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Minutes of Proceedings

44th Parliament, 1st Session
Meeting 38
Tuesday, November 1, 2022, 11:05 a.m. to 1:01 p.m.
Webcast
Presiding
René Arseneault, Chair (Liberal)

• Jacques Gourde for Bernard Généreux (Conservative)
• Jacques Gourde for Joël Godin (Conservative)
• Ken McDonald for Francis Drouin (Liberal)
• Darrell Samson for Francis Drouin (Liberal)
• Darrell Samson for Angelo Iacono (Liberal)
• Leah Taylor Roy for Angelo Iacono (Liberal)
• Earl Dreeshen for Brad Vis (Conservative)
House of Commons
• Alexie Labelle, Procedural Clerk
• Jean-François Lafleur, Procedural Clerk
 
Library of Parliament
• Lucie Lecomte, Analyst
• Emilie Lusson, Research Assistant
As an individual
• Roger Paul, Retired Executive Director, Fédération nationale des conseils scolaires francophones
• Gabriel Poliquin, Lawyer
Association des conseils scolaires des écoles publiques de l'Ontario
• Denis Chartrand, President
• Isabelle Girard, Executive Director
Université de Saint-Boniface
• Sophie Bouffard, President
Pursuant to the order of reference of Monday, May 30, 2022, the committee resumed consideration of Bill C-13, An Act to amend the Official Languages Act, to enact the Use of French in Federally Regulated Private Businesses Act and to make related amendments to other Acts.

Denis Chartrand and Sophie Bouffard made statements and answered questions.

Motion

Marc G. Serré moved, — That, in relation to the consideration of Bill C-13, An Act to amend the Official Languages Act, to enact the Use of French in Federally Regulated Private Businesses Act and to make related amendments to other Acts:

  1. the Minister of Official Languages, the President of the Treasury Board and the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship be invited to appear no later than Thursday, November 17, 2022;
  2. amendments to Bill C-13 be submitted to the clerk in both official languages no later than 5:00 p.m. ET on Thursday, November 17, 2022, and distributed to committee members in both official languages by 12:00 p.m. on Friday, November 18, 2022;
  3. the clerk of the committee write immediately to each member who is not a member of a caucus represented on the committee and any independent members to inform them of the study of the bill by the committee and to invite them to prepare and submit any proposed amendments to the bill which they would suggest that the committee consider during the clause-by-clause study of the bill;
  4. the committee proceed with clause-by-clause consideration of the bill no later than Tuesday, November 22, 2022, at 11:00 a.m. ET; and
  5. if the committee has not completed the clause-by-clause consideration of the bill by 12:00 p.m. ET on Thursday, December 1, 2022, all remaining amendments submitted to the committee shall be deemed moved, the Chair shall put the question, forthwith and successively, without further debate, on all remaining clauses and amendments submitted to the committee, as well as each and every question necessary to dispose of clause-by-clause consideration of the bill, as well as all questions necessary to report the bill to the House and to order the Chair to report the bill to the House as soon as possible.

Debate arose thereon.

At 11:32 a.m., the sitting was suspended.

At 11:34 a.m., the sitting resumed.

Amendment

Joël Godin moved, — That the motion be amended

  1. by adding after the words “Treasury Board” in point one, the words “the Minister of Canadian Heritage”;
  2. by adding after the word “Citizenship” in point one, the words “as well as their department officials”;
  3. by adding after the word “appear” in point one, the words “for two hours per minister, in separate meetings”;
  4. by replacing the number “17” in point one, with the number “24”;
  5. by replacing the number “17” in point two, with the number “24”;
  6. by replacing the number “18” in point two, with the number “25”;
  7. by replacing the number “22” in point four, with the number “29”; and
  8. by deleting point five.

Debate arose thereon.

