Proceedings of the Standing Senate Committee on
Official Languages
Issue 10 - Evidence, December 11, 2006
OTTAWA, Monday, December 11, 2006
The Standing Senate Committee on Official Languages met this day at 4:02 p.m. to study and to report from time to time on the application of the Official Languages Act and regulations and directives made under it, within those institutions subject to the act.
Senator Maria Chaput (Chairman) in the Chair.
[Translation]
The Chairman: Good afternoon and welcome to the nineteenth meeting of the Standing Senate Committee on Official Languages. My name is Maria Chaput, I am the chair of this committee and I come from Manitoba. Before handing the floor over to the witnesses, I would like to introduce the other members of this committee. On my left, Senator Andrée Champagne from Quebec; on my right, Senator Mobina Jaffer from British Columbia, Senator Fernand Robichaud from New Brunswick, Senator Rose-Marie Losier-Cool from New Brunswick, Senator Jim Munson from Ontario and Senator Pierre Claude Nolin from Quebec.
We are continuing our study today on the application of the Official Languages Act and we will be discussing the place of the official languages in the organization of the 2010 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games in Vancouver.
First, we will be hearing from the Honourable David Emerson, P.C., M.P., Minister of International Trade and Minister for the Pacific Gateway and the Vancouver-Whistler Olympics.
The minister is accompanied today by officials from Canadian Heritage, including Judith A. LaRocque, Deputy Minister at Canadian Heritage and David M. Robinson, Director General of the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games Federal Secretariat, which is part of Canadian Heritage.
[English]
Welcome, Minister, and thank you for being with us today. The floor is yours.
[Translation]
The Hon. David Emerson, P.C., M.P., Minister of International Trade and Minister for the Pacific Gateway and the Vancouver-Whistler Olympics: Honourable senators, thank you for your invitation.
[English]
You will know from the foregoing that I am not fluently bilingual.
I will begin by thanking all of you for the work you are doing on this committee. I believe it is critically important and I believe that the Olympics project that we are all involved in and so proud of will be an excellent vehicle for pursuing the committee's and Canada's objectives.
Thank you for the opportunity to address the place of official languages as an integral part of the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games. It will mark the first time in over 20 years that Canada has hosted the winter games and, as such, it represents an opportunity for Canada to showcase our country to the world. We know that some 3 billion people will be watching and we can expect approximately 250,000 visitors to the games.
As we welcome the world, it gives us an opportunity to highlight our hospitality, our athletic excellence and our cultural diversity. The Olympic and Paralympic Games are also a once-in-a-generation opportunity to bring Canadians together, to unite them in common cause, commitment and celebration. We need to ensure that all Canadians from coast to coast to coast are engaged and involved. We need to ensure that all Canadians have access to the games, and they must be able to enjoy the games in the official language of their choice.
After Vancouver won the bid for the 2010 games, we realized that extensive incorporation of Canadian bilingualism would be a challenge and would require a proactive approach. We also realized that it would require a commitment from all the partners to the games.
In November 2002, the Government of Canada signed a multi-party agreement with the Vancouver Organizing Committee and the provincial and municipal governments. This is the first time in the history of the games that specific provisions with respect to official languages have been integrated into such an agreement.
As part of this agreement, the Vancouver Organizing Committee, VANOC, committed to meeting the objectives and fulfilling the obligations spelled out in the Official Languages Act and related policies. This includes ensuring that the opening and closing ceremonies incorporate our bilingual and cultural foundations, ensuring sufficient capacity in Canada's official languages among VANOC's employees and volunteers and, finally, promoting the games through cultural programming, advertising, signage and other communications in both English and French.
I am pleased to add that not only has VANOC agreed to meet the requirements of the multi-party agreement, but it also shares our commitment to linguistic duality and intends to surpass its obligations under the Official Languages Act.
As an example, VANOC recently signed a partnership agreement with the Government of Quebec. This agreement covers a variety of areas where Quebec and the organizing committee will work together, including promotion of culture and French language. VANOC has also signed agreements with francophone organizations to ensure that francophone communities in B.C. and across the country get deeply involved in the 2010 Games.
Madam Bissonnette the Grand Témoin de la Francophonie was in Turino for the 2006 Games. She raised concerns about the use of French during those games, and we have used the report prepared by Madam Bissonnette as a guide in our preparations. Our government wants to make these games the new gold standard in terms of respect for official languages. We expect an updated business plan from VANOC in the new year. The plan will include an updated official languages strategy and will enable us to establish metrics and benchmarks for gauging our progress and success.
I believe VANOC should be commended for the work it is doing to ensure the use and availability of French for the games. As for the federal government, our job is to ensure that official languages are respected, available and an integral part of the games.
Madam Chairman, as my colleague Minister Verner said before this committee last October, ``The Government of Canada, in partnership with the organizing committee and with British Columbia, is committed to showing the world not only the excellence of our athletes and the richness of our culture but also the image of a strong country that is proud of its linguistic duality.''
I am committed, as is Ms. Verner and the government, to using the 2010 Winter Games to ensure that French takes its rightful place at the heart of the Olympics and Paralympics.
I want to address the broadcasting of the 2010 Games. Concerns have been raised that the broadcaster awarded the rights to the games by the International Olympic Committee might not provide the same level of coverage to francophones across the country as that which English speakers will enjoy. This goes to the heart of what we are discussing today because most Canadians will experience the games through television and radio. To ensure that all Canadians have equal access in French and English, it is vital that we address these concerns.
Last week I met with the Official Languages Commissioner Mr. Graham Fraser and he expressed to me his concerns about the availability of French programming during the games. It is a concern that I also share. All parties are focused on this issue. We will be monitoring the situation closely to ensure that all Canadians are able to enjoy these games in the language of their choice. I look forward to seeing your committee's conclusions and recommendations on this very subject.
Senator Jaffer: Thank you, Madam Chairman and welcome, minister to our committee. As both you and I are from the same city, we certainly want to ensure that the games are set in the best possible light and our city does not suffer any black marks. I am sure we will work together on this issue.
Do you have a timeline as to how the progress is going? You have set it out well in your speech, but do you have a timeline as to how the games will reflect our dual linguistic character?
