LANG Committee Report

Notwithstanding the current reform of the Official Languages Act (OLA), the Bloc Québécois believes that in order to truly “protect and promote French” in Quebec and in Canada, it must be recognized that French is the only official minority language in Canada.In the North American context, only the French language is in decline and in need of protection and promotion.

Representatives of the Acadian nation and Francophone communities outside Québec see in the proposed OLA significant progress won at great cost. We stand in solidarity with them and we support their claims.

However, to preserve linguistic duality and French in Canada, it is essential to maintain and promote the French character of Quebec, the only majority French-speaking state in North America.

Protecting and promoting French

In the wake of the Speech from the Throne, during which the federal government acknowledged for the first time that it had “a responsibility to protect and promote French not only outside Quebec, but also in Quebec”, a motion was adopted tasking the Committee on Official Languages to conduct a study on the situation of French in Quebec and the impact of federal language policy on the Charter of the French Language, for the first time since the OLA was adopted in 1969, among other topics.

The decline of the French language

Among those consulted were representatives of Quebec French-language defense and promotion organizations, demographers and statisticians who specialize in the linguistic dynamics underlying the decline of French, as well as Quebec language law specialists. They provided an objective picture of the decline of French and further affirmed that an asymmetrical approach must be put in place to ensure that the OLA respects the territorial linguistic model provided by Bill 101.

The testimony of mathematician Charles Castonguay before the Committee was crystal clear: “Indeed, between 2001 and 2016, the last 15 years, Quebec's French-speaking majority has plunged at record speed to a record low. In contrast, in Quebec, for the first time in census history, English has roughly maintained its weight in Quebec as a mother tongue, and increased its weight somewhat in terms of the main home language. The most stunning development is on Montreal Island, where French mother tongue youth have become more bilingual than their English counterparts and are now adopting English as the main home language at the rate of 6%. As for the rest of Canada, the anglicization rate of the French mother tongue population outside Quebec has steadily increased, from 27% in 1971 to 40% in 2016.”

Witnesses also cited other Statistics Canada studies that predict an accelerated decline of French in Quebec (and in other provinces) by 2036. It should be noted that the Statistics Canada representative did not provide a clear picture of the situation. The former specialist of this federal institution, Jean-Pierre Corbeil, advocated for additional research to provide a more accurate picture of the situation, but did not dispute the decline of the French language in Quebec.

False symmetry

Essayist Frédéric Lacroix summarized the situation as follows:“Within a framework of symmetry, the Official Languages Act institutes a double majority in Canada in which anglophones form the majority outside Quebec and francophones the majority within Quebec. This double majority is real only if one considers that the linguistic dynamic is determined by provincial borders. However, this is false. The linguistic dynamic is determined by the country to which Quebec belongs, which is Canada. The Official Languages Act thus fosters the development and vitality of Quebec's anglophone minority. However, that minority is not a minority. It is in fact an integral part of the Canadian majority and possesses all its attributes, including linguistic vitality.”

Robert Laplante concurred: “It is sociologically indefensible to suggest that the situation of French in Quebec is perfectly symmetrical with that of English in Canada and, likewise, with the situation of anglophone and francophone minorities. They cannot be viewed as equivalent. There are not two majorities in Canada; there is only one, and it is an anglophone majority, a representative group of which lives in Quebec.”

Territorial model

Several Quebec experts were of the opinion that the current federal linguistic model of individual rights (known as “personality rights”) does not contribute to the promotion and protection of the French language and culture, and that it should be abandoned in favor of the so-called territorial model, such as Bill 101.

Quebec language law professor Guillaume Rousseau summed it up this way: “What the literature tells us is that there are two major language-policy models: the one based on personality, the other on territoriality.” The OLA is based on the personality principle, a policy of institutional bilingualism guided by individual choices of either official language. To quote demographer Patrick Sabourin, “the language choice is left up to each individual. This is called the personality principle.”[1]

The other approach to language planning is based rather on collective and territorial rights. It focuses on establishing an official and common language in a given territory. Patrick Sabourin stated: “in Switzerland, for example, the place of residence determines what languages are used. This is called a territoriality principle.Competition between languages is limited to certain zones that are designated bilingual. [...] I should point out that the geographic concentration of speakers is a key factor in the survival of linguistic communities. The more geographically concentrated the speakers of a language, the greater their potential linguistic vitality”.[2]

Mr. Rousseau noted that “virtually all language policy experts around the world believe that only a territoriality-based approach can guarantee the survival and development of a minority language.” He pointed out that after the establishment of Bill 101, which was based on the territorial model, there was progress regarding French in Quebec. Although several factors such as migration flows came into play, the indicators of linguistic vitality began to decline again as the law was undermined, especially by Supreme Court rulings. Thus, the Charter of the French Language has moved away from the territoriality principle and shifted closer and closer to the personality principle.

