My question is for the Chair of the Official Languages Committee.

Senator Cormier, I understand that the government has confirmed that there is a significant drafting error in Bill C-13 which is currently before your committee. I also understand this is not a mere grammatical or typographical error. The error is the exclusion of a coordinating amendment that would ensure former and potential employees outside of Quebec would still be able to file complaints under subclauses 18(1.1) and (1.2) of the Use of French in Federally Regulated Private Businesses Act. By fixing this issue, we would ensure that francophones outside of Quebec have the same rights as those who live in Quebec.

My question, senator: Has your committee been advised by the government of this error?

Thank you for the question, Senator Patterson. I would be pleased to answer any questions about the content of the bill in third reading after the studying in committee.

In my understanding for this Question Period, I’m relating here to the Companion to the Rules of the Senate, page 74. It is specified that rule 4-8(1)(c):

. . . permits questions relating to the “activities” of a committee.

The “activities” of the committee would obviously be the specific things that are done by the committee, such as the holding of meetings, the election of a chairman, the calling of witnesses, the hiring of staff, advertising, and any other matter relating to the manner in which the committee conducts its proceedings. These are all “activities” of the committee.

I would be pleased to answer that question. Thank you, sir.

I believe the honourable chair has raised a point of order that my question is outside the Rules. In doing so, he has given me the opportunity, I hope, to explain that, in my view, the question is in order. The Rules —

Could I ask a supplementary?

Yes.

As Senator Cormier just said, the activities of the committee can include the calling of witnesses. I’d like to ask the chair if the committee would consider recalling government officials or perhaps even the minister to discuss this drafting error. Thank you.

Thank you for this question. What is planned, actually, is public, so I can say who the witnesses are for the next meeting, which is next Monday.

We will welcome the following witnesses: Michel Doucet, Professor Emeritus at the Université de Moncton’s Faculty of Law, Érik Labelle Eastaugh, Associate Professor at the International Observatory on Language Rights, Janice Naymark, Counsel, and Benoît Pelletier, Distinguished Professor at the Civil Law Section of the Faculty of Law at the University of Ottawa.

These witnesses are scheduled to attend the meeting on Monday, after which we will proceed to clause‑by‑clause consideration. That is the answer I can give you, Senator Patterson, at this point.