Mr. Emerson: I can say that VANOC has actually come a long way in a number of areas. The committee has made a range of commitments involving the staff, volunteers and linkages with francophone communities. VANOC has struck an agreement with the Province of Quebec. VANOC will present its business plan early in 2007, and it will have a component outlining, with some clarity and precision, what the committee plans are with respect to linguistic duality and the cultural celebratory element. The committee has a measurement and effectiveness evaluation system. As the Government of Canada, we would have the opportunity to assess the adequacy of what the committee is proposing and a critical path from here to 2010 would be certainly an essential part of that.
Senator Jaffer: Last week we had the CTV media and officials here and they spoke of CTV doing 30 per cent better than the Turin games. That gave me concern, and I am glad you spoke to the Bissonnette report, because Turin lacked a lot, especially with French, though Italy does not claim to be bilingual as our country does. I am concerned to hear that from you when the standard is so low. We need to push that figure because 30 per cent is not good enough and I would like to hear what you have to say about that.
Mr. Emerson: I quite agree. Graham Fraser and I spoke about this and I spoke to Parliament in question period. My view, and the view of the government, is that we have to do better than that. I believe we are closing in on it. I think CTV has made good strong commitments, given the networks and the capacity it has. However, at the moment CTV does not have the capacity to ensure that we get the level of service, particularly to francophone groups outside of the Province of Quebec. Within the Department of Canadian Heritage we have legal and policy teams working on what are options that could perhaps be considered for filling that gap and making up the difference. I am committed and the government is committed to ensuring that we solve the problem.
Senator Jaffer: One issue, of course, is that the programming is provided to the maximum number of Canadians in the language of their choice. However, my friend Senator Nolin has taught me something on another committee that it is not just about providing language or having translations, but being culturally sensitive and having programs that are originally in French broadcasted across the country as well. I urge you to ensure that it is not a translation of English programs but there is original French programming as well.
Mr. Emerson: I understand what you are saying and I agree. Are you talking about just the TV coverage or other events and celebration?
Senator Jaffer: Everything.
Mr. Emerson: I quite agree and VANOC agrees. We are working with the various partners to ensure there is a good strong reflection of French language and culture in the Olympics. I personally believe that the Olympics present an opportunity to build a sense of nation and a sense of unity. The Province of Quebec, if I dare say, has always contributed disproportionately to the medal count and we would not want to miss that opportunity.
Senator Jaffer: We were in Vancouver a number of weeks ago as a committee and one of the things we did was meet with the French speaking ethnic community. I would like to suggest to you that perhaps we could find a way of having that community as part of the games because they certainly can provide the French skills. It is a growing community and you know some of the challenges that community has had so I do not need to tell you, but it would certainly be something that we could include in the games.
Mr. Emerson: VANOC has developed a protocol with a couple of francophone organizations, one national and one in B.C., and is working to ensure that there is a broad range of activities, whether it is for visitors coming to be part of the Olympics, volunteers or community celebrations, that have a very strong connection and input from the francophone community.
Senator Munson: The emphasis has to be that these are Canada's games. We engage this country through bilingualism although sometimes cities take ownership of the games. That is what we have to keep in mind; there can be no bilingual or cultural divide. Do you know how much the federal government will spend in French advertising as opposed to English?
Mr. Emerson: I cannot answer that question. We have some proposals that we are reviewing with respect to strategic opportunities related to how we gain leverage for the country in a host of different areas, some of them culture related, some of them trade and investment related. At the moment, the numbers for that broad package have not been tied down, and so I cannot give you the French-language component, although Ms. LaRocque might.
Judith A. LaRocque, Deputy Minister, Canadian Heritage: I do not think I would do much better than the minister on this question. As Mr. Emerson said, we are just nailing down now what that would look like. We would certainly be fully respecting our obligations under the act, and probably trying to do considerably better than that, because that has been the modus operandi for everything we have done so far.
Senator Munson: The Vancouver organizing committee has to fill 1,200 full-time positions, 3,500 part-time positions and 25,000 voluntary positions. What type of positions and how many of them will require fluency in both official languages in these three different categories?
Mr. Emerson: I would not want to hazard a guess. I know that VANOC wants a substantial contingent of fluently bilingual people, francophone where possible. I know as well that they are offering French-language training to their staff. Fifteen per cent of their staff now is bilingual, although I cannot tell you to what standard.
You have my assurance that in our discussions with VANOC, we will ensure that there is a substantial cadre of francophone and French-speaking volunteers and employees. Like you, I believe that is almost the essence of the nation and we have to ensure that there will be a prominent number of French-speaking people involved and participating in whatever way is required.
Senator Munson: In that regard, would you be encouraging Québécois, Acadians, Franco-Ontarians and Manitobans to head west to fill those positions?
Mr. Emerson: We will absolutely be looking for a major migration westward, perhaps only temporarily, on the part of francophones in Canada.
Senator Munson: Are there any lessons learned from Alberta and from the Montreal Games in the past? Have you sat down with anyone on the federal level to ask what went wrong and what went right, to come up with a rather unique plan for 2010?
Mr. Emerson: We have certainly looked closely at Turin, as well as Montreal and Calgary, from the perspective of lessons learned, but I cannot say specifically whether there has been a focus on the French-language and cultural issue.
David M. Robinson, Director General, 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games Federal Secretariat, Canadian Heritage: One of the lessons we have taken from particularly the organization of the Calgary Games is to ensure that French-language services are not held aside in one particular part of the organizing committee but are integrated throughout the committee, so that any place where there are public-facing services provided by the organizing committee, whether in communications, marketing, or support to athletes or coaches, that there is a sufficient level of capacity in French and English.
The minister has made reference to the business plan we are anticipating coming from VANOC in the spring. We will be looking to ensure that VANOC puts sufficient resources in those areas to ensure the proper level of service in French and English.
Senator Champagne: I would like to stay in the language area for a moment. Having been an active participant in the 1976 Olympics in Montreal, I remember that anyone who could not speak both languages had no chance in the world to be hired. One had to be bilingual to have a job there.
If Quebec City had the Olympics, I am sure that the same exigence would have been made up of people in Quebec City. One does not work for the Olympics and receive the world unless one speaks at least two languages.
Will that be part of the makeup of the people working at the Vancouver Olympics?
Mr. Emerson: We are strongly committed to ensuring that there is a vibrant and strong francophone presence. It would be unrealistic in Vancouver and Whistler to say that every single employee and volunteer will be bilingual.
Senator Champagne: I am talking about those who have to work with the public.
Mr. Emerson: Where there is interaction with the public, there will be extensive staffing of people with French- language skills. I cannot say that we will not miss some possible areas, but we will make every attempt to ensure that francophones are able to communicate with Olympic staff and volunteers in French. Will there ever be a complaint? I am sure there will.
