August 16, 2013 — The Commissioner of Official Languages of Canada and his counterparts from Ontario and New Brunswick are recommending that the federal Minister of Justice take 10 measures to ensure Canadians have access to justice in both official languages. These recommendations are the result of a joint study on the bilingual capacity of Canada’s superior courts, which was released today by the three commissioners.
“In a country that proudly claims linguistic duality is a fundamental value and an essential part of its identity, no one should have to deal with delays and additional costs because they chose to be heard in English or French,” said Graham Fraser.
The three commissioners reviewed the judicial appointment process for superior courts as well as the language training available to judges. The study found that the appointment process does not allow for a sufficient number of judges with the language skills needed to hear citizens in the minority official language.
“Currently, there is no coordinated action from the federal Minister of Justice, his provincial and territorial counterparts and the chief justices to ensure adequate bilingual capacity at all times in superior courts. A collaborative approach is at the heart of the proposed recommendations,” said François Boileau, French Language Services Commissioner of Ontario.
The study also noted that, for some judges, maintaining their language skills is a challenge. Although the language training program currently offered by the Office of the Commissioner for Federal Judicial Affairs is appreciated by superior court judges, the commissioners recommend that the program be improved.
“Specifically, the applied training workshops that are currently offered in New Brunswick to provincial court judges could be interesting models to explore for superior court judges,” suggested Katherine d’Entremont, Commissioner of Official Languages for New Brunswick.
The study recommends 10 concrete and pragmatic courses of action that will improve the bilingual capacity of the judiciary of superior courts. The commissioners are urging the federal Minister of Justice to ensure a quick and collaborative implementation of these recommendations.
“The consequences of inaction are real for the citizens who must contend with the judicial system and who are not guaranteed to be heard in their official language of choice. If the federal Minister of Justice does nothing, then it’s the status quo. And the status quo is unacceptable,” concluded Graham Fraser.
The study Access to Justice in Both Official Languages: Improving the Bilingual Capacity of the Superior Court Judiciary is available at www.officiallanguages.gc.ca.
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At the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages of Canada: Nelson KALIL
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• The matter of access to justice in the superior courts requires action by both the federal government and the provincial governments, the latter being responsible for operating these courts and the former for appointing the judges.
• For the two million Canadians who are members of Anglophone or Francophone minority communities to have access—at all times and without additional cost—to judges with the language skills necessary to hear cases in the minority language, the federal Minister of Justice must appoint an appropriate number of bilingual judges.
• In a criminal case, Canadians are entitled to a preliminary hearing and a trial in the official language of their choice, regardless of where in the country the case will be heard.
• In the superior courts, approximately 2/3 of the judges (648 out of a total of 1,017) hear cases in provinces and territories that require them to respect the language rights of citizens in non-criminal cases, including in the areas of family law, wills and estates law, contract and commercial law, and bankruptcy law.
Scope of the study
• The purpose of the study was to determine the extent to which the process for appointing judges to superior courts guarantees an appropriate number of bilingual judges. Its aim was not to determine whether there is a shortage of bilingual judges.
• The study deals solely with the bilingual capacity of judges sitting in “superior courts,” meaning (1) superior trial courts, the names of which vary across Canada and include courts of Queen’s Bench, provincial supreme courts and provincial superior courts; and (2) courts of appeal. The study does not examine the bilingual capacity of the Supreme Court of Canada.
• The expression “bilingual capacity of the judiciary” is defined as the presence of an appropriate number of bilingual judges in the superior courts, in other words, judges with the necessary language skills to preside over hearings in the minority official language.
• To get a sense of the challenges related to the bilingual capacity of superior court judges on a national scale, the study looked at the situation in the superior courts of six provinces: Ontario, Quebec, Manitoba, Alberta, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia.
Methodology
• In support of the study, the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages formed an advisory committee of representatives from the legal community, including the Canadian Judicial Council, the Canadian Bar Association, the Barreau du Québec, the Fédération des associations des juristes d’expression française de common law and the Centre canadien de français juridique.
• The study is based on quantitative and qualitative information gathered through on-line surveys of members of French-language jurists’ associations and a sample of members of the Quebec bar, along with interviews designed to elicit more detail on the results of the survey.
