SoVote

Decentralized Democracy

House Hansard - 195

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
May 11, 2023 10:00AM
Context: House Hansard - 195 - May/11/23
Hon. Greg Fergus (Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister and to the President of the Treasury Board, Lib.)
  • May/11/23 5:33:36 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I want to congratulate my colleague from Ontario, who was born in British Columbia, on the quality of his French. I know that he is of Italian origin and he also speaks English, but it warms my heart to hear him speak French. Often, when people talk about the Century Initiative, they say that it is a federal government initiative. We know that is a false argument because it is just one initiative out of the 3,000 stakeholders that chose to submit ideas to the federal government. The government does not have any intention of increasing the Canadian population to 100 million people. Can my colleague make a few comments on this? How can we encourage francophone immigration in Canada and certainly in Quebec?
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Context: House Hansard - 195 - May/11/23
Hon. Greg Fergus
  • May/11/23 5:47:55 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am pleased that my hon. colleague from Saint-Jean said that we should take immigrants' interests into account. We should not resort to a utilitarian argument to speak on behalf of these people. I am a Quebecker. If we want to ensure the vitality of the French language in Quebec and if we really want to put ourselves in the immigrants' shoes, we could ask the hundreds of thousands of francophone immigrants from West Africa and the Caribbean who would like to come to Quebec if they are ready to accept the conditions in Quebec and—
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Context: House Hansard - 195 - May/11/23
Ms. Christine Normandin
  • May/11/23 5:49:02 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, there are two things. One of the problems with mass immigration is that when we try to look for top-notch people, we drain their countries of origin of the brains they need as much as we do. The other thing is that we are talking about francophone immigration. That is great. We can welcome francophone immigrants. As I mentioned in my speech, however, the resources are not available. We are seeing that in Ontario right now, where there is a teacher shortage in French schools. If a francophone family moves here, but there are no staff at the French schools, what will happen? They will send their children to an English school, cancelling out the impact of francophone immigration.
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Context: House Hansard - 195 - May/11/23
Hon. Greg Fergus (Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister and to the President of the Treasury Board, Lib.)
  • May/11/23 5:49:54 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, it is rare that I have an opportunity to debate with the member. These people are francophone and do not need to be francized. We can attract teachers who are ready to teach. They could also offer their services to Quebeckers. Why not let these people determine their own future? Why, as Canadians, should we determine what they should do and in what conditions they should live? Why not let these people vote with their feet?
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Context: House Hansard - 195 - May/11/23
Ms. Christine Normandin
  • May/11/23 5:50:28 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, if it is so simple to bring in French teachers, why has Ontario not already done so? One has to wonder, but there is clearly no acceptable answer because there are no francophone teachers. Even if those who settle here are francophone and do not need to be francized, the government is still losing sight of the problem of anglicization and language transfer toward English. That problem will only get worse if services are not offered in French, as is currently the case. Francophone immigration in and of itself will not resolve the problem, particularly since the government's target of 4.4% francophone immigration, which has been met only once in 20 years, is insufficient to ensure that there is no language transfer toward English and that the demographic weight of francophones in Canada is maintained.
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