Senator Champagne: I am sure that I would not be overstating it in saying that you are not about to hire unilingual francophones.
Mr. Emerson: Would we not hire a unilingual francophone?
Senator Champagne: Not likely.
Mr. Emerson: I do not think it is out of the question. It is a question of being practical.
Senator Murray: As Senator Jaffer said, the committee was in Vancouver in September, and I came away more encouraged after several days.
First, with regard to the Olympics and the efforts that are being made to ensure that Canada's linguistic duality is fully reflected, this is not Turin. In Turin, the problem was that it was English, and the language of the host city, which happened to be Italian, although with quite a French background, still French was relegated to a poor third place. We cannot have that, and I am sure we will not have that in Vancouver and in Canada. Real efforts are being made not just by VANOC but in the — I hate the word — interface between VANOC and the francophone organizations in British Columbia, even with volunteers, to ensure that a cadre of bilingual volunteers is recruited to help.
The intentions are very good and I think the ability is there to see it through and to produce the desired result. I came away from Vancouver very encouraged. I was also encouraged — I will say this in parentheses — with what we heard about the vitality and the vibrancy of the French-language organizations and with what the small French- language communities in British Columbia are doing. I have to say, by what I took to be the openness of people. The mayor appeared and testified before us in French.
Quite apart from that, what the francophone representatives had to say about the policies of the provincial government in British Columbia was all very encouraging, especially when one considers the enormity of the challenges that British Columbia, as a gateway to the Pacific, faces in other areas that I do not have to give you in detail. In terms of trying to reflect, in its own way, linguistic duality, it was encouraging.
About this broadcasting business, I am trying to remember and to do justice to the testimony we heard a week ago. The president of CBC/Radio-Canada and several of his officers were here, as well as the top people from Bell Globemedia. There has been quite a ballet here. It appears that Bell Globemedia wrote a letter to Radio-Canada quite some time ago offering a solution: that CBC take Bell Globemedia's signal and broadcast it on the Radio-Canada cable. Radio-Canada said that it did not receive the letter but, in any case, it declined that offer for various reasons but is willing to do a business arrangement with CTV.
When CTV representatives appeared before the committee, they naturally complained about the lack of response from Radio-Canada. They did not show too much interest in further negotiations. They said they put a proposal on the table and were willing to talk but gave the committee the impression that that was their last word.
Perhaps some mediation is needed and, if not mediation, then someone has to bang heads together. Are you temperamentally averse to that kind of action? I know that Ms. LaRocque is not averse to such action.
Mr. Emerson: It is a sensitive issue because the Government of Canada is precluded from giving direction, for example, to CBC. We have to move in circumspect ways but you can be sure that between Beverley Oda, VANOC, and any others engaged in this issue cluster that we will be pushing hard to bring about a resolution.
We need to respect the fact that CTV won this contract, which was issued not by VANOC but by the International Olympic Committee. CBC, understandably, does not want to just run somebody else's programming and signal and wants to have some of its own programming. Work over the next few months will be critical in bringing this to a resolution. We will find a solution in some way.
Senator Murray: Thank you.
[Translation]
Senator Losier-Cool: Thank you, Madam Chairman.
On the matter of the Multiparty Agreement with the Vancouver group, we are all aware, Minister, that when one visits a foreign country, one's first impression is often what remains.
So, there will be thousands of travellers passing through Vancouver International Airport. Are there any requirements in the agreement concerning the provision of services in both official languages at Vancouver airport to ensure that travellers immediately recognize Canada's uniqueness as a country with two official languages?
[English]
Mr. Emerson: I believe it is required that the airport provide services in both official languages. I am quite sure, whether it is in the multi-party agreement, that the Vancouver Organizing Committee would ensure that there would be people on site who are capable of greeting visitors, athletes and coaches in either English or French. You can rest assured of that, although I will confirm that with John Furlong at my next opportunity.
Senator Losier-Cool: There are areas outside the services offered by the airport, such as stores and boutiques. I know you answered Senator Munson about the business part of it, which could be encouraged to have the two official languages.
After you leave the airport, you are on the road.
[Translation]
I would now like to turn to the issue of bilingual signage in, notably, Whistler and Vancouver. I sincerely hope the government will make sure there are bilingual signs on our roads.
[English]
Mr. Emerson: Thank you. We will follow up on that.
[Translation]
Senator Champagne: I would like to come back for a moment, if I may, to the television issue. I think what CBC/ Radio-Canada wanted to avoid was having to broadcast Globemedia's advertisements and thereby lose quite a considerable amount of money. Senator Munson also pointed out that CBC/Radio-Canada may decide to buy and broadcast advertisements during the Games, given that there will be 550 hours of broadcasting in French and more than twice that in English. I think that we can already take it for granted that the English advertising budget will be bigger than the French one.
I also wanted to come back to the opening and closing ceremonies at the Games. Could you tell me who is in charge of them? Who is keeping an eye on what is going on in that department?
[English]
Mr. Emerson: Formally, the ceremonies are the responsibility of VANOC, but those who pay the piper also have a say in what tune is played. I would fully anticipate the Government of Canada being involved closely with VANOC in the opening and closing ceremonies to ensure that our linguistic duality, cultural roots and diversity figure prominently. We have all heard about and felt disappointed by what happened in Torino, Italy. I have heard nothing but bad commentary about how we did there.
[Translation]
Senator Champagne: There was a magnificent song in Italian at the end, but it was in Italian and English. French was really the poor second cousin in Turin and I think that everybody here and people all throughout Canada would hope that French and francophones will have an opportunity to be better represented in Vancouver.
Senator Nolin: I, too, would like to come back to the issue of the opening and closing ceremonies. We are not telling you or anyone around this table anything new when we say that bilingual Canada or French Canada is much more than just Quebec; French Canada — and this committee meeting is a case in point — includes francophones with distinctive cultures quite apart from the Quebec culture. And to follow up on my colleague Senator Champagne's question, I dare hope that the Government of Canada will go to every effort to ensure the ceremonies not only have a bilingual or Quebec flavour to them, but that they also portray our very distinctive culture. I am thinking of francophones living in the Atlantic region and in the Prairies, to name but a few.
I do not want us to be saying two or three months before the deadline that it is too late, that everything is already settled, and that we would have liked things to have been better.