Subamendment

Mario Beaulieu moved, — That the amendment be amended:

  1. by replacing the words “no later than 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, November 24, 2022” in point two, with the words “no later than Tuesday, December 6, 2022”;
  2. by replacing the words “by 12:00 p.m. on Friday, November 25, 2022” in point two, with the words “by 12:00 p.m. on Wednesday, December 7, 2022”; and
  3. by replacing the words “no later than 11:00 a.m. on Tuesday, November 29, 2022” in point four, with the words “no earlier than December 8, 2022, at 11:00 a.m.”.

Debate arose thereon.

At 1:01 p.m., the sitting was suspended.

Thursday, November 3, 2022 at 11:00 a.m., the sitting resumed.

The debate on the subamendment of Mario Beaulieu continued.

The question was put on the subamendment of Mario Beaulieu and it was negatived on the following recorded division:

YEAS: Mario Beaulieu, Marc Dalton, Bernard Généreux, Jacques Gourde, Brad Vis — 5;

NAYS: Niki Ashton, Patricia Lattanzio, Stéphane Lauzon, Ken McDonald, Darrell Samson, Marc G. Serré — 6.

The committee resumed consideration of the amendment of Joël Godin.

Subamendment

Mario Beaulieu moved, — That the amendment be amended by adding after the words “the committee proceed with clause-by-clause consideration of the bill no later than Tuesday, November 29, 2022, at 11:00 a.m. ET” the following:

That, in the context of the clause-by-clause study of Bill C-13, the committee study, on a priority basis, the amendments that take the place of the requests of the Government of Quebec and the Francophone communities outside Quebec, namely:

  1. That Bill C-13, in Clause 2, be amended by replacing line 17 on page 1 to line 16 on page 2 with the following:

    “AND WHEREAS the Government of Canada is committed to respecting Quebec’s choices regarding its language management, provided for in the Charter of the French Language;”

  2. That Bill C-13, in Clause 2, be amended
    1. by deleting lines 19 to 44 on page 2.
    2. by replacing line 6 on page 3 with the following:

      “that French is the official and common language of Quebec,”

    3. by replacing lines 16 to 29 on page 3 with the following:

      “AND WHEREAS the Government of Canada recognizes that English or French linguistic minority communities are present in every province and territory and that the English linguistic minority community in Quebec and the French linguistic minority communities in the other provinces and territories have different needs;

      AND WHEREAS the Government of Canada recognizes that the existence of a majority-French society in a Quebec where the future of French is assured is a legitimate objective and a fundamental principle of the Canadian official languages regime;”

  3. That Bill C-13, in Clause 3, be amended by replacing line 39 on page 3 with the following:

    “inant use of English and that the goal of the Charter of the French Language is to protect, strengthen and promote that language; and”

  4. That Bill C-13, in Clause 7, be amended by adding after line 17 on page 5 the following:

    (d) language rights are to be interpreted in a manner that accounts for the official languages dynamic in each province and territory.”

  5. That Bill C-13 be amended by adding after line 12 on page 8 the following new clause:

    12.1 The Act is amended by adding the following after section 31:

    31.1 The implementation of this Part in Quebec shall take account of the objective to protect and promote French.”

  6. That Bill C-13 be amended by adding after line 12 on page 8 the following new clause:

    12.1 Paragraph 32(2)(c) of the Act is replaced by the following:

    (c) any other factors that the Governor in Council considers appropriate, including the minority situation of French in Canada due to the predominant use of English and the linguistic specificity of Quebec.”

  7. That Bill C-13, in Clause 13, be amended by adding after line 26 on page 8 the following:

    (2) Section 33 of the Act is renumbered as subsection 33(1) and is amended by adding the following:

    (2) In making regulations under subsection (1), the Governor in Council shall take into consideration the minority status of the French language in Canada due to the predominant use of English and the linguistic specificity of Quebec.”

  8. That Bill C-13, in Clause 14, be amended by adding after line 32 on page 8 the following:

    (2) The deputy head or other administrative head of any federal institution and the chief executive officer of any corporation subject to the Act must, at the time of their appointment, be able to speak and understand French clearly.”

