The federal government presented, on 1er March 2022, his bill to modernize the Official Languages Act. The context is serious: a study by the Office québécois de la langue française predicts a collapse in the weight of Francophones in Quebec, from 81.6% in 2011 to 73.6% in 2036.
With its bill, however, the federal government is making fun of this reality. The Government of Quebec, which had previously transmitted its position and its requirements, currently sees all its requests rejected by Ottawa. Nothing in the bill promotes or protects the French language in Quebec. The observation is clear: the federal reform simply does not meet the expectations of Quebecers, who say that 67% are in favor of strengthening the laws in order to improve the situation of French in Quebec, according to a Léger poll carried out in 2020. .
As if that weren’t already enough, Justin Trudeau’s government also succeeded in undermining Quebec’s efforts to protect and promote the language. The federal bill effectively attacks a flagship measure of the Quebec government: the application of the Charter of the French language (Bill 101) to private businesses under federal jurisdiction.
As reported this week the Montreal Journal, Air Canada, Canadian Pacific, Canadian National and Via Rail do not intend to be subject to the Charter, preferring to wait for new federal legislation that will allow these companies to opt out of its application. By granting companies the choice of the federal or Quebec language regime, the federal government is instead enshrining the right to work in English in Quebec.
By scuttling the Quebec law, Ottawa is attacking a strong consensus. The application of Bill 101 to businesses under federal jurisdiction enjoys the support of the National Assembly, all our former premiers and the mayors of all major cities in Quebec. In Quebec, we believe that all workers and businesses should be governed by the same language regime: that prescribed by the Charter of the French language.
Quebec, as the only French-speaking state in North America, has a special responsibility with regard to the protection and promotion of the French language on a continental scale. We cannot reasonably claim to protect French while ignoring its voice. Quebec’s proposals are clear and resolve many of the current flaws in the Official Languages Act.
There are solutions, but the members of the Liberal Party and the NDP unfortunately seem to want to refuse them. Indeed, while the Official Languages Committee is studying the bill, the government is trying to put an end to this study by limiting the time allotted to it. We believe that in order to make the federal law acceptable to Quebeckers, Quebec’s point of view must be heard and taken into consideration. We ask elected officials of all parties not to muzzle democratic debate and to respond favorably to the demands of the Government of Quebec.
*Also signed this text :
Guy Rocher, professor emeritus of sociology
Marie-Anne Alepin, President of the Saint-Jean-Baptiste Society of Montreal
Jean-Paul Perreault, president of Impératif français
Thérèse David, President of the National Movement of Quebecers
Robert Laplante, Director of National Action
Étienne-Alexis Boucher, President of Collective Rights Quebec
Charles Castonguay, retired full professor of mathematics and statistics at the University of Ottawa
François Côté, lawyer, author and speaker
Frédéric Lacroix, physicist and essayist
Anne Michèle Meggs, former director of research at the OQLF
Christian Hébert, President of the National Society of Quebecers of the Capital