QUESTION PERIOD — Global Affairs
Foreign Interference
April 16, 2024
Leader, I’ve observed once again that many documents on the Hogue commission website, including federal government documents, are not available in both official languages. When the Rouleau commission made the same mistake, you agreed at the outset, right here during Question Period on May 30, 2023, that the situation was unacceptable. The then Minister of Official Languages, Ms. Petitpas Taylor, also said the situation was unacceptable.
How is it possible that you didn’t provide support to the very next commission after that unacceptable situation occurred? Why is this new commission now violating the Official Languages Act?
Thank you for the question. First, it is important to point out that the commission is independent. It works completely independently of the government.
Second, there is indeed a process to be followed when one wants to submit such questions to the commission. I would add that, as the media indicated, in some cases, the documents that the commission distributed in English are also available in French on government websites. The government is responsible for its websites but not for the websites of the commission, which operates independently of the government.
The last time, you told me that the situation was unacceptable and that you were committed to doing better. Now, you are washing your hands of the situation and saying that it’s not your responsibility. The Privy Council Office admitted that it was responsible for supporting the commission, but it didn’t do so.
I made a commitment. What I said in the past is true. Once again, the commission failed to publish several documents in both official languages, even though they were available on government websites. Once again, it’s the commission that made that decision, not the Government of Canada.