  9. That Bill C-13, in Clause 15, be amended by replacing line 40 on page 8 with the following:

    “language by its employees, taking into account the minority situation of French in Canada due to the predominant use of English and the linguistic specificity of Quebec; and”

  10. That Bill C-13, in Clause 18, be amended by replacing line 22 on page 10 with the following:

    “use of either official language by their employees, taking into account the minority status of the French language in Canada due to the predominant use of English and the linguistic specificity of Quebec;”

  11. That Bill C-13, in Clause 21, be amended
    1. by replacing lines 1 and 2 on page 11 with the following:

      21 The heading before section 41 and sections 41 and 42 of the Act are replaced by the following:

      Promotion of French and Enhancement of Community Vitality”

    2. by replacing line 11 on page 11 with the following:

      (2) The Government of Canada, recognizing and taking into account that French”

    3. by replacing lines 13 and 14 on page 11 with the following:

      “due to the predominant use of English and that it is the official and common language of Quebec, is committed to protecting and promoting the French language while respecting the linguistic development of Quebec provided for in the Charter of the French Language.”

    4. by replacing line 23 on page 11 with the following:

      Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, subject to section 59 of the Constitution Act, 1982, in Quebec, the right to”

    5. by replacing line 32 on page 11 with the following:

      “subsections (1) to (3) and to respect the linguistic development of Quebec provided for in the Charter of the French Language.”

    6. by replacing lines 10 to 13 on page 12 with the following:

      (ii) the necessity of considering the specific, different needs of each of the two official language communities of Canada, and

      (iii) the necessity of protecting and promoting French in Quebec, taking into account that French is the official and common language of Quebec; and”

    7. by replacing line 15 on page 13 with the following:

      “the Minister of Canadian Heritage and the provincial and territorial governments, make regulations in”

  12. That Bill C-13, in Clause 21, be amended by adding after line 26 on page 13 the following:

    41.1 (1) Every agreement between the Government of Canada and a province, territory, municipality or public service body that provides for a transfer of funds shall contain a language clause that implements the commitment set out in subsection 41(1).

    (2) The clause shall include the following:

    (a) a requirement to hold consultations with French linguistic minority communities and other stakeholders in order to take into account their priorities;

    (b) a requirement to appropriate funds to specifically address the needs of French linguistic minority communities;

    (c) a list of the parties’ accountability responsibilities;

    (d) a statement of the right of the federal institution to intervene if the clause is contravened.

    (3) The federal institution shall ensure that the funds transferred to meet the specific needs of French linguistic minority communities are expended as provided by the agreement.

    (4) An agreement may be entered into even if it does not contain a language clause under subsection (1) if the Government of Canada commits, in the agreement or otherwise, to hold the consultations referred to in paragraph (2)(a) and to appropriate the funds provided for in paragraph (2)(b).”

  13. That Bill C-13, in Clause 22, be amended
    1. by replacing line 5 on page 15 with the following:

      “sure public consultation and separate consultations with the provincial and territorial governments in the development of policies”

    2. by replacing line 9 on page 15 with the following:

      “public and the provincial and territorial governments relating to those policies and programs.”

  14. That Bill C-13, in Clause 23, be amended by replacing line 15 on page 15 with the following:

    “ties in Canada, and that policy must be consistent with intergovernmental immigration agreements.”

  15. That Bill C-13, in Clause 24, be amended
    1. by replacing line 8 on page 16 with the following:

      “that French is the official and common language of Quebec;”

    2. by adding after line 20 on page 16 the following:

      (3) The implementation of this Part within Quebec is conditional on the conclusion of a framework agreement between the Government of Canada and the Government of Quebec that guarantees, among other things, respect for the specificity of Quebec.”

  16. That Bill C-13 be amended by adding after line 18 on page 18 the following new clause:

    28.1 Subsection 56(1) of the Act is replaced by the following:

    56 (1) It is the duty of the Commissioner to take all actions and measures within the authority of the Commissioner with a view to ensuring recognition of the status of each of the official languages and compliance with the spirit and intent of this Act in the administration of the affairs of federal institutions, including any of their activities relating to the advancement of English and French in Canadian society, in a manner consistent with federal, provincial and territorial measures to promote and protect French.”