Findings
• Consultations during the study showed that the judicial appointment process does not guarantee the presence of an appropriate number of judges with the necessary language skills if the superior courts are to respect the language rights of Canadians at all times.
• This finding is based on three key observations:
1) There is no objective analysis of needs in terms of access to the superior courts in both official languages in the different districts and regions of the country.
2) There is no coordinated action on the part of the federal Minister of Justice, his provincial and territorial counterparts and the chief justices of the superior courts to establish a process that would ensure, at all times, that an appropriate number of bilingual judges are appointed.
3) The evaluation of superior court judicial candidates does not allow for an objective verification of the language skills of candidates who identify themselves as being able to preside over proceedings in their second language.
Recommendations
• The study contains 10 recommendations that are addressed primarily to the federal Minister of Justice, but also to his provincial and territorial counterparts as well as the chief justices of the superior courts. The Commissioner of Official Languages recommends that the federal Minister of Justice:
1) Take measures, by September 1, 2014, in collaboration with his provincial and territorial counterparts, to ensure appropriate bilingual capacity in the judiciary of Canada’s superior courts at all times;
2) Establish, together with the attorneys general and the chief justices of superior courts of each province and territory, a memorandum of understanding to:
• set the terms of this collaborative approach;
• adopt a common definition of the level of language skills required of bilingual judges so that they can preside over proceedings in their second language;
• identify the appropriate number of bilingual judges and/or designated bilingual positions;
3) Encourage the attorneys general of each province and territory to initiate a consultation process with the judiciary and the bar, with the participation of the French-speaking common law jurists’ association or the legal community of the linguistic minority population, to take into consideration their point of view on the appropriate number of bilingual judges or designated bilingual positions;
4) Re-evaluate the bilingual capacity of the superior courts, periodically or when changes occur that are likely to have an impact on access to justice in the minority language, together with the attorneys general and chief justices of the superior courts of each province and territory;
5) Give the Office of the Commissioner for Federal Judicial Affairs the mandate of implementing a process to systematically, independently and objectively evaluate the language skills of all candidates who identified the level of their language skills on their application form.
I am pleased to be here today to present my sixth annual report as French Language Services Commissioner of Ontario.
This annual report is entitled A New Approach.
This report is special in that it not only covers the activities of the Commissioner’s Office during the 2012-2013 fiscal year but also provides a review of the last six years of the Office’s history.
I should also point out that this report marks the beginning of my third and last term, which will extend over five years this time.
In the last six years, I have made no less than 46 recommendations to the Ontario government. And I can tell you that the dialogue that I have sought with the government and the public from the outset is indeed under way.
In 2012-2013, the Commissioner’s Office worked very hard to enhance and take advantage of that dialogue, which sometimes include collaboration, for example, by signing letters of agreement with the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages of Canada and the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages for New Brunswick, and obtaining a specific commitment from the Ministry of the Attorney General to take action on the issue of access to justice in French in Ontario, with the publication of a joint news release.
The Commissioner’s Office also met with a number of Francophile organizations, such as Canadian Parents for French (Ontario). Francophiles face a twofold challenge: being recognized as partners of Francophone communities and, finding their rightful place within the majority society. In today’s world, where the prevalence of multiple identities should no longer be something to fear, Francophones and Francophiles have to work together to ensure the survival of the French language in Ontario.
Statistically speaking, the Commissioner’s Office received a total of 349 complaints in 2012-2013, which shows that citizens are also continuing to take part in the dialogue.
I hope, of course, that this dialogue will keep going over the next few years.
From that perspective, I present in this annual report an outline of the organizational history of the Commissioner’s Office and document the key factors that have influenced its evolution since 2007, including the growth of Ontario’s Francophone population and the limited human and financial resources.
In Chapter 1, I explain in detail how these elements are now bringing me to adopt a new approach to guide our actions and our interactions with complainants, ministries and other government organizations.
With close to one complaint per day and only three investigators, the time has come for the Commissioner’s Office to adopt a new way of handling complaints, a new approach.
