The committee’s work this session has centred on two related files: the draft regulations under the Use of French in Federally Regulated Private Businesses Act (UFPBA) flowing from Bill C-13, and the draft regulations under Part VII of the Official Languages Act. Across both, witnesses from francophone minority communities, anglophone Quebec, legal and academic experts, federal officials, and regulated businesses have returned to a common set of concerns: how regions with a strong francophone presence are designated, what thresholds trigger obligations, whether enforcement is proactive or complaint-driven, and whether the regulations contain measurable objectives rather than restating the act. A parallel thread has been Air Canada, first through motions responding to the CEO’s unilingual English statement after a fatal accident, then through testimony from the board chair and a government relations vice-president on bilingual hiring, service levels, complaint trends, and the CEO transition.

On the UFPBA regulations, francophone and Acadian organizations—the FCFA, the Assemblée de la francophonie de l’Ontario, the Société de la francophonie manitobaine, the Fédération acadienne de la Nouvelle-Écosse, the Acadian Society of New Brunswick, and the Association canadienne-française de l’Alberta—largely welcomed the regulations as a step forward but argued they are too narrow. They pressed for designation of more regions and communities (Toronto, Halifax, Calgary, St. Albert, Chéticamp, La Broquerie, among others), smaller geographic units, use of vitality criteria beyond census data, provincial capitals, a lower employee threshold outside Quebec, a public registry of covered businesses, mandatory periodic review with a non-regression or ratchet principle, and proactive rather than complaint-based enforcement. The Commissioner of Official Languages went further, calling the draft complex and ambiguous, seeking a reliable registry, at least one designated region per province and territory, clearer definitions, obligations for third-party service providers, and more resources for her office. Federal officials from Canadian Heritage explained the criteria and thresholds, confirmed the phased application beginning in Quebec, and acknowledged the minister has authority but not an explicit duty to publish the list of businesses.

Business and legal witnesses diverged sharply from those community positions. The Canadian Bankers Association sought tighter designation criteria, flexibility on supervising francophone staff, and adequate implementation time, noting smaller banks’ limited capacity. WestJet supported the regulations, described steps already taken, and said it would likely opt in for simplicity, while identifying bilingual recruitment as its main challenge. Droits collectifs Québec argued the federal regime duplicates and undercuts Quebec’s Charter of the French Language and should exclude Quebec or be opt-in; a lawyer appearing individually took the opposite view, urging that the UFPBA be modelled on the Quebec charter with stronger penalties and recognition of the right to work in French. TALQ, representing Quebec’s English-speaking minority, warned the act departs from linguistic duality by protecting French without equivalent protections for English services and employment access in Quebec, and called for a Part VII impact analysis and robust monitoring.

On the Part VII regulations, witnesses from Société Santé en français, the Fédération culturelle canadienne-française, the Fédération des associations de juristes d’expression française de common law, Canadian Parents for French, Droits collectifs Québec, and academics repeatedly described the draft as vague, a paraphrase of the act, or silent on substantive equality. They sought a preamble stating the new vision, clear definitions of “positive measures,” impact analyses at all stages of federal-provincial agreements (including health and legal aid), data sharing with communities, procedural fairness in consultations, and performance indicators and public reporting. Canadian Parents for French raised a distinct concern that the regulations asymmetrically favour minority community protection over the act’s second pillar of fostering bilingualism, and that its pre-consultation input was not reflected. Chouinard warned of a possible “Gascon 2.0” ruling without measurable objectives. Procedurally, the committee has repeatedly set aside or adjourned motions—on the 2021 expert panel report, on intimidation of a public servant who requested documents in French, and on Air Canada—while adopting motions to invite the Air Canada board chair and future CEO, and to congratulate astronaut Jeremy Hansen for using French in space.