Opinion

“He made me feel like a second-class citizen.” West Island resident Susan Starkey speaks about her phone call with a RAMQ employee who, despite being bilingual, hung up on her after she asked to communicate in English. QCGN Director General Sylvia Martin-Laforge says that the passage of Bill 96 will lead to such egregious incidents. … Read more

“[François Legault] promised that health care services wouldn’t be impacted by Bill 96.” MNAs Gregory Kelley and Madwa-Nika Cadet voice their indignation over a 75-year-old West-Island woman being hung up on by the RAMQ due to her lack of knowledge of French. The QCGN voiced its discontent of the RAMQ’s conduct on Twitter. Read more

The Townshippers’ Association will meet with elected officials to express its concerns about Bill 96, rather than organize protests about the language legislation, says Townshipppers’ President Don Warholtz. The approach taken by groups like the QCGN and the Task Force on Linguistic Policy “is a little bit different than us,” he adds.  Read more

Under Bill 96, the family of a man who passed away 14 years ago is required to pay $100 for the death certificate to be officially translated into French. “There are so many elements in Bill 96 that are so invasive, so ridiculous, so unnecessary that we knew as time went on and things started … Read more

Pontiac Journal editorial writer Fred Ryan asks, “Does C-13 actually modify Canada’s constitution — without going through the constitutional process of national consent?” He continues, “If the QCGN interpretation is accurate, then it seems, to a layman, that the federal Liberal government has allowed a serious end-run around constitutional guarantees by strengthening Quebec’s Bill 96.” … Read more

Pontiac MP Sophie Chatal has been a vocal opponent of the pre-emptive use of the notwithstanding clause, yet supported Bill C-13, which makes references to Quebec’s Charter of the French Language. Though Chatal suggests that the new federal law will protect English services in Quebec, the Quebec Community Groups Network has argued that C-13 allows … Read more

Including the references to Quebec’s Charter of the French Language within Bill C-13 “does not provide any additional protections to the French language in the federal law,” Senator Tony Loffreda told his fellow senators before the bill was passed. He pointed out that “Marion Sandilands, a lawyer and member of the Quebec Community Groups Network … Read more

Bill C-13 is set to become law after senators voted in favour of the legislation on Thursday. During the June 5 testimony to the Senate committee studying the bill, lawyer Marion Sandilands, representing the Quebec Community Groups Network, argued that the inclusion of references to Quebec’s Bill 101 within the federal C-13 “impacts the interpretation” … Read more

“There’s a sense, not unjustified, that the federal government is more interested in getting along with the Quebec government than protecting us,” Joan Fraser tells the CBC. The English-speaking community has been left on edge, adds the former senator and editor-in-chief of the Montreal Gazette, now a board member of the Quebec Community Groups Network … Read more

Montreal, June 15, 2023 – The Quebec Community Groups Network is profoundly disappointed that Bill C-13, the overhaul of the Official Languages Act, is now headed for Royal Assent while still containing references to Quebec’s Charter of the French Language. Meanwhile the QCGN applauds Quebec Senators Tony Loffreda and Judith Seidman who stood firm against … Read more

The Senate passed Bill C-13 last night with a vote of 60 to five. QCGN President Eva Ludvig expressed disappointment with the result, as C-13 still includes references to Quebec’s Charter of the French Language. Read more

“Once in each generation, it seems, Quebec’s English-speaking community faces a period of intense stress and strain over language,” writes QCGN President Eva Ludvig in an op-ed for the Montreal Gazette. She lays out the challenges that lie ahead for Quebec’s English-speaking community, which include Bills 23, 15, 40, C-13, “[a]nd of course, the continued … Read more

As Bill C-13, modernizing the Official Languages Act, undergoes its third reading in the Senate, English-speaking Quebecers fear that their concerns have gone unheard. For them, the federal government is playing by the Quebec government’s rules. “Until now, we’ve always hoped that the federal government would be our protector, supporting us as a minority language … Read more

Bill C-13 saw no changes by the Senate, which completed its study of the proposed language legislation yesterday evening. The Quebec Community Groups Network had requested that Senators work to remove all mention of the Charter of the French Language from Bill C-13. Read more

The Senate’s official languages committee hears from individuals and groups – including the Quebec Community Groups Network – concerned with how the inclusion of the Charter of the French Language within Bill C-13 would impact the rights of Quebec’s English-speaking minority. Read more

Joe Ortona, chair of the English Montreal School Board (EMSB) writes to each member of the Senate urging the upper chamber to fulfill its role “as the Chamber of sober second thought” and propose amendments to Bill C-13 “to ensure the rights of minority-language communities in this country are not mutually exclusive.” Ortona’s appeal cites … Read more

Anthony Housefather, Liberal MP from the Mount Royal riding and lone parliamentarian to vote against Bill C-13, tells the Sherbrooke Record he “did exactly what I am supposed to do” by voicing his opposition to the inclusion of Bill 96 references. Advocacy groups including the Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN) have repeatedly raised concerns that … Read more

Members and stakeholders attending the 28th annual meeting over the weekend of the Quebec Community Groups Network reiterate the collective commitment of the English-speaking community to this province, to the future of the French language, and to the importance of community vitality. Read more

Commentator Robert Libman takes note of the forceful pushback by the Quebec Community Groups Network, among many others, on the embedding of the Quebec Charter of the French Language –as buttressed by Bill 96 – in the new Official Languages Act under study at the Senate. Read more

“Our minority – indeed all Quebecers – now live in a ‘Charter free zone’ where our fundamental human rights have been vacated in the name of protecting and promoting the French language,” Eva Ludvig, QCGN president, tells a Senate hearing on the new Official Languages Act: “This is the principal reason why the QCGN has … Read more

The Quebec Community Groups Network called on senators to work to remove the controversial references to Quebec’s Bill 101 within the federal Bill C-13 during their time before the senate committee studying the proposed language legislation on Monday. “We remain deeply concerned about the effects of Bill C-13 on the English-speaking community of Quebec and … Read more

Leaving the references to Bill 101 within Bill C-13 would be a blow to the rights of English-speaking Quebecers, the Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN) tells a Senate committee studying the proposed federal legislation. “[W]hen something is in law, we don’t know how that will be interpreted, not only at the court but also by … Read more

“The charter (of the French Language) is a threat for us,” says QCGN Board Member Joan Fraser, speaking before the Senate committee on official languages studying Bill C-13, which makes several references to the charter. Read more

Including references to Bill 101 within Bill C-13 sets a precedent for provincial governments outside of Quebec to adopt legislation that undermines the rights of francophone minority communities, the Quebec Community Groups Network tells senators. Read more

The incremental step taken last Thursday to further implement Bill 96  “creates … more confusion,” says Eva Ludvig, president of the Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN).  Read more