This new approach has five components:
A paradigm shift in the processing of complaints;
More focused, systemic interventions;
Production of extensive investigation reports on subjects of importance to the development of Ontario’s Francophone population, such as the one we published last June on the state of French-language postsecondary education in Central-Southwestern Ontario entitled No access, no future, which has given rise to other reports.
Development of strategic partnerships; and
Greater support for citizens caught in situations where they could be seriously affected by deficiencies in French-language services.
Under this new approach, complaints received become important signals. They are certainly just as important as before, but they will now be stored and analyzed with a view to the systemic resolution of non-compliance with the Act.
Yet this new approach requires ministries and other government organizations to make an important adjustment in the way they deal with complaints. It is a two-way street.
Overall, 95% of the admissible complaints received by the Commissioner’s Office since it was established have been founded. In addition, the object will no longer be to determine what happened at a particular location at 1:18 p.m. on July 28, 2012, but to acknowledge that there are serious weaknesses in French-language services and that the government agencies need to find permanent solutions to the problem.
Under this new approach, I will focus on two or three fundamental issues in each sector and present them to the executives of the ministry in question, whether complaints have been received on these issues or not.
As part of the new approach by the Commissioner’s Office, I also want to concentrate on the groups that are least likely to file a complaint with the Commissioner’s Office but most vulnerable to the risks posed by any deficiency in French-language services. Those groups are, as I call them in my report, disadvantaged populations.
Seniors, children, people with mental health problems, newcomers and a plethora of other Francophone citizens are among those more fragile populations, and the government must take greater responsibility for them.
We have seen, over the years, a small number of complaints against ministries and government agencies that work closely with disadvantaged populations.
Yet it would be naïve to think that the low number of complaints means that all of those ministries’ programs and services are fully delivered in compliance with the French Language Services Act. Because of their conditions, disadvantaged populations are simply less inclined to complain, which is why the number of complaints against those ministries tends to be small.
Consequently, the first recommendation in this report is that the Minister Responsible for Francophone Affairs, in conjunction with her Cabinet colleagues, develop an action plan to ensure that disadvantaged populations have genuine access to French-language services, in keeping with the letter and the spirit of the French Language Services Act.
In my view, this is the report’s core recommendation, as it identifies a key, wide-ranging systemic problem within a number of ministries and government agencies and suggests the kind of responsibility that, under our new approach, I expect the government to take.
Naturally, we cannot expect a citizen who is a member of a disadvantaged population to demand service in French every time it is not actively offered to him.
So I am going back to the first recommendation in my 2009-2010 Annual Report, which was that the Minister Responsible for Francophone Affairs ensure that a directive on the active offer of French-language services is put in place.
In response to that recommendation, the government produced an active offer guide and developed a set of guidelines. But in the government, the difference between guidelines and a directive is the same as the difference between a piece of advice and an order. And advising ministries and other institutions to implement active offer of French-language services to children in need, young mothers dealing with dependency issues or people with mental health problems, for example, is far from sufficient. For their sake, that active offer must be made mandatory.
In my second recommendation, therefore, I revisit the issue, recommending to the Minister Responsible for Francophone Affairs that an explicit directive regarding the active offer of French-language services be issued by the Management Board in the 2013-2014 fiscal year and that said directive apply to all ministries, government agencies and entities that provide French-language services on behalf of the government.
Human resources planning also plays a pivotal role in the active offer of French-language services, to ensure that active offer is available on a continuous basis.
It is not acceptable for a citizen to be told in English to contact a service centre at a different time because the person in the designated position comes in to work later, for example.
And it is just as inexcusable that a citizen should be unable to communicate directly with an officer of a specialized board and be forced to do so through an intermediary because the person who is really qualified to manage his case is not bilingual.
In this context, the service provided in French is far from equivalent to the service provided in English, and the consequences of such practices can be very serious.
As a result, in my third recommendation, I recommend to the Ministry of Government Services that a directive on the development and implementation of a human resources plan for French-language services be issued by the Management Board in the 2013-2014 fiscal year and that said directive apply to all ministries, government agencies and entities that provide French-language services on behalf of the government. The plan should include concrete measures for the designation, appointment, training and retention of staff.
I conclude this report with my wish that the member municipalities of the Association française des municipalités de l’Ontario (AFMO) will adopt a municipal by-law or regulation formalizing the use of French in the delivery of their programs and services.