So, what sort of mechanisms has the Government of Canada already put in place, or is in the process of putting in place, to ensure the various parties are meeting their commitments? Everybody is pledging this and that and giving us their word that everything will be fine and that they are going to do their best. The Games go for two or three weeks. Two months before the deadline, it will be too late; money will already have been earmarked and contracts will have been distributed. I hope you have envisaged a number of follow-up mechanisms to ensure that the people making political decisions — that is to say, you, Minister, the Minister for Sport, the Prime Minister of Canada, those in authority who wield a lot of weight in such an operation — will be receiving advice and be prepared to make changes both forcefully and with resolve should the need arise.
[English]
Mr. Emerson: It is fair to say VANOC has done a good job so far. As I mentioned, when VANOC brings the revised business plan to us, it will be an important document requiring federal sign-off, and we will require an evaluation and assessment mechanism, performance metrics, and critical paths. I urge this committee to call me, or whoever is responsible by the middle of next year, to confirm the evaluation and tracking framework is accomplishing what we hope. You have my assurance we will work closely with VANOC, and will not sign off until we are satisfied those mechanisms are in place and we are getting timely information. If it is not evolving satisfactorily, we can intervene before it is too late. You might want to recall witnesses in 2007 before mid-year.
[Translation]
Senator Nolin: Minister, we will keep a very close eye on matters; thank you for your undertakings. I think everybody will have to pitch in and I believe that the first people to be able to attest to the progress made will be the francophone communities from British Columbia with whom you have already entered into agreements; you alluded to this in your opening remarks. We have been led to believe that the Fédération des francophones de la Colombie- Britannique and the Fondation canadienne pour le dialogue des cultures need more funding to ensure effective service delivery which, I believe, will be critical.
They are right there. They do not have to travel from far away by plane, they will be witnesses to what happens and what does not happen — or often, to what should happen but does not. I think both these organizations need the government's support in order to improve their financial position. I would hope, Minister — and this is a bit of a leading question — that you will convince your colleague, Ms. Oda, to provide adequate funding to these two organizations in their endeavours.
[English]
It could be a yes or no.
Mr. Emerson: I understand it may be Ms. Verner who is the sponsoring minister. Your point is well taken. You cannot do these things for nothing. They have to be properly funded, and we are reviewing the adequacy of that as we speak.
[Translation]
Senator Nolin: These two organizations will undoubtedly be the eyes and ears of a committee such as our own and we will be paying particular attention to their opinion throughout this entire extravaganza, which, we hope, will be as favourable as possible.
The Chairman: I would like to ask a follow up question to Senator Nolin's. Minister, in this large-scale organization, with all its partners, who has the final say? If the Official Language Act is not being respected and changes need to be made, who has the last word? Does the buck stop with you, Mr. Emerson, or with another minister? Does somebody have supreme authority or is it shared among several people?
[English]
Mr. Emerson: There is a multi-party agreement. As the minister responsible, I would suggest you look to me to ensure the commitments made today, and at any other times, are met. I do not want to hand it off to another minister. I am sure that Ms. Verner and Ms. Oda will be with me in ensuring we get the job done the way you like.
[Translation]
Senator Robichaud: To add to what my colleague Senator Nolin said concerning on-site associations' applications for funding, I think that the timing is really important. Things should not be held off too long. We need to give these organizations enough time to be able to fully take advantage of the funding so that they can hire the people they need.
You also said that you will be keeping a very close eye on the whole broadcasting side of things, and I do not doubt you for a minute. However, the representatives from Radio-Canada who were here last week told us that if there were to be an agreement with Radio-Canada, it would have to be finalized pretty soon because the whole program scheduling side of things can take some time. We cannot have CBC/Radio-Canada in a position where it cannot enter into an agreement simply because there is not enough time.
I am simply throwing that out there as advice, because we have heard from a number of partners — those involved in the Olympic Games and all of us here want to make sure that the Games are a big success.
[English]
Senator Jaffer: I would like to take you to the issue of moving the tourism commission to Vancouver. I suggest that is one of your legacies in the other work you were doing.
When Ms. Demers came to speak to us, I was disturbed by what she said about moving federal agencies to bilingual communities, and not moving them to unilingual communities. That means Vancouver will probably never have a federal agency within its midst. I suggested to Ms. Demers that Charlottetown had an agency move and she told us Charlottetown needed the jobs and Vancouver did not. That is not why we want federal agencies. We want to be part of Canada.
She said ``the federal government obviously needs to be able to serve Canadians and other clients.'' She goes on:
These twin objectives will, in our view, best be achieved by maintaining head offices in centres where there is a sufficient critical mass of bilingual Canadians and a sufficient critical mass of bilingual Canadians and a sufficient critical mass of bilingual federal public employees to serve that public.
As the senior minister from British Columbia, although you may not have the information today, will you please provide to our committee exactly what kind of training federal civil servants receive in B.C.? Obviously, the dream is to get B.C. to become bilingual rather than not have B.C. get federal agencies. I understand from federal civil servants that they do not get the same benefits as one would get in Ottawa with respect to receiving language training. I would appreciate your providing us with that information. How many civil servants are getting that training, how available is it, and do they get the 12-month program that civil servants in Ottawa get?
Mr. Emerson: Let me say that I do not agree at all with the sentiment that Canadian government institutions should only be in bilingual communities. That would be a terrible, divisive thing to do.
The CTC is the only federal agency in British Columbia. There has never been any significant federal agency headquartered there. When I had the responsibility — and I do not now — I asked the CTC to ensure that we were not just complying with the letter of the Official Languages Act, that we would go beyond and that we would try to maintain the standard of bilingualism that was in effect when the CTC was in Ottawa. Have they done that? I cannot answer that question. I am equally unsure as to what level of training and opportunity there is in B.C. versus other parts of the country. I was not aware that it was different, to be honest with you. I thought that as public servants, when you hit certain levels and certain job classifications there were national requirements for bilingual capability. I did not know there was something different prevailing in B.C.
Senator Jaffer: I understand, minister, that on paper it is the same, but each department has to finance these programs and funding always runs out, so they plan to do it the following year. It may be there in spirit, but in practice it is lacking.
Senator Murray: In a smaller office, it is difficult to spare somebody who wants to take language training. The farther away from the centre the more difficult it is for the employee to attend the classes. That is what I have been told, anyway.