The representatives of Quebec organizations and French language defense experts who appeared before the Committee stated in turn that the linguistic territoriality principle was the one best suited to Quebec’s situation. Their message reinforced the position of the Quebec government, who is calling to be the sole master of Quebec's language framework, thus ensuring that French is and remains the common language in Quebec. These witnesses also defended Francophone communities in majority English-speaking provinces, where territoriality and personality principles could however coexist depending on the concentration of Francophones. It has been demonstrated that the personality principle alone does not protect these minorities.

Respecting the “by and for” Quebec

Witnesses highlighted the fact that the individual language rights model (personality principle) used in the OLA had the effect of undermining the territorial francization measures contained in the original version of the Charter of the French language. In particular, we note the exemption to Bill 101 for private companies under federal jurisdiction, as well as the barriers to French as a language of work and service in the federal public service in Quebec.

Francophones outside Québec who have a dual minority status (provincial and federal) have applied the notion of “by and for” over smaller territories (the ability of communities “to ensure their own development”). In education, this means school systems run by francophones, for francophones, and Ottawa has recognized this principle. In Quebec, “by and for” implies the recognition of the autonomy of the Quebec State, the only government formed by a French-speaking majority, and its right to manage its own language framework without federal interference. The director of L'Action nationale, Robert Laplante, stated before the Committee: “The Quebec National Assembly has and must have every right to conduct language planning”.

And wherever the Official Languages Act is to be applied, said Ms. Anne Michèle Meggs, we must be attentive, “so it doesn't undermine” Quebec's francization efforts. This means accepting that the Charter of the French Language applies to businesses under federal jurisdiction and that in the event of a conflict between federal laws and the Quebec Charter, the latter takes precedence.

It will also require, as Mr. François Côté pointed out, ensuring that the right to work in French within the federal public service goes beyond a “superficial equality”. “Measures are needed to provide genuine protection for the collective right to use French in federal businesses and the public service”.

Stop funding anglicization in Quebec

The structure of the Official Languages Act, which establishes a false symmetry between Anglo-Quebecers and francophones elsewhere in the country, means that almost all OLA funding in Quebec is spent on the protection and promotion of English, which is not in need of protection. “The millions of dollars awarded each year to Quebec under (the Official Languages Act) have served to promote English”, noted Ms. Alepin.

“This is an obvious sign that the Official Languages Act has missed its target and that its design flaws have been exacerbated by the actions of Ottawa, which has created a distorted dynamic through its spending power and interventions in Quebec's anglophone community and institutions by contributing to an overfunding of programs”, said Mr. Laplante. Professor Guillaume Rousseau added “that we must ensure that federal government grants increasingly go to citizen groups that promote French language culture in Quebec.”

The disproportionately large funding granted to Anglo-Quebec healthcare institutions and post-secondary education is well documented and is in stark contrast with the chronic underfunding of institutions serving francophone minorities in other provinces, which are often neglected by their governments and struggling to survive. “We are at a critical point when we absolutely have to get adequate funding to support our institutions”, pleaded Ms. Lynn Brouillette.

In his testimony, essayist Frédéric Lacroix spoke specifically about postsecondary programs for francophones outside Quebec, which are “seriously underfunded in all Canadian provinces. Current investment represents only a fraction of the money that should be invested in them. The situation is reversed in Quebec, where English-language universities and cégeps receive two or three times more funding based on the anglophone community's demographic weight.”  

Sheila Risbud, ACFA, echoed these grievances when speaking about the French Saint-Jean campus in Edmonton, “which suffers from a serious operational and structural financial deficit”, as did Roger Lepage, a Franco-Saskatchewan lawyer, who painted a distressing picture of insufficient, overcrowded, underfunded and dilapidated schools. “In comparison to the overfunding of the anglophone school system in Quebec, one can only feel anger over what Mr. Lepage had to go through”, commented Marie-Anne Alepin to the Committee. 

The dynamics of immigration

Decreasing fertility rates in Canada and Quebec have for decades led to a significant increase in the number of immigrants. This influx of immigrants presents two major issues for francophones: in Quebec, the integration of too high a proportion of newcomers into the English-speaking community is contributing to the decline of the French language, while elsewhere in Canada, francophone minorities are not receiving enough francophone immigrants to overcome losses due to declining birth rates and language shifts to English.

In Quebec, said Alepin to the Committee, “the most important question is still the rate of immigration. It would be better to control our immigration process and accept more francophones. It's essential. Not just desirable, but essential.” However, despite the recognition of distinctiveness in the Canada-Quebec Accord on immigration, “the immigration process is managed by the federal government. So everything is bilingual”, noted Ms. Meggs. And every step of the way, “the message is clear: in Quebec, English is an official language of their new country. They are allowed to choose English, and it's even fine if they do. This is the exact opposite of the message that Quebec is trying to convey, and it forms the basis for the Accord, namely the assertion that French is an inclusive, participatory language.” 

Other than handing over more powers to Quebec, “it has already been suggested to the government that everyone in the process of becoming citizens of Quebec should have a knowledge of French. This would send out the strong message that to be a Quebec citizen, you need to be able to speak French”, concluded Ms. Meggs.  