This is not a recommendation since it is not addressed to the government, but the issue is no less important to the development and future of Ontario’s Francophone communities.
Lastly, as usual, I devote an entire chapter to our statistics on complaints received and another chapter to exemplary practices.
As you know, last week I made public the government’s responses to the six recommendations in my previous annual report, along with my comments and analysis.
I have always advocated transparency, and today, as part of our new approach, I want to make it easier for citizens and government ministries and agencies to access the array of tools and communications that the Commissioner’s Office has made available to them since I took office.
Consequently, the Commissioner’s Office is launching a brand-new website today, which is accessible on all devices and contains, for the first time, an interactive version of my annual report.
I invite all citizens of Ontario and all our partners to visit our new website and take advantage of these resources, now organized by service sector in the “News” section.
Ontario’s Francophonie is growing rapidly. At the same time, every organization must adapt to its environment and revitalize itself periodically to keep achieving its goals.
I am proud of the fact that my office is taking a new approach that will enable it, in collaboration with the government and the complainants, to serve the needs of Ontario’s Francophone citizens even more effectively.
I am grateful to the citizens who each day request service in French from ministries and agencies that provide public services on the government’s behalf. And I also thank our complainants, who have taken the trouble to contact the Commissioner’s Office and demand compliance with the letter and the spirit of the French Language Services Act.
TORONTO, June 5, 2013 — French Language Services Commissioner François Boileau recommends that the Ontario government develop an action plan to ensure that disadvantaged populations — such as seniors, children and newcomers — have genuine access to French-language services, in keeping with the letter and the spirit of the French Language Services Act. This issue is the subject of the first recommendation in the Commissioner’s 2012-2013 Annual Report, entitled A New Approach, which was submitted today to the Honourable Madeleine Meilleur, Minister Responsible for Francophone Affairs.
Over the years, the Commissioner has noticed only a very small number of official complaints involving members of disadvantaged populations. However, a combination of unofficial reports and internal observations indicates that not all programs and services intended for these populations are fully delivered in accordance with the letter and the spirit of the French Language Services Act by the government and those acting on its behalf.
“Because of their situation, disadvantaged populations are less likely to file complaints. Yet they are the most vulnerable to the risks resulting from any deficiencies in the delivery of French-language services. It is paramount, therefore, that the government take responsibility for these more vulnerable citizens,” said the Commissioner.
In the same vein, the Commissioner believes that it is unrealistic to expect a disadvantaged citizen to demand service in French whenever it is not actively offered. Consequently, he revisits the issue in his second recommendation, urging the government to issue a directive on the active offer of French-language services.
“The government’s guidelines on active offer advise ministries and other government organizations to actively offer services in French. However, advising that French-language services should be actively offered to a child in need or a person with mental health problems, for example, is far from sufficient. For their sake, active offer must be mandatory, and for that, a directive is needed,” said the Commissioner.
The Annual Report’s third and final recommendation is, once again, that a directive on the development and implementation of a human resources plan for French-language services be issued to all ministries, government agencies and other entities that provide French-language services on the government’s behalf, and that this plan include concrete measures for the designation, appointment, training and retention of staff.
The Commissioner also expresses his wish that the member municipalities of the Association française des municipalités de l’Ontario (AFMO) will adopt a municipal by-law or regulation formalizing the use of French in the delivery of their programs and services.
In addition to the three recommendations it contains, the 2012-2013 Annual Report, A New Approach, provides a review of six-year history of the Office of the French Language Services Commissioner and explains how factors such as the growth of Ontario’s Francophone population and the Office’s limited human and financial resources are today bringing the Commissioner to adopt a new approach to guide its actions and its interactions with complainants, ministries and other government organizations.
QUICK FACTS
The position of French Language Services Commissioner was established in September 2007 following an amendment to the French Language Services Act.
Over the last six years, the Commissioner has made no less than 46 recommendations to the Ontario government.
The Office of the French Language Services Commissioner received 349 complaints in 2012-2013, nearly one complaint per day. Since 2007, the Commissioner’s Office has received 1,818 complaints, 1,514 of which were investigated.