Mr. Emerson: I will follow up generally in my role as a B.C. minister. I have general concerns, as you do. British Columbia is a province, certainly in the Vancouver area, where French language immersion and French culture is accepted. It is celebrated; it is growing; it is healthy. The last thing in the world we should be doing is shirking our responsibility to fund and support the growth and expansion of French language culture and language in British Columbia.
That is where I am at. You look at me. I did not get what I should have when I was a young man. As the senator has indicated, I always found myself too busy to get the training when I had the opportunity to do it. I regret that. British Columbians want to become much more connected to the linguistic duality of Canada as well.
Senator Munson: You are the go-to person now for the games and it will be 2010. Where do you plan to be 2010?
Mr. Emerson: Nice try.
Senator Munson: It is the old reporter in me; I cannot help myself.
Mr. Emerson: I plan to be in Vancouver and frequenting Whistler.
Senator Munson: That is not a mischievous question. These games are important to you and you want them to be successful, as we all do, in both official languages.
Mr. Emerson: Yes, I do, and I plan to be there.
The Chairman: Minister, thank you so much for taking the time to be with us, and thank you for your interest in the work of this committee, and also your commitment to ensure that both official languages will be respected in the 2010 games.
We now have before us the Honourable Peter Van Loan, Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs and Minister for Sport. With him, along with Ms. LaRocque, is Mr. Tom Scrimger, Director General of Sport Canada. Welcome minister, the floor is yours.
[Translation]
Hon. Peter Van Loan, P.C., M.P., Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs and Minister for Sport: Madam Chairman, I am pleased to be here with you today to speak about a subject that it is important to all of us.
I am also pleased to tell you that the Government of Canada shares your firm commitment to strengthen the vitality of the French language and culture in Canada. We understand that Canada's linguistic duality is an essential characteristic of our identity and our society.
[English]
Sports are a defining element of Canadian identity. Academic elites may agonize over Canadian identity, but Canadians put that identity proudly on display, embracing traditional Canadian sports that we can call our own — sports like three-down football, hockey, lacrosse, curling and more.
From singing our national anthem together before a game, to celebrating Canadian victories in world competition, sports make us proud to be Canadian. Sports promote Canadian values that we cherish — values like hard work, competition, achievement, teamwork and unity. Our government is acting to help Canadian families and children participate in sports in their communities so they can enjoy healthy, active lifestyles.
This government has demonstrated a strong commitment to sport. In my role as Minister for Sport, I welcome any opportunity to make Canada's sports systems stronger, more responsive to the needs of Canadian athletes and more inclusive. Official languages are clearly an element of this approach.
Today, I would like to discuss three topics: first, the conclusions, challenges and next steps following the recent published report entitled Linguistic Barriers to Access to High Performance Sports; second, what Sport Canada is doing to promote linguistic duality in Canada's sports system; and third, official languages' preparations related to the 2007 Canada Games.
[Translation]
As Minister for Sports, and along with officials at Sport Canada, we are working toward an inclusive and participatory sport system.
We want to expose as many Canadians as possible to the benefit that sports offer our society. This includes insuring athletes can achieve their potential in either official language. As such, Sport Canada responded to a recommendation by the Commissioner of Official Languages to conduct an independent study of the participation of athletes from minority-language communities.
The study's goal was to determine whether language was a barrier within the Canadian sports system that could limit opportunities, for top athletes.
[English]
The study on linguistic barriers to access to high performance sports found that high performance athletes do not consider language to be a significant barrier to participation; rather, they consider financial and geographical barriers to be the major obstacles facing both our francophone and anglophone athletes.
The study noted that the level of bilingualism and the delivery of bilingual services at Sport Canada are satisfactory. It also found a clear need to continue to reinforce access to both official languages in the Canadian sports system. Some areas of access and service delivery could be improved.
In response to the 14 recommendations from the independent study, a working group has been created to develop an action plan to address the recommendations. Participants include individuals from the sports community, the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages, provincial-territorial governments and minority language community organizations.
[Translation]
We have an opportunity to make our sport system more inclusive and responsive to the needs of our athletes. But we have also already taken significant steps to help achieve these goals.
First of all, as I alluded to earlier, Sport Canada has made great strides in improving its internal linguistic capacity. In fact, 96 per cent of employees have a functional knowledge of both official languages. Sport Canada has also dedicated two full-time positions to coordinate the development and implementation of Sport Canada's Action Plan for Official Languages.
But I am proud to tell you that our dedication to official languages extends far beyond our office walls. As a condition of the $52 million in core funding that the Government of Canada provides to National Sports Organizations, they are required to provide services to their members in both official languages.
In addition, we commit about $1 million each year for specific initiatives of national sports organizations and multisport service organizations, to address official language priorities.
[English]
We are also taking steps to ensure our front-line athletes receive information, support services and coaching in their official language of choice. For example, some funding provided by Sport Canada has been used for language training for coaches and the translation of documents.
Sport Canada also works closely with the Coaching Association of Canada, national sport organizations and multi- sport service organizations to help identify areas for improvement related to official languages. We collect data to ensure we have an accurate snapshot of the language profiles of our national-level coaches. Our efforts are paying off. Our data shows there has been a close to 10 per cent increase in the number of bilingual, national-level coaches over the past three years.
[Translation]
Sport Canada has also revised its national accountability standards applicable to national sports organizations; 5 out of 20 standards addressed official languages. These revised standards were developed with important key stakeholders — including the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages.
I would like to highlight one of these standards related to national sport organizations' websites, as I know this is of interest to the committee.
The standard indicates that national sports organizations' websites must provide information in both official languages for the public, the sports community and the organizations' members. This information includes sport initiation services, membership, rules, calendars and schedules.
Again, we have clearly made progress in the area of improving bilingual services. This progress has been recognized by the Commissioner of Official Languages. But rest assured, Sport Canada continues to work with national sports organizations, multisport organizations, and Canadian sport centres to improve the quality and quantity of services provided to athletes and to the public, in their official language of choice.
[English]
Last, I would like to address official languages issues related to the upcoming 2007 Canada Games in Whitehorse. The multi-party agreement for the games stipulates that the official languages for the games are French and English and it outlines the obligations of the host society in matters of official languages. This includes the requirements to serve the public, athletes, coaches, officials and provincial and territorial mission members in both official languages. The multi-party agreement also stipulates that the game's host society must actively recruit and ensure the participation of the official language minority community in the 2007 Games.
[Translation]
To this end, the Association franco-yukonnaise is helping the host society recruit and train Games volunteers, as well as help plan the opening ceremonies and the cultural program. At Games time, Sport Canada will check on compliance with official language requirements, as stipulated in the agreement.
