Hon. Karina Gould, P.C., M.P., Minister of Families, Children and Social Development Ms. Gould: Thank you for the question. On the contrary, every agreement with the provinces and territories includes language clauses, precisely to ensure that the provinces and territories have enough child care spaces in French, in places where French is a minority language. This initiative is a priority to our government. The information on these agreements is posted on our website. We could provide you with details on these provisions. This initiative is very important to our government and especially important for ensuring the continuity of French and access to child care services in a person’s first language.

[English]

Hon. Bernadette Clement: Good afternoon, minister. During my short experience as a senator, I have met with francophone groups across the country. They are nearly unanimous in calling for language provisions in the transfer payments. They talked about a serious lack of mental health care services in French and French-language child care deserts.

Your work on negotiations and provincial agreements on child care services is important, but why are there no language clauses to ensure that child care services in French are properly funded?