Action Plan for Official Languages

1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 Linguistic duality in a modern Canada

1.2 The origin of the Action Plan

1.3 The Plan: An accountability process and three main axes

1.1 Linguistic duality in a modern Canada

Both ambitious and realistic, the Action Plan described in this policy statement will, as its title indicates, truly provide new momentum for Canada’s linguistic duality. Yes, after the Official Languages Act of 1969, the Charter of Rights and Freedoms of 1982, and the revised Official Languages Act of 1988, this Action Plan raises the curtain on a new act for all Canadians. Three considerations have led the Government of Canada to increase this momentum, begin this new act and launch the Action Plan that will be described in this policy statement.

1. Linguistic duality is part of our heritage.

A country must be faithful to its roots. Linguistic duality is an important aspect of our Canadian heritage. The evolution that has brought us to the Canada of today has followed different paths. Canada has developed a strong economy, a culture of respect, an effective federation, and a multicultural society. Throughout that evolution, it has remained faithful to one of its fundamental dimensions: its linguistic duality.

One of the inescapable aspects of this country is that the vast majority of its inhabitants speak English or French, and less than 2%¹ of those living here today say they cannot speak either of those languages. As Canada’s population has opened up to cultures from around the world and diversified, our official languages have retained their special status as languages used in the public domain. The values of mutual respect and sharing that led to the passage of the first Official Languages Act in 1969 are the same values that allow Canada to contain the world within its borders.

Our history confers upon the Government of Canada the duty to help make our two official languages, English and French, accessible to all Canadians. This dual heritage belongs to all Canadians. The Government of Canada wants to help them fully benefit from it.

Minority official language communities have always nurtured our linguistic duality and have made a strong contribution to our linguistic and cultural diversity. The Government of Canada has historical and political commitments to those communities. Through this Action Plan, it is equipping itself with the means to better meet those commitments. It is doing so for the communities, but also for all Canadians, for while the official languages are rooted in our past, they are also an essential asset for Canada’s future success.

2. Linguistic duality is an asset for our future.

It is not only rooted in our past, but also one of the prerequisites for our future success. Canada is extremely fortunate to have two official languages of international stature. English is the official language of 40 countries in the world, and French of 24.² The United Nations has English and French among its six languages of work. In addition, the Commonwealth comprises 54 countries,³ while 48 countries belong to la Francophonie.⁴ Canada is privileged to belong to and play a leading role in all three of those international forums. The language most frequently known by Europeans, in addition to their mother tongue, is English (41%), followed by French (19%).⁵

Our two official languages are two wonderful wide-open windows that give us access to the world. It is wrong to say that our languages isolate us in two solitudes. In fact, it would be more accurate to say that our two languages make us complete. Together, they make linguistic pluralism and learning other languages a fundamental part of our lives. It is this same spirit of openness and pluralism that motivates us to help Canada’s Aboriginal peoples preserve their own languages.

At the beginning of this new century, in this era of globalization where communications are increasingly important, and where the economy is more and more knowledge- and innovation-oriented, Canada must build on its linguistic duality and the international nature of its two official languages more than ever. That gives it a substantial competitive edge. Access to two of the most vital international languages is an asset for labour markets and enhances mobility of individuals. That is why Canada’s Innovation Strategy makes the ability to communicate in English and French one of the foundations for lifelong learning for children and youth.⁶

A number of other developed countries have understood the full importance of language learning. They are investing heavily in the language skills of their populations.

Canada has the advantage of having invested significantly in English- and French-language instruction, which often serves as a springboard for learning a third or fourth language. We can start with the infrastructure already in place. We need to strengthen it to further enhance the language skills of Canadians.

