“English is not a species in peril in Quebec,” says Premier François Legault in response to federal Liberal MPs defending Quebec’s English-speaking community during a committee meeting examining Bill C-13. The QCGN maintains that Bill C-13 tramples on the rights of Quebec Anglophones due to the Bill’s reference to the Charter of the French Language. … Read more
“All Canadians should be outraged by Bill C-13,” writes William Steinberg, former Mayor of Hampstead. “The biggest problem with C-13 can be fixed easily by removing all references to Quebec’s Charter of the French Language. The Quebec Community Groups Network has prepared an open letter to the honourable David T. Lametti,” he adds: “Thousands have … Read more
“We want the stability of having English and French recognized equally in our provinces and as Canadians,” says QCGN Executive Director Sylvia Martin-Laforge, adding that Bill C-13 goes directly against this goal. There’s an asymmetrical approach now to English and French in Bill C-13 and the “Official Languages Act” that we do not agree with,” … Read more
French-speaking Quebecers strongly support the rights of English-speaking Quebecers, according to the November poll by Léger conducted for the QCGN. Read more
The majority of French-speaking Quebecers support the right for those in the province’s English-speaking community to receive government services in English, according to a Léger poll commissioned by the QCGN. “As the National Assembly begins its work, we want all parties to understand, to be aware of what Quebecers feel about access to services for … Read more
A recent poll by the QCGN indicates that 77 per cent of Quebec Francophones believe that the federal government should continue to safeguard the rights of the province’s English-speaking minority, while 87 per cent of Quebec Anglophones believe that Ottawa should do more. “This is not a divisive issue,” says QCGN Director General Sylvia Martin-Laforge … Read more
“Bill C-13 purports to modernize our Official Languages Act. But what the government of Canada is really proposing is to create a discriminatory language regime in Quebec that will not apply to the rest of Canada,” reads the QCGN’s open letter to federal Justice Minister David Lametti, calling for all mention of the Charter of … Read more
“New Official Languages Act must safeguard language rights of English-speaking Quebecers,” the QCGN states in an open letter in the Quebec Chronicle-Telegraph Read more
“We urge parliamentarians to remove all references to the Charter of the French Language from Bill C-13 and not to throw our minority linguistic community overboard,” writes QCGN President Eva Ludvig. Read more
“It’s not a zero-sum game,” says QCGN President Eva Ludvig about Bill C-13, which the QCGN warns will essentially abandon language rights for Quebec’s English-speaking minority in favour of bolstering the French language. Eva speaks at 9:24. Watch here
The QCGN calls for all mention of the Charter of the French Language to be removed from the federal Bill C-13. Former Senator and QCGN Board Member Joan Fraser says that the bill’s acknowledgment of the charter, recently amended by Bill 96, “would be explicitly declaring federal support for this use of the notwithstanding clause … Read more
The QCGN is sounding the alarm on Bill C-13, the federal government’s planned update of the Official Languages Act, which is set to pass before the year’s end. “We feel like we’re being abandoned by the federal government who we look to as our champion,” says QCGN President Eva Ludvig. Read more
“Undermining official languages policy by protecting one linguistic minority in Canada and abandoning the linguistic minority in Quebec is shameful,” writes columnist Robert Libman, commenting on Bill C-13. He adds: “The Quebec Community Groups Network rightly identifies the proposed amendments as a threat to the language rights of the English-speaking minority and an unprecedented constitutional … Read more
English-language school boards must remain exempted from Bill 21, the Quebec Court of Appeal hears. “It is not up to the majority to dictate the definition of the culture of the minority,” says veteran human rights lawyer Julius Grey, who is representing the QCGN. Read more
Bill C-13, An Act to amend the Official Languages Act, is receiving harsh criticism from English-speaking community advocacy groups in Quebec, including the QCGN. Groups express fear that the promotion of the French language comes at the expense of Quebec’s anglophone minority. “It’s not by giving new rights to one group and by taking it … Read more
Eric Girard speaks with CBC Montreal’s Debra Arbec about his new role as Minister Responsible for Relations with English-speaking Quebecers. Girard says that he plans to meet with the QCGN to discuss concerns surrounding provincial legislation seen as detrimental to the English-speaking community. Watch here
Quebec Finance Minister Eric Girard now also holds the role of minister responsible for relations with English-speaking Quebecers. “This appointment is a major first step in ensuring the concerns of English-speaking Quebecers are heard,” says QCGN President Eva Ludvig. Read more
Premier François Legault’s new cabinet appears to be smoothing the waters with English-speaking Quebecers, writes the Montreal Gazette’s Philip Authier. The QCGN welcomed the appointment of Finance Minister Eric Girard to the role of minister responsible for relations with English-speaking Quebecers. Read more
Though Premier Legault has said that he will likely retain the role of minister responsible for relations with English-speaking Quebecers, the QCGN has been calling for the appointment of a full-time minister, as Legault’s role as premier occupies the majority of his time. He is scheduled to announce his new cabinet at 2 pm. Read … Read more
Quebecers will have the chance to have a free 15-20 minute consultation with a lawyer during a province-wide bilingual legal clinic organized by the Jeune Barreau de Montréal, along with the Barreau du Québec and the Centre d’accès à l’information juridique. QCGN Director General Sylvia Martin-Laforge praises the initiative: “The biggest challenge that an English … Read more
Andrew Caddell, president of the Task Force on Linguistic Policy, points out: “[The QCGN] said last June, ‘In Bill C-13, the federal government is poised to abandon half a century of official language policy.’ By November, their wisdom will be long forgotten.” Read more
The QCGN calls for the appointment of a dedicated Minister Responsible for Relations with English-speaking Quebecers amid speculation on how the new provincial cabinet will be composed in the Coalition Avenir Québec’s second term. QCGN interim President Eva Ludvig says in a statement: “Members of our community feel that they are not being heard and … Read more
Notaries express concern over a measure included in Bill 96, which would require a French translation of notarized documents which had been drafted in English. The measure creates a two-tier system in which Anglophones “pay more, wait longer, [and] not have the equal services,” says QCGN interim President Eva Ludvig. Read more
There needs to be a dedicated Minister Responsible for Relations with English-speaking Quebecers in the National Assembly, says QCGN interim President Eva Ludvig. Premier François Legault had not dedicated the time necessary for such a role since he appointed himself to the position in 2018. Read more
The results over the past four years under a Coalition Avenir Québec government demonstrate that the English-speaking community needs a voice at the cabinet table with time to listen to the community’s concerns, and to act on them. Eva Ludvig of the QCGN underscores both the situation and the solution during a 10-minute interview with … Read more