(Ottawa) Minister Marc Miller reserves the right not to support the reform of the Official Languages Act during the final vote if the spirit of the bill is too distorted by the amendments of the opposition parties. His colleague Emmanuella Lambropoulos is more categorical: in its current state, Bill C-13 will not have his support.
“You’ll see in time,” replied Minister Miller to a reporter who asked him if he was going to vote for or against the legislation. “There are still amendments to be debated and we will see the final product. »
It could thus go against the principle of ministerial solidarity, under which members of the Cabinet must support the decisions of the government or resign from their position if this is not the case.
“You’ll see,” he replied again when The Press asked him if he was going to side with the Cabinet. It’s going to be a cabinet decision. »
The reform of the Official Languages Act is a Liberal election promise. It has been long awaited by the Francophone and Acadian communities.
“Yes, it’s an election campaign promise, but obviously in the minority we don’t necessarily control the deal,” argued Minister Miller. There are Bloc amendments [québécois], of the Conservative Party, which obviously completely undermine the spirit of the law. »
He said he wanted to ensure that “the rights of the English-speaking minority are not violated” while defending French outside Quebec. He also fears that an Anglophone province could in turn use the notwithstanding clause to impose English in federal institutions on its territory, which would harm the Francophone and Acadian minorities.
Lambropoulos would vote against
MP Emmanuella Lambropoulos was categorical on the airwaves of the English-speaking Montreal station CJAD.
PHOTO FRANCOIS ROY, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Emmanuella Lambropoulos
“I would not vote for the bill as it stands,” she said.
Asked to speculate on the consequences that her opposition could have within the caucus or the Liberal Party of Canada, she replied that she had a latitude as a legislator.
“I think for this bill, they [les libéraux] know how important it is, especially for MPs who spoke in committee,” she argued, saying that “several” colleagues she didn’t want to name were also against C- 13.
Opening the interview, MP Lambropoulos offered an analysis of the language file.
“I want to be fair to both sides: I think there is a fear in Quebec of losing their language. And it is true that it is the only French-speaking province in a sea of English,” she said.
“So I understand where the fear comes from. I don’t think that’s a reason to take away the rights of a linguistic minority,” added the elected official.
She also apologized for being criticized for the misleading remarks she made about Law 96, after the host asked her “why are you so controversial”.
“I don’t think I’m that controversial […] I was accused of lying when all I was doing was talking about the experience of a constituent to give more strength to my intervention,” she explained.
MP Anthony Housefather confirmed on Wednesday that it would be difficult for him to vote in favor of C-13 if the reference to Quebec’s Charter of the French language remains. “I will go to committee to try to improve this bill, but if it reduces the rights of my community, it would be a difficult bill to support,” he said in a press scrum before the weekly meeting of the Liberal caucus.
Her colleague Patricia Lattanzio was more circumspect, although she never hid her opposition to Bill 96 in Quebec. “We are currently being studied by the committee, as you well know, so nothing has been finalized. We will wait for the final product. »
Liberal Division
The question of the reform of the Official Languages Act divides liberals. Recently, former minister Marc Garneau and MP Anthony Housefather tried to remove any reference to the Charter of the French language from Bill C-13, which was added by the official languages committee following an initiative of the Bloc Québécois.
This recognition of Bill 96, which makes French the only official and common language in Quebec, would endorse the use of the derogation provision, according to them.
Trying to defend his position on Twitter on Wednesday, Mr. Garneau wrote that even if an Anglo-Quebecer “lives in an English-speaking country, he lives in Quebec” and therefore “is part of a minority”. He corrected his mistake three hours later on the same social network. ” I should have [sic] say “a country with a majority of English speakers”, but I ran out of letters. A mistake from me. »
In an open letter published on its website and of which The Press obtained a copy, he objects to provincial law taking precedence over federal law.
“The Anglo-Montrealers present in the Liberal caucus seem to have serious problems with democracy, reacted the leader of the Bloc, Yves-François Blanchet. The Bloc proceeds within the institutions as we know them. »
The Bloc Québécois is calling in particular for the application of Quebec’s Charter of the French language to private businesses under federal jurisdiction. They would therefore no longer have the choice between using English or French as the language of work in Quebec. This is a request from the government of François Legault.
The Conservative Party and the New Democratic Party would be ready to support it, according to The Canadian Press. The amendment could therefore be adopted since the Liberals are in the minority.
“We support the bill,” reiterated New Democratic Party leader Jagmeet Singh. The Liberals wrote this bill, if they have problems, they have to fix them. He recalled that the decline of French across the country.
The government’s priority remains the adoption of C-13 “as soon as possible,” according to Marianne Blondin, the press secretary for the Minister of Official Languages, Ginette Petitpas Taylor. “All parliamentarians are expected to rally behind this promising and ambitious bill,” she added in a written statement.
With Joel-Denis Bellavance, The Press