Addressing francophone immigration outside Quebec, witnesses pointed out that Ottawa has failed to meet its own targets. In this regard, they blame the federal government’s half-hearted commitment to French-language immigration. For his part, Patrick Sabourin, Doctor of Demography, warned the Committee about “the impression that francophone immigration will save francophones outside Quebec”. One must beware of that notion, he said. “Francophones arriving in Canada will be subjected to the same pressures francophones outside Quebec now feel. They'll also be under pressure to switch to English and will undergo the same linguistic assimilation that francophones outside Quebec experience.”

Resistance to an asymmetric approach

Although the message put forth by the Canadian government since the 2020 Speech from the Throne which gave the Standing Committee on Official Languages its current mandate, that French needs to be protected and promoted everywhere, even in Quebec, seems to reflect the views of most of the experts heard at the 2021 and 2022 hearings, it is not without its detractors.

Objections from Anglo-Quebecer representatives were not unexpected, but the reluctance expressed by the Commissioner of Official Languages, Mr. Raymond Théberge, during his appearance on February 9, 2022, was worrisome. When questioned, Mr. Théberge refused to acknowledge that French is in decline in Quebec. He even came to the defense of Anglo-Quebecers, reiterating the false symmetry that the federal government seems to have finally abandoned. “With respect to the anglophone community in Quebec, many of the socioeconomic factors tell us that they are much less affluent than the francophone majority in Quebec, he said. The English-speaking community in Quebec has its own challenges, just as French-speaking communities outside Quebec have their own challenges. I feel that it is important to mention that.” 

As for the Anglo-Quebec witnesses, the Committee was treated to a few inappropriate comments, suggesting, as is too often the case, that the promotion of French in Quebec borders on racism. Case in point, this acerbic intervention by Jack Jedwab, on April 27, 2021: “I've always found that a bit funny, too, that we in Quebec in the National Assembly will say that we don't want the word ‘hi’, but we're okay with the N-word. I mean, think about the paradox there.” Or this reference to the treatment of African Americans in the Southern United States: “To not do so would be to tell English-speaking Quebeckers: ‘We're going to let you on the bus, but you gotta sit in the back’”, said Marlene Jennings to the Committee, on February 25, 2021.

The Bloc Québécois deplores and denounces the radicalism and violence of these statements, which are detrimental to the quality of the democratic conversation.

A detailed portrait

Among other things, this Committee, as part of the new government policy was to “protect and promote French not only outside Quebec, but also in Quebec”, based on “an objective and detailed picture of French and English in Quebec, as well as of the francophone and Acadian communities, based on the main language indicators”.

The Committee heard from many expert witnesses, but did not really provide this “objective and detailed picture” which is essential to the evaluation of all the recommendations and measures that will follow. The experts provided highly relevant data on the status of the French language in Quebec, but the ongoing situation of the Francophonie outside Quebec, which is severe in many provinces, was only briefly addressed. 

The report titled The Role of the Government of Canada in the Protection and Promotion of the French Language in Canada and Quebec highlights early on the importance of the Statistics Canada data set “on the evolution of the French-speaking population in Canada”. However, this data set should be updated with the integration of language data from the 2021 Census released by Statistics Canada in August 2022. By integrating witnesses’ insights and adding new data as needed, the Committee would be able to release an even more illuminating update on the whole of Francophonie in Quebec and Canada.

As a whole, the testimonies of representatives of Quebec French-language defense and promotion organizations, demographers and statisticians who specialize in the linguistic dynamics underlying the decline of French, as well as Quebec language law specialists imply that the federal language framework should:

• - Recognize that Quebec is a nation with French as its only official and common language, that Quebec is the sole decision-maker of language policy on the territory of Quebec.
• - Recognize that the Charter of the French Language (CFL), based on the territoriality model, is essential to protect, promote and ensure the sustainability of French in Quebec.
• - Specify that no provision or interpretation of the OLA may have the effect of hindering the use of French as a common language in Quebec and that, in the event of a discrepancy between the OLA and the CFL, the latter takes precedence.
• - Consequently, that the Charter of the French Language applies to private enterprises under federal jurisdiction in Quebec.
• - Establish language measures to ensure that federal institutions in Quebec operate in a manner compatible with the objectives of the Charter of the French Language, therefore to incorporate the framework of the Charter of the French Language into the Official Languages Act to govern the federal public service in Quebec.
• - Amend the sections of the Official Languages Act (OLA) that enshrine a false symmetry between Francophones outside Quebec and Anglo-Quebecers, by excluding the concept of Anglophone minorities.
• - Amend Part VII to reflect a differentiated approach to the protection and promotion of French in Quebec.
• - Ensuring that the rights and real needs of English-speaking Quebecers in relation to the vitality of their community are respected is primarily the responsibility of the Quebec government.
• - Ensure that federal financial contributions to Quebec under the OLA cannot be made without the agreement of the Government of Quebec, and that they are unconditional, including language clauses in intergovernmental agreements in Quebec.
• - Require the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration to adopt a Francophone immigration policy that gives full authority to the Government of Quebec and allows knowledge of French to be a requirement for Canadian citizenship in Quebec.