[English]
I will end my comments there, as I am sure you will have some questions.
I again thank the committee for your interest in the issue of Official Languages and Canada's sports system. As I stated earlier, I welcome the opportunity to find ways to make our sports system more inclusive and accessible.
[Translation]
I strongly believe that the lessons of the playing fields make great athletes. But more important, these lessons also make great citizens. Therefore, a successful sport agenda must expose as many Canadians as possible to the life lessons that sport teaches.
[English]
Your important work goes directly to the heart of this concept of working to reduce barriers for Canadians. I look forward to continuing working with you towards this goal.
I suspect everyone is acutely sensitive to the fact that I have been working very hard on this file for years and years, or 14 days. I will do the best I can, but I am fortunate to be aided here by Judith LaRocque and Tom Scrimger, who can help me with the questions that are beyond what you pick up on the first two weeks on the job.
Senator Munson: Welcome, minister, and congratulations on your new job. I know it is hard to go through the books now, but does Sport Canada have enough to resources to engage in leadership with regard to official languages? Is the budget big enough or strong enough?
Mr. Van Loan: It is my sense from having looked at some of the progress made that the resources that have been applied have been making a difference. Again, this is looking retrospectively. We talked about the coaches and the level of bilingualism in coaching. In 2003-04, there were 103 out of 403 national level coaches, coaches for the national sports organizations and the athletes that are carded national level athletes. This is 25.5 per cent in 2003. Three years later, 2006-07, that is up to 213 out of 599, or 35 per cent. That increase is in just three years. When I look at those results, money is part of it, but I think also the structural elements in terms of the contribution agreement is probably a big element as well, causing the national sport organizations to be more sensitive to the need.
I suspect if we were asking if there is enough money, the first response most would give is that no, there is not enough money, but if you gave us more money, we would be putting into things other than the language issues, because the priority of the sports organizations and athletes in particular is always on training.
Senator Munson: Mr. Scrimger, do you agree with that assessment?
Tom Scrimger, Director General, Sport Canada, Canadian Heritage: I would never disagree with my minister, so I will leave my answer there. The minister has identified the two questions, one of money and the other of willingness and desire toward common objectives. We are making advances on both fronts.
Ms. LaRocque: Money is always good, but the willingness has to be there; you have to be a believer. The Official Languages Commissioner told us a few years ago that the structures were not necessarily in place for that to work. A great deal of effort has gone into putting those structures in place and to hiring a staff that believes in the goal. The key is a staff that wants it to work.
We have the added advantage that Sport Canada is in the Department of Canadian Heritage, which also has official language programming. We are able to learn and get best practises and advance things in a way that we could not do if we were someplace else. That helps as well.
Senator Munson: Keeping that in mind, minister, you referenced the Linguistic Barriers to Access to High Performance Sports. You said that the study found that language is not a significant barrier to participation for high performance athletes, but the system, as I understand, still operates primarily in English.
Mr. Van Loan: The conclusion on whether it represented a barrier was based on the perceptions of high performance athletes. Sport Canada conducts the study, which is conducted from time to time. The last time they did that was 2005, so that is fairly recently. The athletes were asked about the adequacy of services available to them on a number of questions, 21 in number. Language issues, as a matter of concern, ranked 18 out of 21. That is where I believe that study derived its conclusion. From the perspective of most of the athletes, they were quite content with that.
On the other hand, the argument made in the study is that the kind of person who becomes a high performance athlete is, by nature, a high achiever and incredibly focused and very passionate. If you talk to athletes, you would see this evident. To reach that level, they have overcome barriers that are often far more than language. They may have overcome social barriers, family barriers, or physical limitations. Obviously high performance athletes do that. There is an argument reflected in that study that suggests the greater concern for linguistic barriers may be at the lower levels, the earlier levels where athletes are moving through the system, where the linguistic barriers make a bigger difference.
Senator Munson: We heard Mr. Emerson talk about the Winter Games 2010 and what the Government of Canada will do to ensure that both official languages are on the page when it comes to the Winter Games. The role of Sport Canada in the 2010 games, with the games themselves and the Paralympics and bilingualism, what role does Sport Canada play in all of this to ensure that both our cultural entities are treated equally?
Mr. Van Loan: Mr. Emerson, as the minister responsible for the Vancouver Olympics, is in a better position than I am to answer those questions. Largely, the government dealt with its responsibilities with its memorandum of agreement with VANOC. The government devolved those responsibilities, but the requirement is that the games function as bilingual games. I know there was reference to the observations on the level of bilingualism available at the Turin Olympics. There is a desire to do better than what they saw there.
The Government of Canada having entered into that agreement and requiring that in its contract agreement with the Vancouver organizing committee has set those standards and now it is up to them to deal with them.
Senator Munson: Are the same standards applicable to the Paralympics?
Mr. Scrimger: I believe so. What you are discussing is the multi-party agreement that the federal government has entered into with VANOC and the Government of British Columbia. When it comes to the actual operations and conduct of the games, truly this matter rests with Minister Emerson and my colleague David Robinson who was here just an hour before us.
The Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic games secretariat has given everyone a good sense of the huge engagement to ensuring that the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic and Paralympic games truly reflect the linguistic duality of Canada in all senses. It is my understanding, when it comes to actual operation of those games, as somewhat of a detached observer, that is a very clear commitment amongst all the parties with whom I am dealing.
Sport Canada's role vis-à-vis the 2010 games is more clearly focused on supporting the preparation of our national teams for those games and is almost exclusively focused on the preparation of the national teams through their own training programs. If you describe the breakdown between my colleague David Robinson and my organization, he is responsible for making sure the games happen, and I am responsible for making sure that Canada is on the podium. That is the crude breakdown between the two of us for the games.
[Translation]
Senator Nolin: Minister, congratulations on your appointment. I understand that you have only been in your position for 14 days, nevertheless you already seem to have a firm grasp of the ins and outs of your responsibilities. You are to be commended on this.
In your speech, you refer to five standards in the area of official languages. You made reference to websites. What are the other four standards?
Mr. Scrimger: The four other standards...
Senator Nolin: I am supremely happy to see that you make up part of that 96 per cent.
Mr. Scrimger: Each sport organization must know each of its members' official language...
Senator Nolin: Hold on, I want to make sure I understand this. Each sport organization must be able to identify its members —
Mr. Scrimger: — in terms of their official language. There are a million members at Hockey Canada.
