Toronto Star reporter Tonda MacCharles highlights the growing divisions brought on by Quebec’s Bill 96. She writes: “The Quebec Community Groups Network, a not-for-profit umbrella group, has mobilized against it, organizing two rallies this month, and vowing to mount court challenges.” Read more
Ontario MP Pierre Poilievre is the only candidate in the Conservative leadership race to stay mum on Quebec’s controversial new language law, Bill 96. The law’s consequence to the federal government (touching on official languages and the Constitution) mean “these are not minor questions that nobody really cares about,” said Joan Fraser, a retired Liberal … Read more
Montrealers came out Thursday at Place du Canada to rally against Bill 96, Quebec’s French language reform. The bill was officially adopted at the National Assembly on Tuesday – and leaders of the province’s English-speaking community say they will continue to be vocal against it. “We have a long way to go, but we’re on … Read more
Around 500 people led a protest Thursday against Bill 96 — the province’s new language reform law that brings sweeping new changes that some say it not reflective of an inclusive Quebec. “Premier Legault and the CAQ has completely re-ordered the societal democracy that we have built,” says QCGN President Marlene Jennings, “And when I … Read more
The Coalition Avenir Quebec’s Bill 96 — aimed at protecting and bolstering the French language in Quebec — may have been passed into law earlier this week, but that has done little to quell the English-speaking community’s opposition to the legislation. Quebecers Against Bill 96, a group created by the Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN) , the … Read more
Leaders of the province’s English-speaking community vowed to speak loudly and often against Bill 96, which was passed in the National Assembly on Tuesday. “We are very concerned about the erosion of rights of all Quebecers that were introduced by a government that seems to care more about scoring political points for the upcoming election than … Read more
Quebec’s government has successfully passed sweeping French language protections that critics warn will reshape all aspects of public life. “Bill 96 is the most significant derogation of human rights in the history of Quebec and Canada,” Marlene Jennings, head of the Quebec Community Groups Network, which promotes the rights of English-speakers in the province, said in … Read more
The tug-of-war over Bill 96, which was approved Tuesday, pitted the majority government and politicians who declared the French language’s viability was at stake against advocates who warned the law could weaken civil liberties in Canada’s second most populous province. “Bill 96 will make it virtually impossible for someone to receive quality health and social … Read more
There will be legal challenges and a public pressure campaign against Bill 96, which was voted into law Tuesday afternoon. The Quebec Community Groups Network has vowed to support any fight against the law, and plans to mount a public awareness campaign, starting with a protest in Montreal set for Thursday evening. Read more
Bill 96, the provincial government’s controversial legislation aimed at protecting the French language in Quebec, has been adopted in the National Assembly. “It’s a sad day. I think it’s a sad day for all of Quebec,” said QCGN director Sylvia Martin-Laforge. Read more
The Quebec government has secured the largest expansion of its language laws in more than 40 years, imposing new rules to reinforce the use of French in the public service, education and business despite bitter opposition from the province’s English-speaking minority. “The mood now in the English-speaking community is quite bleak,” said Joan Fraser, a … Read more
The Quebec Community Groups Network has criticized Bill 96 for many reasons, in part for infringing on citizens’ privacy rights, greatly reducing the ability to receive public services in English and for issuing fines for speaking languages other than French at work. Read more
The minister responsible for the French language says the Legault government has no “hidden agenda” with Bill 96, and insists the status quo will continue for the English-speaking and Indigenous communities when accessing health and social services. Critics including the Quebec Community Groups Network have said that under Bill 96, out of 1.1 million residents … Read more
English-speaking residents outside the greater Montreal area say they feel cut off, even abandoned. For months, they haven’t been able to get their hands on publications of most English-language newspapers. “It really affects the vitality of our community in terms of access to what’s going on,” says Eva Ludvig, a board member of the Quebec … Read more
A protest against Quebec’s proposed overhaul of its language law drew a large crowd in Montreal on Saturday. Marlene Jennings, president of the Quebec Community Groups Network, an anglophone advocacy group, says the law could prevent hundreds of thousands of English speakers from accessing health care in their language. Read more
Premier François Legault accused opponents of Bill 96 of engaging in “disinformation,” saying he heard many express concerns about the bill in recent days that are just not true. Reacting to Legault’s comments, Quebec Community Groups Network president Marlene Jennings turned the tables, saying the government is also spreading false information. Read more
The stereotype of Quebec Anglophones being wealthy, prosperous, and homogenous is a myth, says Sylvia Martin-Laforge, director general of the QCGN. Read more
QCGN President Marlene Jennings discusses Saturday’s rally against Bill 96 on “Weekends with Ken.” Read more
It has been a long time since English-speaking Quebecers have been called upon to come together in great number to defend our rights. All Quebecers of any linguistic background should be deeply concerned, francophones included. But it’s the Quebec Community Groups Network, the umbrella group that represents anglophone interests, that has been leading the charge. … Read more
As Quebec’s contentious language law heads closer to adoption, the province’s business community is growing increasingly anxious about what it could mean for their bottom line, with some companies considering leaving entirely. As it stands, incidents of non-compliance are worked out between companies and the Office québécois de la langue française, with negotiable compliance timelines. … Read more
Access to health and social services in English must be exempted from Bill 96, writes health care advocate Eric Maldoff: “Bill 96 will create serious obstacles to the delivery of safe and effective care for all Quebecers.” Read more
As the Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN) was announcing plans for a protest of Bill 96 last week, a move was afoot to mitigate one of the more troubling irritants to English-speakers contained in the proposed new language law. Read more
The amendment to Bill 96 which softens the requirement for students at English-language CEGEPs to pass three courses is French was a “sensible decision” by the Quebec government, which “starkly shows that many Anglophones, at the end of their secondary education, have not acquired a sufficient knowledge of French,” writes columnist Robert Dutrisac. He goes … Read more
Health care is one of the many areas which will be negatively impacted by Bill 96, the Quebec government’s reform of the French language law. “Health and social services in the province are governed by section 15 of the act respecting health and social services that states individuals can receive services in English where resources, … Read more
English-speaking groups say opposition to Bill 96 extends beyond the minority community and includes groups representing businesses, patients’ rights advocates and others. In an online news conference held Tuesday, the Quebec Community Groups Network said it expects broad support from French community groups as well, because the proposed law would also penalize French speakers in … Read more