Canada's NDP

Skip to main content

March 27th, 2018

NDP Statement on the Action Plan for Official Languages

The NDP Official Languages critic, François Choquette, made the following statement:

"On Wednesday, Heritage Minister Melanie Joly will table the Action Plan for Official Languages and it is unlikely to deliver good news for the official language minority communities who need real action now. These communities have been waiting for the government to deliver on its commitments for almost three years now and the Liberals’ fancy words are not enough.

The Fédération des communautés francophone et acadienne(FCFA) asked for an additional $575 million and the Liberals are only planning to provide $400 million – and we still don’t know if this money will reach these communities! Official language minority communities need real investments, as well as the ability to manage their own affairs.

We expect better leadership from the Heritage Minister, the Public Service Minister, the Treasury Board and from Immigration Canada. It’s time official languages be given the importance they deserve. Without this recognition, errors will continue to pile up and official language minority communities will continue to pay the price.

The Official Languages Commissioner must be given more power to ensure the Minister upholds the law: it’s time the federal government improve the services it provides in both official languages."