CTV News Montreal —
May 15, 2026
Bill 101 expansion to vocational schools could drain English school boards of funds, EMSB warns
The Fréchette government is looking to expand Quebec’s French language charter to include adult and vocational education programs.
During a budget study at the National Assembly, French-language Minister Jean-François Roberge said 27,000 students could migrate to the French network as a result of the change. As it stands, Bill 101 does not apply to adult education or vocational programs.
The minister said these are students who do not have the right to attend English-language elementary or high school. Anglophone rights group TALQ isn’t convinced this move would protect the French language. “The PQ never did this. René Lévesque never talked about this,” Sylvia Martin-Laforge, director general at TALQ, said. “What does this really achieve?”
There are concerns about the impact this change could have on English school boards. “Funding is tied to enrolment,” Joe Ortona, chairperson of the English Montreal School Board, said. “So, if enrolment goes down, funding goes down, and if funding goes down, we have less ability to be able to provide certain services.” Ortona said revenue from vocational programs is reinvested in the board’s youth sector.