Ottawa, December 9, 2002
Acting with diligence
Speaking notes for an address to the House Standing Committee
on Official Languages
Dr. Dyane Adam - Commissioner of Official Languages
Check against delivery
Ladies and gentlemen:
My presentation before you today gives me the opportunity to discuss my key priorities with you. I will briefly cover some of the issues of interest to me, that is:
- political and administrative leadership;
- revitalizing language rights;
- the use of both official languages within the federal public service;
- my monitoring role, which has lead me to intervene in areas like immigration, health care, access to justice in both official languages;
- my office's auditing function.
I will also take this opportunity to explore some courses of action with you.
With my last Annual Report, I once again made a diagnosis of the linguistic situation. But I also publicly responded to the Prime Minister's request to recommend tangible actions by including seven recommendations. My report also highlighted achievements and progress made, including the first Leon Leadership Award presented by my Office.
Political and administrative leadership
We have noted some tangible evidence of coordinated and committed leadership. As well, the government's formal commitment, renewed in the latest Speech from the Throne, gives us reason to hope, if words really do translate into action. The commitment reads as follows:
"Linguistic duality is at the heart of our collective identity. The government will implement an action plan on official languages that will focus on minority-language and second-language education, including the goal of doubling within ten years the number of high school graduates with a working knowledge of both English and French. It will support the development of minority English- and French-speaking communities, and expand access to services in their language in areas such as health. It will enhance the use of our two official languages in the federal public service, both in the workplace and when communicating with Canadians."
Revitalizing language rights
To translate these words into action, we are still missing a key element, that is, the action plan promised by Minister Dion .
Time is of the essence. The loss of previous gains, the integration of official languages in government operations, and the implementation of our recommendations require innovative approaches and a firm and sustained commitment from all levels in the government.
Resource allocation is an essential condition for revitalizing language rights. I hope that Cabinet as a whole will make it a priority. The government must not limit itself to a succession of incoherent mini-reforms without a clear end goal. Once more, I call upon the government to develop an overall vision supported by objectives, deadlines and mechanisms to assess results. These are essential to ensuring that the action plan is implemented successfully.
Since 1990, investment in official languages has stagnated and declined and the number of officials responsible for bilingualism in the federal government has dropped by more than half. We must now correct this situation.
I have recommended that the government allocate sufficient resources - human as well as financial - to allow the Treasury Board Secretariat to fully assume its role of overseeing and evaluating institutions subject to the Official Languages Act. It must fulfill its roles as language trainer, educator and auditor. I continue to express my concern about the slow pace of change, which is why I am insisting on the need for diligence.
There must be integration and continuity with respect to language rights. By setting up the Ministerial Reference Group on Official Languages, chaired by Minister Dion, the government has thereby made it possible to act horizontally in a well-structured way. I therefore recommended this year that this group be given permanent committee status in order to encourage sustained leadership at the highest levels of the public service and to support the implementation of the government's action plan.
The pacesetter in terms of administrative leadership is, without doubt, Ivan Fellegi, Chief Statistician of Canada, who received my first Leon Leadership Award. His institution has distinguished itself by the excellent bilingual services it provides to the public, by its workplace conducive to the use of both languages and, more generally, by the management of its language program. Many more similar examples are required.
The use of both official languages within the federal public service
Recent studies on the use of both official languages within the federal public service clearly show that an enormous amount of work remains to be done. Language of work is a priority since I believe that the public service must embody a dynamic culture of linguistic duality. A Treasury Board study, Attitudes towards the Use of Both Official Languages Within the Public Service of Canada, shows that public service employees support the basic principles underlying language policies.
The study confirms that support among public service employees is especially high with respect to service to the public: 92 per cent of public servants believe that it is important for them to serve the public in both official languages, and 86 per cent stated that they would be willing to make a personal effort to encourage bilingualism in the workplace. On average, bilingual Anglophones working in a bilingual environment speak French 14 per cent of the time, while bilingual Francophones in a bilingual environment speak English 43 per cent of their time.
The study also reveals, however, that there is still a lot of confusion or lack of knowledge about the way these principles can be put into daily practice. The President of the Treasury Board, Lucienne Robillard , who shares this view, has taken a proactive approach in this regard. In fact, to remedy the current situation, I had recommended courses of action she could take.
One of these arises from the unanimous view that it is time for a change in culture and that senior management must lead by example. I have therefore recommended that the achievement of the three objectives of the Official Languages Act remains one of the priorities of the Clerk of the Privy Council for the next three years. Public service administrators must allocate the time and resources needed to implement the Official Languages Program in their workplaces.
Another approach focuses on the modernization of the management of human resources underway in the federal government. I have suggested that, during this exercise, the public service should fully integrate official languages into its activities. The culture change will be achieved through the modernization of the public service. During this process, action must be taken to:
- make senior federal management more accountable by redefining the governance framework for official languages;
- promote bilingualism as a basic skill;
- staff bilingual positions with people who have a knowledge of both official languages (imperative staffing);
- rethink language training; and
- emphasize receptive bilingualism.
Regarding the dynamics of workplace communications, many factors are constantly interacting. In order to identify them, I have commissioned a sociolinguistic study that will primarily focus on the situation in headquarters in the National Capital Region and will extend to regions designated as bilingual. We must make every effort to find ways to increase the use of French in the public service.