  17. That Bill C-13, in Clause 44, be amended by replacing line 14 on page 36 with the following:

    “time and in a manner appropriate to the circumstances and after consulting the provincial and territorial governments,”

  18. That Bill C-13, in Clause 50, be amended by replacing line 33 on page 37 with the following:

    “anniversary, the Minister of Canadian Heritage, in consultation with the provincial and territorial governments, shall un-”

  19. That Bill C-13, in Clause 54, be amended
    1. by replacing line 13 on page 39 with the following:

      “Whereas the Government of Canada is committed to respecting Quebec’s choices regarding its linguistic development provided for in the Charter of the French Language;"

    2. by replacing line 17 on page 39 with the following:

      “Canadian society, including that Quebec’s Charter of the French Language provides that French is the official and common language of Quebec;”

  20. That Bill C-13, in Clause 54, be amended by replacing lines 7 to 21 on page 41 with the following:

    6 (1) Quebec’s Charter of the French language applies in its entirety to every federally regulated private business in Quebec instead of this Act.

    (2) Within one year after the year in which this section comes into force, the Minister shall, on behalf of the Government of Canada and with the approval of the Governor in Council, enter into an agreement with the Government of Quebec for the purpose of giving effect to subsection (1).

    (3) The Governor in Council may make regulations under section 33 respecting federally regulated private businesses in Quebec only if the Government of Canada enters into an agreement with the Government of Quebec specifying their content.”

  21. That Bill C-13, in Clause 71, be amended by deleting line 38 on page 63 to line 2 on page 64.

RULING BY THE CHAIR

The Chair ruled the proposed subamendment inadmissible as it introduced a new proposition contrary to the spirit of the amendment.

The committee resumed consideration of the amendment of Joël Godin.

Subamendment

Bernard Généreux moved, — That the amendment be amended by adding after the words “the committee proceed with clause-by-clause consideration of the bill no later than Tuesday, November 29, 2022, at 11:00 a.m. ET”, the following: “but that, before proceeding to the clause-by-clause study of the bill, Quebec be invited to appear or to submit its position before the deadline for amendments, in order to protect its proposed amendments”.

At 12:51 p.m., the sitting was suspended.

At 12:52 p.m., the sitting resumed.

By unanimous consent, the subamendment was withdrawn.

The committee resumed consideration of the amendment of Joël Godin.

Subamendment

Bernard Généreux moved, — That the amendment be amended by adding after the words “the Minister of Official Languages, the President of the Treasury Board, the Minister of Canadian Heritage and the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, as well as their department officials, be invited to appear for two hours per minister, in separate meetings, no later than Thursday, November 24, 2022”, the following: “but that, before proceeding to the clause-by-clause study of the bill, Quebec be invited to appear or to submit its position before the deadline for amendments, in order to protect its proposed amendments”.

Debate arose thereon.

At 1:00 p.m., the sitting was suspended.

Tuesday, November 15, 2022, at 11:00 a.m., the sitting resumed.

The debate on the subamendment of Bernard Généreux continued.

By unanimous consent, the subamendment was withdrawn.

The committee resumed consideration of the amendment of Joël Godin.

Subamendment

Mario Beaulieu moved, — That the amendment be amended on point one:

  1. by replacing the word “two” with the word “one”;
  2. by replacing the words “Thursday, November 24, 2022” with the words “Thursday, December 1, 2022”; and
  3. by adding after the words “Thursday, December 1, 2022” the following: “The committee also invites the following witnesses to appear and that they be divided into three separate blocks for a minimum period of one hour to hear testimony from each of them: (1) the Barreau du Québec and French-speaking jurists; (2) the francophone school boards of Ontario, British Columbia and Acadia; and (3) the University of Moncton and Alphabétisation Québec, and that all testimony be heard by December 8, 2022.”