Senator Nolin: In other words, there is a box that they check marked ``English'' or ``French.''
Mr. Scrimger: That is one of the standards. The second standard has to do with the many services each national sports organization must provide to its members in both official languages. The third standard is that the organization's website must be bilingual. The final two standards include communication with athletes or members of the national team as well as the national team's coaches' ability to provide services, or give instructions to, athletes in both official languages.
In addition, we have two other standards that refer to official languages, and refer to our standards on issues of harassment and abuse, which apply to the national team as well to all members of the organization.
Senator Nolin: Minister, Mr. Scrimger, Ms. LaRocque, for the last 20 years, all of your predecessors had to effect arbitration as the Olympic Games approached. Obviously, coaches and managers of national teams seemed to arbitrarily favour — at least in the eyes of the francophone population of Canada — English-speaking athletes who did not perform as well as French-language athletes.
As there standards on the make-up of national teams in that these must reflect a balance, or are national teams comprised of the very best athletes, regardless of their language or ethnic origin?
Mr. Van Loan: I hope that the athletes selected are the best ones.
[English]
That is certainly the hope. There has been discussion of having linguistic standards for athletes. I do not think we want to see that happen. We want them be the best athletes possible. There was reference in the study about whether there is a linguistic bias in the selection of national team athletes. While there is some anecdotal evidence, I believe that the evidence is inconclusive. They did not go so far as to say that there absolutely was not, but perhaps Mr. Scrimger can elaborate.
[Translation]
Mr. Scrimger: One must bear in mind that choosing our national teams falls under the responsibility of the national sports organization, which is entirely independent from Sport Canada. We always make sure that the athlete selection process is impartial. If an athlete believes that the athlete selection is not impartial, he can always contest the decision with the Sport Dispute Resolution Centre of Canada. We established this independent arbitration and mediation centre for athletes who believe that a final selection decision was unfair; it is always a complex issue. The issue of making a team selection, establishing the requirements that each athlete must meet to be selected, how teams are chosen, are all complex issues in every sport. But I believe that within the system, for the last four or five years, we have an independent arbitration system. Athletes can always benefit from this service if they wish to dispute a final team selection.
Senator Nolin: I am sure that you are fully aware — and I can cite concrete examples, I am not making this up — that in the month leading up to the Olympic Games, or any other similar Games such as the Commonwealth or Francophonie Games — there is always an athlete, unfortunately, a francophone athlete — Perhaps there are those within the anglophone community who complain that there are francophone trainers who favour francophones, but when listening to French-speaking media, I hear the contrary. I heard about the Sport Dispute Resolution Centre.
I wanted to know if you defer entirely to this organization or if in developing your standards, you have attempted to impress upon your trainers — the very people who are responsible for federal funds and the future of our elite athletes — the importance of respecting different values and cultures, and of making sure that the Canadian teams for all sports are the best they can be. That is my question. That is why I have been asking you questions on standards. Everything seems fine, but I have the impression that favouritism is still not being prevented. I understand the importance of independence, but ultimately Minister, you are responsible for distributing federal funds and I would presume that ultimately, you do not want to find yourself having to arbitrate on issues of favouritism, which would be above and beyond your purview.
[English]
Mr. Van Loan: One would hope that the sports resolution committee is the appropriate venue for resolving disputes. Of course, as anyone who has ever wanted to be chosen for a team knows, the question of merit is objective. Team dynamics is an important aspect. I believe that at least offers some opportunity for those concerns to be raised in an objective, neutral, fair and, one hopes, transparent fashion.
Senator Murray: I have the great disadvantage of not having read the report, so we will start there.
I was interested in the minister's interpretation of the report to the effect that the linguistic barriers did not exist so much at the level of the national team as at a lower level as people are working their way through the system.
Could one of you elaborate on that and also tell us whether that is someone else's problem rather than yours or ours?
Mr. Van Loan: It is someone else's problem because the national sport organizations are able to deal with it. As I understand the problem, the provincial sport organizations face those challenges.
Senator Murray: In what sort of cases would language be a barrier at the lower level as people are working their way through the system?
Mr. Scrimger: The study did not conclude that minority language, either English or French, poses a barrier when it came to high performance. It theorized that if the barrier existed it might be at a lower level.
It is for that reason that one of the recommendations of the study was that in the medium and longer term we examine with our provincial and territorial colleagues whether the linguistic barrier might exist at a lower level in the Canadian sports system.
We have a working group that is now working on the 14 recommendations from the study and building an action plan for the minister's consideration. We will have to take those recommendations made by the study's authors and consider how we can best implement them.
I do not believe the study provided any conclusive evidence of where the barriers might be in the system. It was clear that the barriers for high performance athletes in Canada who are entering the national team levels, be it a junior or a senior team, that impact their ability to progress are financial and geographic.
Senator Murray: If some at the lower levels are not moving up to the higher levels because of linguistic barriers, then it is a problem, and ultimately it is our problem and your problem.
Mr. Scrimger: It becomes a problem of us all if we are losing talented athletes because of language. The first thing we must find out is whether we are, how we are, and if we are, why.
As we all know, athletes leave the system for reasons other than language. From the standpoint of physical activity, the number of young Canadians who drop out of organized sports is gigantic. Therefore, we have a generational question of why so many Canadians leave competitive or organized sport at such an early age, dramatically shrinking the pool from which we can draw your best high-performance athletes.
Language may be one reason, but I would theorize it is not the only one. It is definitely one of the reasons for the authors' recommendations.
Senator Murray: Have you ever seen an indication that people who have decisions to make as to who will or will not be a member of a national team are operating on a quota system? It is not like the Senate. It is understood that we want to be representative of Canadian society, and we are, more so than your House.
Mr. Scrimger: There are no language requirements dealing with team selection.
Senator Murray: I know that.
Mr. Scrimger: To explain, the team selection, if I can speak for the Olympic Games, which is probably an example everyone can easily follow, for each individual sport is negotiated among the Canadian Olympic Committee, the franchise holder for the Games and each individual national sport organization.
If we are dealing with a sport in the winter games, such as speed skating, there will be a specific negotiation between the COC and Speed Skating Canada to discuss the requirements for athletes to qualify to attend the Olympic Games. Those specifications are negotiated and agreed to, and athletes and coaches are made aware of those standards.
With respect to sports such as speed skating, the question becomes more transparent. An athlete either meets the requirements or is the fastest in the top six or not. With that, we still have a limited number of cases that may go to arbitration as a result of extenuating circumstances.