Along the same lines, during the Symposium on Language of Work, which took place in New Brunswick in early November, Minister Robillard repeated the government's desire and commitment by sending a clear message to managers who will not be able to meet the language requirements of their positions by March 31, 2003. She tried to mobilize them by spelling out expectations and the punitive measures that could be taken, if necessary. I am pleased to see that my recommendations are leading to both political and administrative actions. However, I am disappointed that the measures do not also apply to deputy ministers, who are currently exempt from language requirements. It is puzzling, to say the least, that the federal government requires its managers to be bilingual but not its senior leaders. As soon as new senior public service managers arrive, they should be informed of the requirements of the Official Languages Act and its underlying values. They need guidance and preparation to manage the Official Languages Program. They must be made aware that they are the officials primarily responsible for integrating these values into their institutions' organizational cultures. In short, they must put into practice the government's commitment to the equality of status and use of both official languages and to the right of employees to work in the official language of their choice.
My monitoring role
My monitoring role leads me to take a proactive approach by getting involved at the drafting stage of acts, regulations, policies and programs to ensure that language rights are taken into account. For example, I intervened with the minister responsible and before parliamentary committees to ensure that the policy and bill on physical activity and sport gave consideration to linguistic duality. You will remember that I produced a report in 2000 that showed that Francophones are facing major barriers, preventing them from fully participating in various sporting activities.
Other key issues are also priorities for me, such as broadcasting, including subtitling, the Internet, minority press, the broadcast of parliamentary debates, and Government On-Line.
Immigration
For example, with respect to immigration, from the beginning of my term I wanted to raise awareness of the fact that Canadian population growth and the survival of official language minority communities depend on immigrants. The two studies I commissioned on immigration confirmed this. Without effective measures, official language minority communities have a hard time recruiting and integrating Anglophone or Francophone immigrants. I worked hard to ensure that the new Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and Regulations pay special attention to the development of both official language groups in Canada and in particular minority Francophone communities, which are clearly disadvantaged by the demographic imbalance that has been growing for years. According to current data from Statistics Canada, in the Anglophone population one person in five is an immigrant, whereas in the Francophone population both in Quebec and across the country, the figure is one immigrant in 20. Linguistic duality and ethnocultural diversity are at the heart of our Canadian identity. I recommended that the Department of Citizenship and Immigration develop support programs to implement the language provisions of the new Act. We must also promote our linguistic duality abroad by raising the profile of our official language minority communities and helping these communities develop adequate infrastructures to welcome newcomers.
Health care
Last May, I made a submission to the Romanow Commission given that linguistic duality was absent from its deliberations on national health. I have reviewed the final report, which was tabled on November 28. The linguistic dimension is now addressed in one of the Commission's recommendations, but this is not enough! Although a number of recommendations include deadlines, there are no deadlines with respect to the provision of health care in the minority official language. Moreover, the principle of giving Canadians access to health services in the official language of their choice should be explicitly recognized in the Canada Health Act. I am concerned about the absence of a national legal guarantee. This indicates to me that my efforts to raise awareness must continue. I therefore intend to present my view before the House and Senate parliamentary committees. As a clinical psychologist, I know firsthand about the importance of communication in fostering a climate of trust between patient and physician, or any other health care professional. It is a very important condition of any healing process. In order to provide care, you must first be able to understand the patient.
Access to justice
Access to justice in both official languages is also a major issue. Last August, the Department of Justice published its Environmental Scan. This study identified barriers to obtaining legal services in English and French across Canada, as well as a variety of possible solutions from the minority communities. The Department of Justice, in co-operation with its provincial and territorial counterparts, must now make efforts to review the solutions proposed in the study and implement those that are most likely to address the needs of minority communities. In this regard, the department's initiative to set up a federal/provincial/territorial working group, spun off from the forum of deputy ministers of Justice, is certainly a step in the right direction. I therefore expect to see this initiative result in tangible actions from the department. The necessary measures must now be taken to help provincial and territorial governments set up the appropriate institutional structures to allow Canadians access to the justice system in both official languages.
In one of its last reports, the Joint Committee addressed a series of recommendations to the Department of Justice, the first of which dealt with reinforcing the application of Part VII of the Official Languages Act and the importance of working with the communities on this question. I recommended that the government clarify the legal scope of the commitment set out in section 41 of the Act and take the measures required to effectively fulfill its responsibilities under this section.
On another matter, I encourage you to examine the relevance of the current provisions of the Official Languages (Communications with and Services to the Public) Regulations developed by the Treasury Board Secretariat. I believe that the time has come to review them, and I have made my position known to Ministers Robillard and Dion .
My office's auditing function
My role involves a number of areas, one of which pertains to complaints and investigations. I have re-examined my Office's investigation process, since complaints remain a powerful tool for change when our recommendations are implemented. Beyond complaints, however, we must remain proactive. I need to be able to report accurately to Parliament on the language situation within the federal government and Crown corporations, agencies and privatized institutions that are not under Treasury Board's responsibility or do not have it as their employer. There are over a 100 such institutions. I therefore intend to enhance the auditing function of my Office, as we are the independent body responsible for monitoring compliance with the Act.
Among the key courses of action I am encouraging you to examine are the government's action plan, the Environmental Scan study, modernization of the public service, the status of official languages in Crown corporations and other institutions subject to the Official Languages Act, language of work, and the accountability framework.
Acting with diligence
The government must act, but it must act with diligence. It can no longer afford to turn a blind eye. It must take action in a timely manner and refuse to accept unjustified delays or evasion.
Conclusion
I can see that you have already started the ball rolling by inviting the CRTC and Treasury Board to appear before you. Even though I was unable to attend your first meetings, I have followed your proceedings with great interest and I noticed that you are closely monitoring Air Canada's performance.
I know that I can count on you, and likewise, I also wish to pledge my full co-operation. Your meetings are among my priorities and I will try to take part as often as possible.
Thank you for your attention. I will be pleased to answer your questions.
