44th Parl. 1st Sess.
June 3, 2024 11:00AM
- Jun/3/24 2:15:27 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, last Thursday was the Canadian Open golf tournament in Hamilton.
Clearly that Ontario town learned nothing from the last Grey Cup final and the heartfelt plea from Marc‑Antoine Dequoy. At the Hamilton Golf and Country Club, almost all the signage and ads were in English only.
It goes beyond signs. For example, Quebec golfer Marc‑Olivier Plasse was introduced by the former president of Golf Québec in English only. A francophone introducing a francophone competitor in English must be some sort of joke.
Golf Canada is the Canadian national sport federation for golf and therefore subject to the Official Languages Act. It receives subsidies from Quebeckers' money. They even received $15,000 specifically for official languages.
Why the need for this constant reminder that the presence of French at the Canadian Open should be normal?
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- Jun/3/24 2:26:03 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, although the member for Alfred-Pellan has been criticized for suggesting the idea of promoting English as an official language of Quebec, he is not the first Liberal MP to come up with it.
In fact, none other than the Prime Minister himself raised the matter back in 2016. At the time, he was objecting to the prospect of the city of Ottawa being designated bilingual because Gatineau, right next door in Quebec, was a unilingual French-language city. He opposed bilingualism for Franco-Ontarians unless Quebec stepped up and made English an official language. In fact, he had to apologize and admitted that he was being cheeky.
Will he ask the member to do the same?
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- Jun/3/24 2:26:38 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Bloc Québécois's comments are very hypocritical.
First of all, the action plan that we put forward to strengthen the French language was the most ambitious ever. The Bloc Québécois voted against it.
In budget 2024, we are investing heavily to create substantive equality between the official languages. What did the Bloc Québécois do? Again, it voted no.
The Bloc could at least have the courage to stand by its position and admit that it says one thing and does the opposite.
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- Jun/3/24 2:27:23 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, when it comes to French, the Liberals are a horror show.
It starts with the Prime Minister, who wanted to make Gatineau bilingual. Then there is the member for Glengarry—Prescott—Russell, who thinks that people who worry about the decline of French are being extreme and are full of the s-word. Next, there is the member for Mount Royal, who said that it was a disgrace to apply Bill 101 to federally regulated businesses. On top of that, there is the member for Saint-Laurent, who thinks that Bill 96 will prevent anglophones from getting care. It is nonsense.
Why are the Liberals systematically incapable of talking about the French language without going off the rails?
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- Jun/3/24 2:40:04 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, here we go again, having to talk about the Liberals' blunders when it comes to the French language.
Last week, the member for Alfred-Pellan wanted to promote English to the status of an official language in Quebec. Obviously, he was criticized by the parties in the Quebec National Assembly. Even the Quebec Liberals described it as an attack on Robert Bourassa's legacy. In this Parliament, however, not a single Liberal has spoken out so far against what the member for Alfred-Pellan proposed.
Silence means consent. Will someone finally stand up and put the member in his place?
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- Jun/3/24 2:40:48 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I will say what we on this side of the House stand up for.
We stand up for French. We stand up for bilingualism. We stand up for the anglophone minority in Quebec. We stand up for the francophone minority outside Quebec. We stand up for two strong official languages. We stand up to defend Quebec within Canada.
All they think about is stirring up trouble, making sure that there are divisions to point at. They say they support official languages, but they vote against the action plan. They say they support official languages, but they vote against the budget. It is profoundly hypocritical.
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- Jun/3/24 2:41:24 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, there is not a penny more for French in his official languages action plan.
There is only one francophone state in North America. Only one. However, that is one too many for the member for Alfred-Pellan, who wants us to make English an official language.
I will say it again for those sitting at the back who have not yet understood: In order for Canada to be bilingual, Quebec needs to be French. I will repeat this too: There is only one official language that is at risk in Canada and Quebec, and that is French.
Why do the Liberals always want to introduce more anglicization measures?
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- Jun/3/24 2:42:05 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we recognize that Quebec is a French province. We have always said that and we have always defended that. We will continue to defend the French fact.
If my colleague had bothered to read the official languages action plan, then he would have seen that there is money there for French. If he had bothered to read the budget, then he might have understood that he is voting against things that he wants to defend.
He needs to be consistent. Does he want more French? Then he should have voted in favour of the official languages action plan. Does he want more money for French? Then he should have voted in favour of the budget.
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- Jun/3/24 2:42:42 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, that is nonsense.
Unfortunately, it will not be long before the member for Alfred-Pellan's wish to anglicize Quebec comes true. The Liberals are working on it already.
The Office québécois de la langue française reports that the federal government is the worst employer in Quebec when it comes to the right to work primarily in French. Quebec's French language commissioner has proven that integrating immigrants into French-speaking society is impossible if the levels endorsed by Ottawa are maintained.
The Liberals are already acting as if English is an official language. Could that be why they are defending their member for Alfred-Pellan?
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- Jun/3/24 2:43:22 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, as the member opposite knows full well, with the modernization of the Official Languages Act, our government has made it abundantly clear that French is declining here in Canada.
I come from Alberta. I studied in French at Campus Saint-Jean. Thanks to investments by the Government of Alberta, and thanks to official bilingualism across the country, I was able to study in the language of my choice, the language of Molière, in the right way.
We are going to protect official language minority communities in every province and in every corner of the country, because French and English matter. Under the act, Quebec is a unilingual francophone nation.
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- Jun/3/24 3:08:14 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, first, the member for Saint-Laurent denied the decline of French in Quebec. Then, a Franco-Ontarian member said that witnesses who appeared before the Standing Committee on Official Languages were full of you-know-what. Now, the Quebec member for Alfred-Pellan is saying that, in order to be stronger, Quebec should be bilingual.
We are now seeing the Liberal caucus's true colours. The Liberals have neither the desire, nor the intention to protect French and stop its decline.
Will the Prime Minister act now to support French in Quebec and call his members to order?
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- Jun/3/24 3:08:54 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, someone pinch me. I heard my colleague opposite comment on French. However, the Conservative Party and francophones from Quebec have accused me of speaking too much French here in the House. Now they are all up in arms.
At some point, they need to decide which side they are really on.
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