Anecdotally, I believe the report mentioned that for some team sports, where it is not necessarily selection based on individual merit against a prescribed standard — hockey being a prime example — there are stories on both sides. The coach, the team dynamics and other factors may come into the selection. Certainly, I am not aware of a quota.
Senator Murray: Finally, you perhaps do not have the answer to this question, but I am curious. I would like to know if the national level linguistic improvement in the coaches is due to language training or if the committees to select coaches have been diligent in bilingual language requirements.
Mr. Van Loan: That is an interesting question.
Senator Murray: Yes. You might be doing something right.
Mr. Van Loan: I think the same rule with respect to athletes on merit is one that applies in terms of coaches as well. I think there are coaches that get drawn into the Canadian system — and you see this in all countries — that may not be strong with any language in that country, but they may be very good coaches in gymnastics or wherever their expertise lies.
However, I think obviously an awareness of heightened sensitivity among the national sport organizations, coming from their agreements, will encourage people to be more sensitive to the issue. Whether that means people must learn or with these things in mind look at each coach, both of those are positive. However, I do not think anybody wants to see a quota or a desire to have the appropriate language take precedence over having the best possible coaches.
Senator Murray: It is like any other job, including jobs in the government: In many cases, it is very important that the incumbent have a working knowledge of two languages.
It is an interesting matter of detail whether some of the improvement is because people have been taking effective training or because the organizations have recruited people who are otherwise competent but also have a bilingual proficiency.
Mr. Van Loan: If you were an aspiring athlete, you need only focus on your physical performance. However, if you are an aspiring coach that may want to be coaching a number of athletes, you may be more sensitive to the notion of training athletes who speak a language that is not your first language. You may wish to acquire that skill so that you have more coaching opportunities.
[Translation]
Senator Robichaud: Even though enormous efforts have been made by Sport Canada, several witnesses have told us that the spoken language is English, by a very wide margin. Even francophone athletes do not use services that are offered to them. In my area, which is a rather francophone area, hockey players speak English. What can we do to encourage athletes to speak French within sport teams? Should we require our trainers to be bilingual as a prerequisite? It does not fall under the purview of Sport Canada but of the sport association concerned, correct?
[English]
Mr. Van Loan: There are many different levels to that question. At the individual athlete's level, Sport Canada actively encourages them to seek services in their language of choice.
If you become a carded athlete, a high-performance athlete funded by the government, part of the letter advising you that you will be receiving $18,000 a year also states, in dealing with Sport Canada, you are encouraged to do so in the language of your choice.
In the agreement that the National Sport Organization has with the individual athlete, there is reference to the fact that the National Sport Organization must provide service to the athlete in the language of his or her choice.
When you get into team dynamics, especially on a hockey team, it is a more complex environment. You could ask anyone from the Montreal Alouettes to the Ottawa Senators how they manage that, never having been in that environment personally as is self-evident, I will turn to Mr. Scrimger to provide an answer.
[Translation]
Mr. Scrimger: It is a matter of supply and demand. At Sport Canada, we work on both of these aspects. We want each national sports organization be able to provide a gamut of services to its members and athletes in both official languages of Canada. We work in close collaboration with organizations, and we want to improve the services offered. As the minister was saying, we also have to encourage our athletes to request that service be given in the language of their choice. The letter that I sign and send out each week to carded athletes encourages them to ask for the services. An independent study suggested that we consider marketing campaigns directed to athletes and members to inform them of the available services and inform that they should take advantage of these services at the national level. This is an ongoing effort by Sport Canada. This represents a cultural change within the Canadian sport system. We have made progress and we want to do more. It is a matter of continually working with national sports organizations to make sure that the demand for services is always present. This way, we can ensure that services are provided subsequently.
Senator Nolin: Mr. Scrimger, you talked about harassment and abuse as something dealt with in the standards you have established. Can you elaborate on the type of abuse you are talking about, exactly? What form of harassment occurs? Is it possible to imagine that a trainer can abuse or harass one of his athletes because of a language difference between the two? What type of problem are you trying to solve with your standard on harassment and abuse?
Mr. Scrimger: As I was saying, we do not deal exclusively with the whole notion of official languages. The definition of this standard is as almost as broad as the one used by the public at large or in a public service. Following our discussions with the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages, we decided to make this policy available and distributed to members of each sport organization and to all athletes in the language of their choice. We wanted to avoid a situation in which somebody misunderstands his responsibilities and rights because of language.
Cases of abuse or harassment rarely stem from a difference in language. They occur as result of interpersonal relationships, abuse of power for example or something else.
Senator Nolin: I thought that there were specific cases of harassment or abuse which occurred as a result of the language being used.
Mr. Scrimger: I am not saying that theses cases do not exist, but I am not aware of them.
Senator Nolin: You want to resolve a problem that perhaps exists, but you do not have any facts to present to us.
Senator Champagne: Mr. Minister, I was delighted to hear you say that indeed an increasing number of our trainers at Sport Canada, on Team Canada, are bilingual. Mr. Minister, you put a smile on my face when you said that those who are being promoted as trainers now know that they must work with francophones and therefore make an effort to learn French. Can you imagine a francophone trainer who does not speak English applying for a senior position, with your organization? I think that there will not be very many.
I vaguely recall the case of a young athlete who was finally selected to be a part of a Canadian team and had to go to another province. Imagine a young girl of 15 or 16 years old who leaves mom and dad behind, as well as all her friends, to go and live in an anglophone setting. She was training, with high hopes, but was unable to receive coaching in her language. It is important that we increase the number of bilingual trainers, regardless of where a national team is located in this great country of ours. I believe that this is important. Thank you for all of your efforts.
[English]
Mr. Van Loan: Thank you, I agree with the sentiments expressed. I did not talk about the statistics on the national carded athletes, but it is interesting that now almost one third are bilingual. That number far exceeds the general population. That speaks to the type of people who become high performance and lead athletes; they are high achievers in all kinds of fields. It also speaks to their realization that to be great ambassadors for our country, having a capacity in both languages is a huge advantage to their careers. We can all be proud that those numbers are so high because that probably far exceeds the national level of the country.
Senator Champagne: Let us keep up the good work.
The Chairman: Thank you for being with us today. Thank you, Ms. LaRocque and Mr. Scrimger. We will follow this very closely and you might hear from us again.
The committee adjourned.