Reflecting on our place in Quebec and Canada, the Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN) concluded its 28th annual meeting Saturday resolved to continue to serve as a strong and unifying voice for English-speaking Quebecers. We met under the theme #OuiOurQuebec – Our Community, Our Province, Our Quebec! More than 150 members and stakeholders expressed their … Read more
The lives and prospects of some 1,500 vulnerable young people and seniors across English-speaking Quebec have been tangibly and substantially improved with completion of a second round of projects through the Community Innovation Fund (CIF). Managed through community partnerships, these CIF 2.0 projects have put $1.1 million of funding to work over the past three … Read more
The Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN) has warned a Senate committee that Bill C-13 could have serious negative effects on Quebec’s English-speaking community and on Official Language Minority Communities across the country. The Senate Standing Committee on Official Languages is studying Bill C-13, An Act for the Substantive Equality of Canada’s Official Languages. The bill … Read more
Today, the House of Commons adopted C-13 at third reading, having adopted amendments to the legislation last week that are deeply troubling to the English-speaking community of Quebec. The bill now proceeds to the Senate, where our community hopes the Upper Chamber will closely study the inclusion of Quebec’s Charter of the French Language within … Read more
Canadian Parents for French welcomes the Government of Canada’s new Action Plan for Official Languages 2023–2028: Protection-Promotion-Collaboration, launched on April 26 by the Minister of Official Languages, Ginette Petitpas Taylor, accompanied by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. “We are particularly pleased with this Action Plan’s emphasis on diversity, inclusion, and equity,” says Canadian Parents for French … Read more
The Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN) welcomes the Government of Canada’s new Action Plan for Official Languages 2023–2028: Protection-Promotion-Collaboration, launched today by Official Languages Minister Ginette Petitpas Taylor, accompanied by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. The Prime Minister made special mention of the federal government’s continuing leadership role in protecting Quebec’s English-speaking communities: “We firmly believe … Read more
The Quebec Community Groups Network is cautiously optimistic about the federal government’s new Action Plan on official languages as outlined in new spending in today’s 2023 federal budget. The budget includes an additional $1 billion in official-language community investments over the next five years. Read more
The Quebec Community Groups Network welcomes the allocation of $31.5 million in support of Quebec’s English-speaking community in today’s provincial budget. “The Quebec government has taken a further step to support English-speaking Quebecers and their community groups,” said QCGN Director General Sylvia Martin-Laforge, who was in Quebec City for the budget speech. Read more
The Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN) is profoundly disappointed that the House of Commons Standing Committee on Official Languages has allowed references to Quebec’s Charter of the French Language to remain in proposed new federal language legislation to amend Canada’s Official Languages Act. During the committee’s clause-by-clause consideration of Bill C-13, An Act to amend … Read more
Non-profit organizations serving English-speaking Quebecers are seriously underfunded compared with francophone groups and thus often unable to provide important and sometimes essential services. That is among the messages the Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN) and other community stakeholders brought to Quebec Finance Minister Eric Girard during a pre-budget consultation this afternoon in Quebec City. Read … Read more
The Government of Canada’s Bill C-13 continues to progress slowly through the legislative process in Ottawa. Introduced in March 2022, C-13 now sits with the House of Commons Standing Committee on Official Languages, which began its first of eight meetings for clause-by-clause consideration of the legislation on December 13th. Barring anything extraordinary, the Committee is … Read more
Quebecers, both French and English, agree that English-speaking Quebecers should have equal access to government services in their own language. This is one of the conclusions of polling conducted for the Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN). Read more Click here for full poll results
English-speaking Quebecers strongly believe the federal government must do more to support and safeguard their rights. This is underscored by recent polling conducted for the Quebec Community Groups Network. It is further supported by more than 1,600 signatures on an open letter opposed to proposed sweeping changes to the Official Languages Act that would severely … Read more
The Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN) is pleased that members of the Senate Standing Committee on Official Languages have heard the concerns raised by English-speaking Quebec about the government of Canada’s Bill C-13. This important bill is designed to update the Official Languages Act. In its report released this afternoon, the committee states: “the Official … Read more
Leaders of English-speaking Quebec told Parliamentarians in Ottawa this evening that proposed amendments to the Official Languages Act constitute a clear threat to the language rights of English-speaking Quebecers and the vitality of their communities. “Bill C-13 does not reflect our vision of Canada,” said Eva Ludvig, president of the Quebec Community Groups Network. The … Read more
The Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN) is delighted that Finance Minister Éric Girard, a powerful voice in Cabinet, has been named Minister Responsible for Relations with English-speaking Quebecers. “We are pleased that Premier François Legault has heard our request for a dedicated minister, and we look forward to a fresh start in relations between our … Read more
The Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN) emerged from its 27th Annual General meeting Thursday evening equipped with a strengthened advocacy mandate, as members pledged to continue battling provincial and federal legislation that erodes the rights of English- speaking Quebecers. Members resolved unanimously to demand the Government of Canada withdraw Bill C-13, which dramatically alters the … Read more
The Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN) congratulates François Legault on his re-election as Premier of Quebec and looks forward to a fresh start in relations between the English-speaking community of Quebec and the Quebec government. We also reiterate our recommendation for the appointment of a dedicated Minister Responsible for Relations with English-speaking Quebecers. Read more
The Quebec Community Groups Network hosts a series of virtual town halls with provincial party leaders ahead of the 2022 provincial election. The purpose of this series is to discuss electoral issues of importance to English-speaking Quebecers and our community’s place in Quebec. On Tuesday, September 7, we heard from Éric Duhaime, leader of the … Read more
The Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN) last night hosted a virtual town hall with Colin Standish, leader of the new Canadian Party of Quebec (CaPQ). This online forum provided Quebecers with an opportunity to ask Standish questions and at the same time convey to him their concerns ahead of the Oct. 3 provincial election. Read … Read more
The Quebec Community Groups Network last night hosted a virtual town hall with Quebec Liberal Party Leader Dominique Anglade. This online forum provided Quebecers an opportunity to ask questions and convey their concerns to her ahead of the Oct. 3 provincial election. Read more
The Quebec Community Groups Network hosts a series of virtual town halls with provincial party leaders ahead of the 2022 provincial election. The purpose of this series is to discuss electoral issues of importance to English-speaking Quebecers and our community’s place in Quebec. The first guest in this series is Quebec Liberal Party Leader Dominique … Read more
Under new Interim President Eva Ludvig, the Quebec Community Groups Network today emerged from a policy forum with renewed resolve to fight Bill 96 and to advocate strongly to ensure new federal legislation updating the Official Languages Act does not abandon English-speaking Quebec by discarding the fundamental principle of linguistic duality from coast to coast … Read more
A federal bill aimed at modernizing the Official Languages Act is proposing radical changes that will have adverse impacts on the interpretation of this quasi- constitutional law and Quebec’s English-speaking community. That was the message the Quebec Community Groups Network took to parliamentarians examining Bill C-13 on Monday. Read more
The Quebec Community Groups Network is calling on the Government of Canada to immediately remove all reference to Quebec’s Charter of the French Language from Bill C-13, the proposed legislation amending the Official Languages Act, and creating a new law that will impose language of work and service obligations for French only on federally regulated … Read more