion of immigrant employees’ wages for a given period. The Department of Human Resources Development Canada, under its mandate for employment and training, obviously has a direct responsibility in this regard, as do other federal institutions active in economic development.

RECOMMENDATION 9

The Committee recommends that the Department of Human Resources Development Canada, as a member of the CIC — FMC Steering Committee, step up its efforts to develop programs for the support and integration of new arrivals. Such programs would make it possible for new arrivals not only to acquire an initial experience in the labour market, but also to perfect their linguistic and professional skills. These initiatives would ensure that new arrivals would be able to contribute fully to their new community and to Canadian society.

RECOMMENDATION 10

We recommend that all regional development agencies such as the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency and Western Economic Diversification Canada work together with the CIC — FMC Steering Committee to study ways to facilitate the integration of Francophone immigrants into minority communities.

5.2       Learning the second official language

It is clear that new arrivals in Canada must speak one of either official languages if they are to settle here successfully. Accordingly, the Government of Canada, through CIC, offers immigrants basic language courses under the LINC (Language Instruction for Newcomers to Canada) Program. Table 4 sets out the budget allocated to settlement and resettlement programs, including LINC. The Committee is disappointed that the funding allocated to French-language instruction under the CLIC (cours de langue pour les immigrants au Canada) Program should be minimal compared to the funding for English-language instruction under LINC. This reality stands in stark contrast to CIC’s announced goal of recruiting and ensuring the settlement of more Francophone immigrants in minority Francophone communities.

RECOMMENDATION 11

The Committee recommends that CIC ensure that the funding it allocates language training to LINC and CLIC reflect the objectives of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act with respect to the recruitment and settlement of immigrants in both of Canada’s two official language communities.

TABLE 4: SETTLEMENT AND RESETTLEMENT PROGRAMS — BUDGET ($000s)

6.         INTEGRATING INTO THE COMMUNITY

6.1       The role of Francophone minority communities

The strategy of demographic renewal for official language minority communities can only work if it is accepted by the communities themselves and they throw themselves into it with energy and determination. We are talking about an undertaking that will only bear fruit in the long term. As Rosaline Frith, Co-chair of the CIC — FMC Steering Committee, told the Committee, “The Department cannot succeed on its own. Strong commitment from the communities will be required to generate the necessary conditions: employment, welcoming communities and so on.”²³

The Co-chairs of the Steering Committee underlined the need for an ethnic and cultural awareness campaign directed at the members of the Francophone and Acadian communities. Efforts must be made to ensure that immigrants who choose to come and join an official language minority community find the best possible welcome there, and so decide to stay.

The Francophone minority communities have now drawn up comprehensive development plans that target their communities’ priority sectors for action. These plans are prepared within the framework of the Canada-community agreements.²⁴ In time, the Committee believes that immigration will have to be identified as a priority sector in the plans for Francophone minority communities, as education was in an earlier era. Another indicator of the success of such an undertaking will be an increase in the number of Francophones from ethnocultural backgrounds who are active in community associations.

RECOMMENDATION 12

The Committee encourages the official language minority communities to continue making immigration a priority in their development plans.

6.2       The citizenship ceremony

Over 160,000 immigrants choose to apply for Canadian citizenship every year. Citizenship is conferred at a formal ceremony where the fundamental values and principles of Canadian society are proclaimed. Because linguistic duality is one of these important values, the Committee considers it essential that the whole process reflect that duality.

RECOMMENDATION 13

The Committee recommends that the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration ensure that Bill C-18 stipulate that the citizenship ceremonies be conducted in both official languages and that linguistic duality be promoted.

7.         ANGLOPHONE IMMIGRATION IN QUEBEC

On 17 February 2003, representatives of the Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN) appeared before the Committee to explain the special challenges that Quebec's Anglophone community faces when it comes to immigration. The QCGN presented a statistical portrait of Anglophone immigration to Quebec. From the start of the 20th century until the 1970s, immigration contributed in absolute numbers to increasing the size of Quebec's Anglophone community. In those decades, immigration succeeded in compensating for the out-migration of Anglophones toward other provinces. This is no longer the case. From 1980 to 1995, Quebec lost to other provinces almost a quarter of all immigrants who spoke only English when they arrived. The 2001 census has confirmed this trend. According to the QCGN, most of those who left were professionals aged 20 to 40 who represented value added for the Quebec economy. However, while there has been a decline in the number of immigrants who claim English as their mother tongue, there has since 1970 been an increasing proportion of new arrivals settling in Quebec who know both official languages.

TABLE 5:
Knowledge of official languages among immigrants to Canada within the past
10 years, Quebec only

                Source: Statistics Canada, 1981, 1991 and 2001 censuses.

The QCGN said in the course of evidence it presented to the Committee that immigration is a relatively new issue for the community.²⁵ It is therefore asking that the following steps be taken in the coming months:

These strike the Committee as interesting suggestions. However, we consider that CIC should explore these issues through the kind of bipartite collaborative mechanism that exists for the Francophone minority communities. A working group of this kind would make it possible to accurately identify the Anglophone community’s needs with respect to immigration, and to propose possible approaches to a solution, within the framework of the current Canada-Quebec Agreement.

RECOMMENDATION 14

The Committee recommends that CIC, within the framework of the Canada-Quebec Agreement currently in effect, consult the representative bodies of Quebec’s Anglophone community to determine whether they would be interested in setting up a steering committee similar to that for the Francophone minority communities.

CONCLUSION

It is evident that Canada's Francophone and Acadian communities have made a significant new change of approach toward ensuring their demographic renewal through immigration. The Committee was particularly pleased to observe the excellent working atmosphere that seems to exist at this time among the FCFA, CIC and the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages.

The day may not be far when larger numbers of immigrants begin electing to settle among official language minority communities. Nevertheless, other key players will have to lend a hand. We have indicated a number of them, including the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, Human Resources Development Canada and the regional development agencies.

The inclusion of provisions on official languages in federal-provincial-territorial agreements on immigration represents a degree of progress as far as intergovernmental cooperation is concerned, and we hope the result will be an increased number of Francophone immigrants settling outside Quebec. Future agreements should include the same provisions.

Finally, the Committee wishes to recall that governments cannot act alone in this regard. The official language minority communities will have to take ownership of the issue and make immigration a long-term community project to ensure their development.