Canadians are demanding that we do so. The use of two languages in the public domain is rooted in our culture. It is one of the fundamental values that strengthen the attributes that define us, such as openness and respect. It is an asset Canadians do not want to lose, despite the assimilating force of English in North America. The support of 82% of Canadians, including 91% of 18- to 24-year-olds, for the federal official languages policy⁷ reflects that reality. Many Canadians appreciate that linguistic duality does not refer only to our past, but refers as well to the future of a prosperous Canada in a world where, increasingly, the ability to communicate is valued. Canadians are aware that knowledge of another language gives them access to a broader cultural heritage and contributes to their enrichment. For that, they want to build on their linguistic duality. Our Action Plan will help them do that.

3. The federal policy on official languages needs to be enhanced.

Much has been achieved, but much remains to be done. That is why we need to give new momentum to our policies with this Action Plan.

Since the introduction of the official languages policy some 30 years ago, Canada’s evolution has confirmed its merits. It has brought us closer to the ideal of “a bilingual Canada in which citizens could enjoy and benefit from our rich French and English heritage.”⁸

The advent of communication technologies and tools has considerably changed our ways of communicating with one another. Consider the growth of our cities and the resulting new needs. Look too at the changes that have come about in our most basic customs, our notion of family and our lifestyle. Our communities have evolved as they have integrated people from Asia, the Middle East, Africa and elsewhere, such that our two official languages today bring together all increasingly diversified populations. In the midst of this change, our linguistic duality has endured and asserted itself, but it is evolving in a context that has greatly changed. Language vitality and transmission have taken on a new meaning in the face of a lifestyle that leads people to settle, for example, in cosmopolitan cities rather than staying in far-flung communities, to loosen family ties, to have fewer children, and often to have a partner who speaks a different language.

Let us take the situation of minority Francophone communities. Thirty years ago, they did not have the institutions or the rights they have today. In addition, three decades ago, the Anglophone majority was much less open to linguistic duality than it is today. But at that time, the fertility rate was higher and young people stayed in their own communities more than they do today. Similarly, French-speaking young people did not marry Anglophones to the extent they do today.

So we need to rethink our policies to help these young people strengthen their ties with their language and their community, in a context where they are much more mobile than was previously the case. We also need to help exogamous couples (i.e., Anglophone-Francophone) to pass on their dual linguistic heritage to their children.

The evolution of our law has parallelled that of our society. Our case law now affords much better protection to the equality of status of English and French in Canada. In recent decades, court decisions have taken into account the vulnerability of French or official language minorities for reasons of equity specific to our Constitution and our vision of Canada.

We are also coming out of a period of putting public finances in order. The Government’s program spending represented 17.5% of the GDP in 1992- 1993. That percentage has dropped to 11.9% for 2003-2004. The official languages policy was not immune to those budget measures. The consequences, however, have been especially difficult for minority communities because they do not have the flexibility or economies of scale of the majority. With a healthier financial situation, the Government of Canada is able to reinvest in the official languages policy effectively through this Action Plan.

In short, today more than ever, our linguistic duality is an asset, but we cannot take anything for granted. The renewed commitment by the Government of Canada and the resulting Action Plan are testimony to the political will to support Canadians in this process of fostering our two official languages within a society evolving in an increasingly global world. They are part of the actions and initiatives that will help to make Canada an even more inclusive country, offering all Canadians a better quality of life and a promising future. Above all, they are the expression of the ideal that all Canadians can maximize their human capital.

1.2 The origin of the Action Plan

Our past, our future and the modernization of our policies are the three considerations that have led the Government of Canada to develop the Action Plan described in this policy statement. It has been designed in several stages.

In the Speech from the Throne of January 2001, the Government of Canada made a formal commitment to make the promotion of Canada’s linguistic duality one of the priorities of its mandate. It reiterated its support for minority official language communities, its intention to expand the influence of the French culture and language throughout the country, and its determination to serve Canadians in both official languages.

