LANG Committee Meeting

    Honourable members of the committee, I see a quorum.

     Pursuant to Standing Order 106(3)(a), as the clerk of the committee, I will preside over the elections of the chair and vice-chairs.

    I must inform the committee members that the clerk of the committee can only receive motions for the election of the chair. The clerk can't receive other types of motions, can’t entertain points of order nor participate in debate.

     We can now proceed to the election of the chair.

    Pursuant to Standing Order 106(2), the chair must be a member of the government party.

    I'm ready to receive motions for the chair.

    I would like to nominate Yvan Baker.

     It has been moved by Mr. Villeneuve that Mr. Baker be elected as chair of the committee.

    Are there any further motions?

    (Motion agreed to)

    I declare the motion carried and Mr. Baker duly elected chair of the committee.

    Some hon. members: Hear, hear!

    I now invite Mr. Baker to take the chair.

    This is where it starts, Mr. Baker.

    First, I want to thank my colleagues for placing their trust in me. I look forward to working with you on the Standing Committee on Official Languages on issues that concern people across Canada.

    If the committee is in agreement, I invite the clerk to proceed to the election of the vice‑chairs.

    Thank you, Mr. Chair.

    I'll now proceed to the election of the first vice‑chair.

     Pursuant to Standing Order 106(2), the first vice-chair must be a member of the official opposition.

    I'm now prepared to receive motions for the first vice‑chair.

    I would like to nominate Joël Godin.

    It has been moved by Mr. Bélanger that Mr. Godin be elected as first vice‑chair of the committee.

    Are there any further motions?

    (Motion agreed to)

    I declare the motion carried and Mr. Godin duly elected first vice‑chair of the committee.

    Some hon. members: Hear, hear!

    We'll proceed to the election of the second vice‑chair.

    Pursuant to Standing Order 106(2), the second vice‑chair must be a member of an opposition party other than the official opposition.

    I'm now prepared to receive motions for the second vice‑chair.

    I'm delighted to nominate the Honourable Mario Beaulieu for the position of second vice‑chair.

    It has been moved by Ms. Chenette that Mr. Beaulieu be elected as second vice‑chair of the committee.

    Are there any further motions?

    (Motion agreed to)

    I declare the motion carried and Mr. Beaulieu duly elected second vice‑chair of the committee.

    Some hon. members: Hear, hear!

    Welcome to the first meeting of the Standing Committee on Official Languages.

    Before we begin, I would like to ask all in‑person participants to read the guidelines written on the updated cards on the table. These measures are in place to help prevent audio and feedback incidents and to protect the health and safety of all participants, including the interpreters. There's also a QR code on the card that links to a short awareness video.

    Today's meeting is taking place in a hybrid format. If you're participating by video conference, please click on the microphone icon to turn on your microphone and mute yourself when you aren't speaking.

    I would like to remind participants of the following points. They must wait until I recognize them by name before speaking. All comments should be addressed through the chair. The committee members must raise their hand if they wish to speak, whether they're participating in person or through Zoom. The clerk of the committee and I will manage the speaking order as best we can.

    The committee members have all received a copy of the draft routine motions. The committee can now proceed to consider these motions.

    I know that the parties have been discussing these motions. How does the committee want to proceed? Is there unanimous consent to adopt them all at once, or do we want to address them one by one?

    I suggest that we read them and adopt them one by one, to avoid any surprises.

    Okay.

    Mr. Godin, you have the floor.

    Mr. Chair, I was actually going to suggest the opposite. We've all read these motions and our parties have approved them. I think that it's common practice in every other committee to adopt them all at once. That's my proposal, but I can get behind my colleagues if we don't all agree.

    Okay.

    I can get behind this proposal as well if I'm assured that it's in line with established practice. I didn't know whether this was the case.

    Is there unanimous consent to adopt all the routine motions at once?

    Some hon. members: Agreed.

    (Motions agreed to [See Minutes of Proceedings])

    We've addressed all the items on the agenda.

    Is it the will of the committee to adjourn the meeting?

    Mr. Godin, you have the floor.

    Mr. Chair, you'll get to know me and you'll see that I love to talk.

    Before the meeting adjourns, I just want to say that the committee has traditionally maintained a high level of camaraderie and respect and a shared mission that transcends partisanship. I urge the committee to keep this same vision and attitude, without ever antagonizing anyone on the basis of political allegiances. We may have differences of opinion, but we're capable of working together, as history has shown us.

    I also want to take this opportunity to say how pleased I am that we have Ms. Martin as our clerk and Ms. Lecomte as our analyst. We're in good hands with them.

    Thank you, Mr. Godin.

    Mr. Villeneuve, you have the floor.

    I want to thank Mr. Godin for his comments. I agree with him.

    Mr. Beaulieu, you have the floor.

    My comments will fall along the same lines.

    Congratulations on your election as chair of the committee, Mr. Chair.

    I would also like to thank our clerk and our analyst, who always do an excellent job.

    I think that Mr. Godin and I are the only members who sat on the committee in the last Parliament. There's also Marc Dalton, who is participating by video conference. Even though sometimes the debates get heated, we're all here to put forward our ideas.

    Thank you, everyone.

    Is it the will of the committee to adjourn the meeting?

    Some hon. members: Agreed.

    Okay. The meeting is adjourned.