After debate, the question was put on the subamendment of Mario Beaulieu and it was negatived on the following recorded division:

YEAS: Mario Beaulieu — 1;

NAYS: Niki Ashton, Marc Dalton, Bernard Généreux, Joël Godin, Angelo Iacono, Arielle Kayabaga, Patricia Lattanzio, Darrell Samson, Marc G. Serré, Brad Vis — 10.

The committee resumed consideration of the amendment of Joël Godin.

Subamendment

Mario Beaulieu moved, — That the amendment be amended in point two:

  1. by replacing the words “November 24” with the words “December 8”; and
  2. by replacing the words “November 25” with the words “December 9”.

After debate, the question was put on the subamendment of Mario Beaulieu and it was negatived on the following recorded division:

YEAS: Mario Beaulieu, Marc Dalton, Bernard Généreux, Joël Godin, Brad Vis — 5;

NAYS: Niki Ashton, Angelo Iacono, Arielle Kayabaga, Patricia Lattanzio, Darrell Samson, Marc G. Serré — 6.

The committee resumed consideration of the amendment of Joël Godin.

Subamendment

Mario Beaulieu moved, — That the amendment be amended in point four by replacing the words “November 29” with the words “December 13”.

After debate, the question was put on the subamendment of Mario Beaulieu and it was negatived on the following recorded division:

YEAS: Mario Beaulieu, Marc Dalton, Bernard Généreux, Joël Godin, Brad Vis — 5;

NAYS: Niki Ashton, Angelo Iacono, Arielle Kayabaga, Patricia Lattanzio, Darrell Samson, Marc G. Serré — 6.

The committee resumed consideration of the amendment of Joël Godin.

Subamendment

Mario Beaulieu moved, — That the amendment be amended by adding after the words “November 29, 2022 at 11:00 a.m. ET” the following:

“5. That, during the clause-by-clause consideration, the amendments in response to calls from the Government of Quebec and francophone minority communities be debated with no time limit before being put to a vote.”.

After debate, the question was put on the subamendment of Mario Beaulieu and it was negatived on the following recorded division:

YEAS: Mario Beaulieu, Marc Dalton, Bernard Généreux, Joël Godin, Brad Vis — 5;

NAYS: Niki Ashton, Angelo Iacono, Arielle Kayabaga, Patricia Lattanzio, Darrell Samson, Marc G. Serré — 6.

The committee resumed consideration of the amendment of Joël Godin.

The debate continued.

At 12:13 p.m., the sitting was suspended.

At 12:14 p.m., the sitting resumed.

At 12:45 p.m., the sitting was suspended.

At 12:45 p.m., the sitting resumed.

At 12:48 p.m., the sitting was suspended.

At 12:52 p.m., the sitting resumed.

At 1:00 p.m., the sitting was suspended.

Thursday, November 17, 2022, at 11:00 a.m., the sitting resumed.

The debate continued on the amendment of Joël Godin.

At 11:30 a.m., the sitting was suspended.

At 12:17 p.m., the sitting resumed.

Subamendment

Mario Beaulieu moved, — That the amendment be amended:

  1. by replacing the words “no later than Thursday, November 24, 2022” in point one, with the words “for four meetings, and that the committee plan for four additional meetings to hear from the final witnesses”;
  2. by replacing the words “no later than 5:00 p.m. ET on Thursday, November 24, 2022, and distributed to committee members in both official languages by 12:00 p.m. on Friday, November 25, 2022” on point two with the words “the day following the final witnesses”; and
  3. by replacing the words “no later than Tuesday, November 29, 2022, at 11:00 a.m. ET” on point four with the words “the meeting following the final witnesses”.

At 1:00 p.m., the sitting was suspended.

Tuesday, November 22, 2022, at 11:06 a.m., the sitting resumed.

The debate on the subamendment of Mario Beaulieu continued.

At 11:10 a.m., the sitting was suspended.

At 11:32 a.m., the sitting resumed.

At 11:32 a.m., the committee adjourned to the call of the Chair.



Michelle Legault
Clerk of the committee