QUESTION PERIOD — Innovation, Science and Economic Development
Statistics Canada--Census
February 6, 2020
Honourable senators, my question is for the Government Representative in the Senate. I would like to congratulate you and your teammates on your new roles.
In the mandate letter of the Minister of Economic Development and Official Languages, the Prime Minister instructs the minister to undertake the following:
. . . an enumeration of rights-holders and a thorough post-census survey to better account for and better serve minority language communities.
Many francophone organizations, especially in the education sector, want the long- and short-form census to include questions that would give the government a count of how many people are rights-holders under section 23 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms that is truly representative of the Canadian population.
What specific questions about rights-holders is the government planning to include in the long-form census? Can the senator tell us whether the government is also planning to include those questions in the short-form census, which is crucial for official language minority communities?
I thank the honourable senator for the question.
It is vitally important to have a full and accurate picture of the rights-holders under section 23 of the Charter. We cannot have public policy without accurate information. As you know, Statistics Canada conducts the census and determines the questions to include based on objective methodological principles.
With respect to this objective included in the mandate letter you mentioned, my office has already taken steps with the minister’s officer to obtain the exact details you are looking for. Unfortunately, so far — and I double-checked just five minutes ago — we still have not received that information.
I will ask for a detailed answer and I promise the information will be tabled in the Senate in due time.
Thank you for your answer, honourable senator. I hope the response you will be submitting to us will also tell us when the decision on these questions will be made. I understand that that depends on Statistics Canada. However, the government has a responsibility to ensure that the questions asked in the census will enable us to gather the information we need.
Thank you for verifying when this decision will be made.
Thank you for the clarification. Indeed, I will be pleased to do so.