In April of that year, the Prime Minister of Canada, the Right Honourable Jean Chrétien, asked the Honourable Stéphane Dion, President of the Queen’s Privy Council for Canada and Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, to coordinate the Government’s official languages policy, chair meetings of interested ministers, and “consider strong new measures that will continue to ensure the vitality of minority official language communities and to ensure that Canada’s official languages are better reflected in the culture of the federal public service.”⁹

In the Speech from the Throne of September 2002, the Government reiterated its commitment to present an Action Plan to reenergize its official languages policy.

Stimulated by the appointment of a minister responsible for official languages and the concerted efforts of several ministers, the work of parliamentary committees, regular observations by the Commissioner of Official Languages, and continually spurred on by dialogue with communities, the Government has intensified its efforts in the past two years. It has taken tangible action, which it can now build on. In her latest annual report, the Commissioner of Official Languages said she was very pleased with this new vitality: “Over the past year, the government announced new funding for a number of official language projects such as the founding of an institute at the University of Moncton for research on official language minority communities; the translation of municipal by-laws in New Brunswick; youth language exchanges; a distance education network for the English-speaking community in Quebec, in partnership with the province; new agreements under the Interdepartmental Partnership with Official Language Communities (IPOLC); language training for employees of the City of Ottawa; and cultural and community projects for young Francophones in minority communities.”¹¹

This faster pace would not have been possible without the work by ministers involved in official languages matters, who have met together nine times between May 2001 and November 2002, to help develop concerted measures in all sectors.

While promoting the benefits of our linguistic duality for all Canadians, the President of the Queen’s Privy Council for Canada and Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs has travelled the length and breadth of the country to take note of provincial, territorial and regional realities first-hand. He has met with official language community leaders, including the Fédération des communautés francophones et acadienne du Canada (FCFA) and its member associations in each province, as well as the Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN), representing Quebec’s Anglophone communities.

Dozens of reports were presented to the Minister. The report by the FCFA, entitled Des communautés en action, spoke of overall community development, to ensure, according to its president, Georges Arès, that communities have the means to participate effectively in all spheres of a dynamic, forward-looking society.¹² The report by QCGN, Suggesting Change¹³, talked of enhancing the ability of minority Anglophone communities to work with all governments to preserve their vitality in Quebec. Major contributions also came from the Société franco-manitobaine, the Fédération canadienne pour l’alphabétisation en français, the Commission nationale des parents francophones, the Fédération culturelle canadienne-française, Canadian Parents for French, the Canadian Association of Immersion Teachers, and others.

The Government is very grateful to all these associations, which took the time to carefully document their positions in order to better guide the Government in its deliberations. The associations asked the Government not to issue its Action Plan until they had developed their proposals and had time to communicate them properly.

The issues raised in these reports touch on a wide range of areas, from minority-language education to access to services and skills most likely to help communities prosper and play an active role in Canadian society. Because Englishand French-speaking communities experience their minority status differently, they expressed specific needs, although some parallels were observed. These issues are dealt with in greater detail in the following chapters.

The Minister met with academics and researchers. He reflected on the recommendations contained, for example, in the Savoie (1998)¹⁴, Fontaine (1999)¹⁵ and Simard (1999)¹⁶ reports. He also conferred with his provincial counterparts, attended two ministerial meetings on Francophone affairs and met with the Director General of the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada. He also received detailed documents from his colleagues in New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island. Further food for thought was provided in the reports of the Commissioner of Official Languages and those of the Standing Joint Committee on Official Languages.

1.3 The Plan: An accountability process and three main axes

In speeches delivered in Whitehorse on June 22, 2002, to the Fédération des communautés francophones et acadienne, and in Quebec City on October 20, 2002, to the Quebec Community Groups Network, Minister Dion revealed three main directions for the Action Plan for Official Languages. This five-year plan (2003-2004 to 2007-2008) is in line with the directions that were announced.

The first element of the Action Plan deals less with content than with method. It consists of an accountability and coordination framework.