In his 2009-2010 Annual Report, the Commissioner recommended that the government issue a directive on the active offer of French-language services.
In response to that recommendation, the government produced a guide on active offer and developed a set of guidelines, which are not as binding as a directive.
The French Language Services Commissioner published the government’s responses to the six recommendations in his 2011-2012 Report Annual, Straight Forward, on May 27, along with his comments and analysis.
The Office of the French Language Services Commissioner is an agency of the Ontario Government that is responsible for ensuring compliance with the French Language Services Act in the delivery of government services. The Act was passed unanimously by the Legislative Assembly of Ontario in November 1986.
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LEARN MORE
You can view the interactive version of the French Language Services Commissioner’s 2012-2013 Annual Report on the new website of the Commissioner’s Office, www.flsc.gov.on.ca/.
Simon Côté, Public Relations and Communications Officer
Office of the French Language Services Commissioner
Phone: (416) 314-8247 or 1-866-246-5262 (toll free)
E-mail: communications.flscCSF@ontario.ca
TORONTO, May 27, 2013 – French Language Services Commissioner François Boileau today published the government’s responses to the recommendations of his 2011-2012 Annual Report, Straight Forward, as well as his comments and analysis.
With respect to the Commissioner’s independence, the Minister Responsible for Francophone Affairs stated that she appreciates the points raised both by the private member’s bills introduced in the Legislative Assembly in May 2011 and March 2012, and the Commissioner’s recommendation. For this reason, as she mentioned at the Standing Committee on Estimates on July 23 and 24, she will be looking further into potential options.
“I am hopeful that the arguments presented to the government in my 2011-2012 Annual Report with regard to the Commissioner’s independence will persuade the new premier and her government to go ahead and introduce a government bill in the Legislative Assembly on this matter,” added the Commissioner.
QUICK FACTS
In its responses to the recommendations of the 2011-2012 Annual Report, the government stated that in managing the current economic challenges facing the province, it will not lose sight of its commitments to the Franco-Ontarian community and its obligations toward the French Language Services Act.
It is the first time that the Commissioner publishes the government’s official responses to the recommendations in his previous annual report in their entirety before the publication of his subsequent annual report.
The Commissioner’s 2012-2013 Annual Report, entitled A New Approach, will be officially published on June 5, 2013.
LEARN MORE
You can view the Government of Ontario’s responses to the recommendations of the French Language Services Commissioner’s 2011-2012 Annual Report at http://ontario.ca/bfrr as well as the Commissioner’s comments and analysis at http://ontario.ca/bfrs.
The Office of the French Language Services Commissioner works to ensure active, integrated delivery of French-language services in support of the development of the Francophone community and Ontarian society.
Simon Côté, Public Relations and Communications Officer
Office of the French Language Services Commissioner
Phone: (416) 314-8247 or 1-866-246-5262 (toll free)
E-mail: communications.flscCSF@ontario.ca
The Commissioner recommends to the Minister Responsible for Francophone Affairs that an amendment to the French Language Services Act be introduced by March 31, 2013, specifying that the Commissioner will report directly to the Legislative Assembly.
Response:
The creation of the Office of the French Language Services Commissioner is one of my proudest achievements as Minister Responsible for Francophone Affairs.
Although the French Language Services Commissioner does not report directly to the Legislative Assembly, the government has provided him with a broad mandate and significant independence of action.
For example, in undertaking investigations and preparing reports, the Commissioner can require that documents be submitted and ask questions of witnesses under oath.
Annual and designated special reports submitted to the Minister Responsible for Francophone Affairs by the Commissioner are tabled in the Legislative Assembly.
The Commissioner also has the authority to independently publish any of his reports and he has not shied away from doing so.
The fact is the Commissioner has had a tremendous impact on French-language services in Ontario, whether we talk about the health, education or justice sectors. It is evident that we are much further ahead of where we were prior to the creation of this office in 2007.
That said, I can appreciate the points raised both by the private member’s bills introduced in the Legislative Assembly in May 2011 and March 2012, and the Commissioner’s recommendation. For this reason, as I mentioned at the Standing Committee on Estimates on July 23 and 24, I will be looking into potential options further.
