Recommendation 3: Francophone immigration: The door is finally open

The Commissioner recommended that the Ministry create a group of experts to develop a government-wide strategic plan, with a specific timetable, for achieving the 5% target for Francophone immigration.

The Commissioner is aware that this is a matter of shared jurisdiction (federal-provincial). That is why he reinforced his recommendation in a joint report with his federal counterpart in November 2014.⁴ The two commissioners wanted to show that cooperation remains essential on this issue. It is imperative that the various levels of government work together so that Ontario receives its share of the influx of population from Francophone immigration. With this in mind, the commissioners made recommendations on the following concerns:

• support for French-speaking immigrants through Francophone organizations;
• information and resources for French-speaking newcomers;
• cooperation with the provincial and territorial governments;
• accountability; and
• incentives for employers to recruit and select Francophone and bilingual workers.

These recommendations, jointly developed with federal Commissioner Graham Fraser and New Brunswick Commissioner Katherine d’Entremont, were based on four guiding principles:⁵

• immigration’s contribution to maintaining and increasing the demographic weight of Francophone communities;
• adjustment of federal policies and programs to the needs of recruiting and integrating Francophone immigrants;
• formation of solid federal-provincial community partnerships to ensure that immigration contributes to the development of Francophone minority communities; and
• implementation of an evaluation and accountability framework to measure progress and the attainment of immigration objectives.

Immigration is one of the cornerstones of this government. It is also one of the strategic priorities of the Commissioner’s Office. In his 2012-2013 annual report, the Commissioner was very pleased with the express 5% target of Francophone immigration. But he also expressed a desire to see the Ontario government establish transparent accountability mechanisms for Francophone immigration. This wish was repeated in 2014. However, in 2015, at the time the Commissioner was drafting this report, nothing had yet been made public since the government’s initial announcement in 2012 concerning the establishment of a 5% target for Francophone immigration. There was a huge gap between words and actions. Some initiatives or actions seem to be under development, but the Ministry made no mention of them in its initial response to the Commissioner. In this day and age, with the public as well as with the Commissioner, transparency, not opacity, is key.

The Commissioner has been patient enough on this issue and is now taking action. In response to his push and following his recommendation, the Ministry has committed to create an Ontario-specific group of experts. This group of experts will be co-chaired by both the federal and the provincial levels and will provide a public report. This report will describe a joint Canada-Ontario action plan to help each government meet its Francophone immigration targets. For Ontario, this work will result in:

• a government-wide action plan, with a specific timetable, for achieving the 5% target; and
• annual evaluation and accountability mechanisms that are transparent and accessible to the public.

This is good news. Let’s wait to see who will be appointed to this group of experts and what will be the terms of reference. Also, the Commissioner is looking forward for further announcements and will keep the Ministry apprised of its commitments.

4. Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages of Canada and Office of the French Language Services Commissioner of Ontario, Time to Act for the Future of Francophone Communities: Redressing the Immigration Imbalance, Joint report, Ottawa, 2014.

5. For more information: https://csfontario.ca/en/articles/5144 (page consulted in May 2015).