Standing Committee on Official Languages

Comité permanent des langues officielles

For immediate release

Ottawa, April 06, 2017 -

The Hon. Denis Paradis, Chair of the Standing Committee on Official Languages, today tabled a report in the House of Commons entitled Follow-up to the Study of the Translation Bureau Reverse the Trend: Strive for Excellence.

On February 7 and 9, 2017, the Committee continued its examination of the Translation Bureau.

In addition to inviting the Canadian Branch of the Association of Conference Interpreters and the Association of Linguistic Services Managers to appear, the Committee asked the Hon. Judy Foote, Minister of Public Services and Procurement, to comment on the response tabled by the government last fall to the Committee’s June 2016 report on the Translation Bureau.

The Committee states that it is satisfied with the measures that Minister Foote announced and urges her to act on the public commitments she made when she appeared before the Committee on February 9, 2017.

In conclusion, the Committee would like to acknowledge the outstanding contribution made by the Translation Bureau’s translators, interpreters and terminologists as well as all of its employees to building a country that is proud and respectful of its two official languages.

The New Democratic Party issued a supplementary opinion.

The report is available from the Committee’s web page on the Parliament of Canada website at http://www.parl.gc.ca/LANG-e. Anyone unable to access an electronic copy of the report can obtain a paper copy by contacting the Committee clerk.

The Standing Committee on Official Languages is composed of 10 members. The Chair is the Hon. Denis Paradis (Brome–Missisquoi) and the Vice chairs are John Nater (Perth–Wellington) and François Choquette (Drummond). The other members are René Arseneault (Madawaska–Restigouche), Sylvie Boucher (Beauport–Côte de Beaupré–Île d’Orléans–Charlevoix), Bernard Généreux (Montmagny–L’Islet–Kamouraska–Rivière du Loup), Linda Lapointe (Rivière des Mille Îles), Paul Lefebvre (Sudbury), Darrell Samson (Sackville–Preston–Chezzetcook) and Dan Vandal (Saint Boniface–Saint Vital).