The Commissioner recommends to the Minister Responsible for Francophone Affairs that a mandatory directive on the designation process for agencies be established in compliance with the French Language Services Act, after due consultations with representatives from the community and designated agencies. This directive should be implemented by 2013-2014 and should include:
Consistent designation criteria that, in particular, provide for minimum representation of Francophones on their boards of directors and executives;
Accountability mechanisms that are transparent and accessible to the public;
A mechanism for resolving disputes that is made available to the users of services;
A mandatory and independent assessment, every three years, based on all of the designation criteria, including criteria dealing with governance; this assessment should also include corrective measures, when necessary.
Response:
The designation of public service agencies under the French Language Services Act is important as it provides the government with a means of meeting its commitment to ensure that Francophones have access to government services in French in the 25 designated areas of the province when those services are provided by a non-profit, corporation, or similar entity, which is subsidized in whole or in part by the government to provide a service to the public on its behalf.
Designation is sought by agencies as a means of confirming their commitment to serve their Francophone clients in their language.
The current designation process was established after the French Language Services Act came into force on November 19, 1989 to ensure full compliance with the Act and an effective use of Cabinet’s time. At the time, guidance was provided to ministries in a document entitled the Guide to Subordinate Legislation under the French Language Services Act, developed by the Office of Francophone Affairs.
Before recommending the designation of a public service agency, the Office of Francophone Affairs assesses the request of the ministry against the five designation criteria established by the Ontario French Language Services Commission and made public by the Minister Responsible for Francophone Affairs in June 1987:
Service must be permanent and of high quality;
Access must be adequate;
Effective representation of Francophones on the board of directors and its committees;
Effective representation of Francophones at management levels;
Accountability of the board of directors and senior management for French-language services.
The Office of Francophone Affairs is prepared to undertake a review of the current designation process, including designation criteria, in collaboration with its partner ministries and representatives of the Francophone community in order to modernize the current practices and processes of ministries and ensure a consistent approach across government.
Additional information sent to the Commissioner’s Office subsequently:
In January 2013, the Office of Francophone Affairs created a working group responsible for examining the current designation process, including the criteria for designation, in order to modernize the practices and processes being used by ministries and to ensure a consistent approach across government. This group is comprised of several French Language Services Cluster Managers and Coordinators, and including representatives from the Franco-Ontarian community.
The discussions of the group will enable the Office to develop options and recommendations, with a view to modernizing and harmonizing the process for designating organizations, by the end of March 2013. The proposed approach will then be shared with the members of the Provincial Advisory Committee on Francophone Affairs in order to include them in the process and to benefit from their perspective on this issue. Our objective is to find the best approach for meeting the needs of the Francophone community, while at the same time respecting the spirit and the letter of the French Language Services Act.
The Commissioner recommends that the Minister Responsible for Francophone Affairs:
Conduct an independent and interministerial assessment, by the end of the 2013-2014 fiscal year, of the government structures and processes designed to support the implementation of French language services within the government.
Ensure that this assessment focuses notably on the roles, responsibilities and hierarchical relationships of the Office of Francophone Affairs and the French language services coordinators.
Include the Office of the French Language Services Commissioner in this assessment.
Response:
The Ontario government is committed to continuing to improve access to French-language services and thus will continue to identify opportunities and needs to invest strategically in the work of the OFA and in improvements to the delivery of French-language services, as we have done since 2003.
We intend to undertake an evaluation of the structures and processes which support the delivery of French-language services within the Ontario government.
Additional information sent to the Commissioner’s Office subsequently:
The Office of Francophone Affairs has just launched a call for submissions to identify consultants to undertake the evaluation of the structures and processes which support the delivery of French-language services within the Ontario government.
This process will enable us to both update the October 2004 report mentioned in the French Language Services Commissioner’s report and to evaluate the new French-language services cluster governance structure established in April 2009. The process will be completed by the end of the year.
I would also like to mention that, after careful consideration, we have decided not to include the Office of the French Language Services Commissioner in this evaluation. The independence of the French Language Services Commissioner and his Office are crucial and it is, therefore, essential to avoid any appearance of interference in the administration and operations of the Commissioner’s Office.
