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Official languages platforms

Here's what the 2019 Canadian election parties are promising.

Liberal

  • Modernize the Official Languages Act.
  • Make Radio-Canada's mandate for regional news part of the Act.
  • Make Air Canada provide fully bilingual services.
  • Review and strengthen powers of the Commissioner of Official Languages.
  • Appoint only bilingual judges to the Supreme Court.

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To protect and promote the rights of minority-language communities, we will move forward with:

modernizing the 50-year-old Official Languages Act, including making Radio-Canada’s mandate for regional news part of the Act, and making sure that Air Canada provides fully bilingual services to its customers;

reviewing and strengthening the powers of the Commissioner of Official Languages;

appointing only bilingual judges to the Supreme Court of Canada; and

undertaking an enumeration of rights-holders and a thorough post-census survey to better account for – and better serve – minority-language communities.

Canada’s two official languages should be reflected not only in institutions but in the ability of people to speak and understand each other in both languages. To encourage more people to learn a second language, we will move forward with:

working with the provinces and territories to ensure that all Canadians can access secondlanguage (sic) programs, like immersion, in their local schools if they choose to do so;

new investments to help train, recruit and attract teachers in both immersion and second-language programs, based on new targets set by the provinces and territories;

developing and promoting new opportunities for language and cultural exchanges; and

investing an additional $60 million to help build the infrastructure that supports strong minority-language communities, including schools and cultural centres.

And to help the more than 600,000 Francophones in Ontario better access post-secondary education, we will move forward with the province to help establish the Université de l’Ontario français.

From Forward, retrieved 2019-09-30.

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We don't have any Conservative policies on Official languages.

NDP

  • Enhance the Action Plan for Official Languages to improve access to services in the language of choice.
  • Modernize the Official Languages Act.
  • Ensure judges on the Supreme Court are bilingual.
  • Promote and revitalize Indigenous Languages.

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A New Democrat government will enhance the Action Plan for Official Languages to improve access to services in the language of choice, including working with the provinces and territories to improve minority language education, and attract more French-speaking immigrants to communities all across the country.

We’ll also modernize the Official Languages Act to strengthen oversight and accountability, expand the scope of language rights, and ensure that minority language communities are consulted on decisions that impact them. New Democrats will make sure that Canadians can access justice in their language of choice, and that judges on the Supreme Court are bilingual.

These efforts will happen alongside our commitment to the promotion and revitalization of Indigenous languages – recognizing that honouring Canada’s linguistic heritage must include reconciliation.

From A New Deal for People, retrieved 2019-09-22.

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We don't have any Bloc policies on Official languages.

Green

  • In the first year of the next parliament, promote and implement a modernized Official Languages Act to protect both national languages.
  • Ensure funding for the protection of Indigenous languages at risk of disappearing.
We don't have any PPC policies on Official languages.

Looking for the parties' positions on other topics?

See our full 2019 Canadian election platform comparison