Because participants in the consultations and a number of previous studies emphasized implementing an accountability framework that would be an ongoing reminder for ministers and their officials of the priority given to linguistic duality, the Government wanted to clarify and consign responsibilities to departments and agencies as well as enhance coordination among affected organizations. Chapter 2 of the Policy Statement will inform Canadians of the process whereby the Government will ensure that official languages remain one of its ongoing priorities.

In addition to this accountability framework, the Action Plan addresses three priority areas:

Axis 1: Education (Chapter 3). It is worth saying: much has been achieved, but much remains to be done and to build on. The proposed measures will address both minority-language education, to help implement section 23 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms; and provide for second-language instruction, as per Canada’s Innovation Strategy and in accordance with the Government’s commitments to foster the use of both official languages in Canadian society.

Axis 2: Community development (Chapter 4). It is important to us that communities be able to participate fully, in their own language, in Canada’s development. They must continue to contribute to the influence of our two official languages throughout the country. The measures considered will enhance communities’ access to public services in both official languages, mainly in the areas of health, early childhood development and justice. They will give them greater access to the economic development tools inherent in the knowledge economy.

Axis 3: An exemplary public service (Chapter 5). The federal government cannot play a leadership role if it does not lead by example. The improvements sought will address the delivery of federal services to Canadians in both official languages, participation of English- and French-speaking Canadians in the federal government, and the use of both languages in the workplace.

The language industries (Chapter 6) give Canadians the opportunity to seize the competitive advantage of our two official languages here in Canada and on the international scene. Assistance for the development of these industries will build on the three axes of the Plan by alleviating the shortage of specialized language training and translation professors, expanding the range of careers open to young Canadians by focussing on federal institutions as a starting point for initiatives in translation, interpretation, terminology and other language skills.

This is the Action Plan, which will now be described in greater detail. With its accountability framework and three axes for development, it will be a powerful engine for revitalizing official languages policy, for the benefit of all Canadians.

1. Census of Canada, 2001.

2. UNESCO, World Culture Report 2000, Cultural Diversity, Conflict and Pluralism, Paris: UNESCO Publishing.

3. Commonwealth Secretariat, Report of the Commonwealth Secretary-General 2001, Continuity and Renewal in the New Millennium, September 2001.

4. www.francophonie.org

5. European Commission, Eurobarometer: Public Opinion in the European Union, Report number 54, February 2001, pp. 1 and 2.

6. Government of Canada, Knowledge Matters: Skills and Learning for Canadians, 2002, p.18.

7. Environics Survey, February 2002.

8. Address by Prime Minister Jean Chrétien in Reply to the Speech from the Throne, January 31, 2001.

9. Prime Minister Gives Minister Dion Additional Responsibilities in the Area of Official Languages, (news release), PMO, Press Office, April 25, 2001.

10. Government of Canada, Speech from the Throne, September 30, 2002, p. 12.

11. Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages, Annual Report 2001-2002, The Texture of Canada, Canada, 2002, page 19.

12. Fédération des communautés francophones et acadienne du Canada, “Des communautés en action : politique de développement global à l’égard des communautés francophones et acadiennes en milieu minoritaire”, unpublished, May 2002, letter of transmittal to the President of the Queen’s Privy Council, from Mr. Georges A. Arès.

13. “Suggesting Change” The situation of the English-speaking Minority of Quebec and proposals for change, Report to Minister Stéphane Dion, President of the Queen’s Privy Council and Minister for Intergovernmental Affairs by the Quebec Community Groups Network, unpublished, June 2002.

14. Donald Savoie, Official language minority communities: promoting a government objective, 1998.

15. Task Force on Government Transformations and Official Languages, No turning back: official languages in the face of government transformations, Ottawa, January 1999 (referred to as the Fontaine Report).

16. The Honourable Jean-Maurice Simard, Senator, Bridging the gap: from oblivion to the rule of law. Development and vitality of the francophone and Acadian communities: a fundamental obligation for Canada, report tabled in the Senate, November 16, 1999.

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