The Commissioner recommends that the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration:
Set up an advisory committee by the end of the 2012-2013 year, which will be responsible for guiding ministry efforts related to the Francophone immigration file in Ontario.
Use a consultative and interministerial approach to develop a strategy, by the end of the 2013-2014 year, to welcome Francophone newcomers, to provide them with language training and to integrate them into the labour market. Response:
In recognition of the fact that much of Ontario’s future prosperity will come from immigration, the Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration has developed Ontario’s first ever Immigration Strategy. This important and pioneering initiative was undertaken in collaboration with key community and government stakeholders, including the Francophone community and the Office of Francophone Affairs.
Francophone immigration is a crucial component of the long-term flourishing of the Francophone community in this province. We also believe that Francophone immigration is an important element of the prosperity of the province as a whole, as the language skills these immigrants bring to the province are important to economic prosperity in many sectors, such as banking, financial services, communications, education, health and many others. For this reason, Ontario’s newly-released Immigration Strategy addresses Francophone immigration and the challenges faced by Francophone immigrants.
We are particularly proud that we have decided to take the bold step of establishing a target of 5% for Francophone immigration as a total of all immigrants. We will also ensure that the Strategy is implemented in a manner that complies with the French Language Services Act.
The Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration is firmly committed to working with the Office of Francophone Affairs, partner ministries (including the Ministries of Economic Development and Innovation; Training, Colleges, and Universities; and Municipal Affairs and Housing), the Federal government and the Francophone community throughout the implementation of the new Immigration Strategy with a view to developing better recruitment, settlement and integration programs on an on-going basis.
The Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration does not plan to create a separate advisory committee to guide its efforts related to Francophone immigration in Ontario. The Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration is, however, committed to establishing an annual Ministers’ Forum on Immigration to drive a “no wrong door” approach to immigrant services across government, jointly work towards stated goals of the Immigration Strategy, and release an annual progress report. The Ministers’ Forum will include colleague ministers from across government, including the Minister Responsible for Francophone Affairs. We believe that the whole-of government approach exemplified by the Ministers’ Forum, combined with annual reporting, continued Francophone stakeholder consultation, and the ministry’s continued participation on multiple intergovernmental advisory committees dedicated exclusively to the issue of Francophone immigration, will effectively ensure that the needs of Francophone immigrants and the Franco-Ontarian community are considered in the implementation of the Immigration Strategy.
The Commissioner recommends that the Minister Responsible for Francophone Affairs ensures that all proposed legislation or any other measure leading to the creation of a public-private partnership that includes a component to deliver public services incorporates provisions which would make any entity associated with these partnerships subject to the French Language Services Act.
Response:
The Government of Ontario has clearly demonstrated its commitment to serving the province’s French-speaking citizens in their own language and in a proactive manner.
Therefore, while managing the province’s current economic challenges, our government will not lose sight of its commitment towards the Franco-Ontarian community and its obligations under the French Language Services Act, whether the role of the private sector in delivering government services is expanded or not.
In fact, in February 2012, the Minister of Finance stated that where the private sector is called upon to deliver a greater number of government services, French-language services will remain in order to better serve our Franco-Ontarian community.
We will give the French Language Services Commissioner’s recommendation careful consideration as we continue to ensure the delivery of high-quality, cost-effective services for all Ontarians.
The Commissioner recommends that the Minister of Consumer Services take all the necessary measures to ensure that all newly-created delegated administrative authorities, or other similar entities, are fully subject to the provisions of the French Language Services Act.
Response:
The Delegated Administrative Authority (DAA) model provides significantly more independence from legislative and non-legislative requirements that apply to government and its agencies. DAAs are not controlled by the government, and do not deliver services on behalf of the government. DAAs are delegated authorities which directly administer and enforce legislation in place of the government.
For this reason, in recognition of the importance of ensuring that French-language services are maintained when making the transition to new service delivery models, the government proposed the addition of a French-language services clause during the clause-by-clause Committee review of the Delegated Administrative Authorities Act (schedule 11 of the Budget Bill), which followed second reading. The government’s motion was carried.
As a significant number of amendments were made during Committee review of this legislation, the Government is currently examining how best to proceed. However, the Government has made a commitment to include French-language services in DAA legislation.
