Recommendation 1

That the Government of Canada put in place a horizontal initiative for official languages to follow the Roadmap when it ends on March 31, 2013, and that it include funding equivalent to that for the 2008-2013 Roadmap.

Recommendation 2

That the Government of Canada and the Department of Canadian Heritage undertake to ensure that federal institutions understand their duties and responsibilities under Part VII of the Official Languages Act and the nature and purpose of the Government of Canada’s future horizontal initiative for official languages, which must improve on existing programs.

Recommendation 3

That the Government of Canada and the Department of Canadian Heritage take note of the tripartite cooperation model put in place by Health Canada to implement Part VII of the Official Languages Act in Quebec and urge other federal institutions to adopt, inasmuch as possible, a similar model that promotes cooperation among federal institutions, the provincial and territorial governments and official language minority communities and fosters the accountability of each of the parties involved.

Recommendation 4

That Health Canada, in collaboration and consultation with its provincial and territorial partners, continue its strategy of investing in official language minority communities by:

1. training more health professionals to be able to work in official language minority communities;
2. creating and maintaining regional and community health networks;
3. integrating, promoting and improving access to health care in the minority language.

Recommendation 5

That Health Canada recognize that it is its responsibility, regardless of the Roadmap, to support research on health in official language minority communities (OLMC) in order to obtain conclusive data that can guide governments and OLMC in setting priorities for the training of health professionals and the delivery of better health services.

Recommendation 6

That Health Canada, in consultation and cooperation with the provinces and territories and in an effort to build on their own initiatives, meet the new technology needs of the health institutions of organizations that work in official language minority communities. It is also suggested that Health Canada seek support for these initiatives from such partners as Industry Canada and the National Research Council of Canada.

Recommendation 7

That Citizenship and Immigration Canada take into consideration the urgent need to recruit specialized health professionals in the Francophone and Anglophone minority health systems, including foreign-trained professionals.

Recommendation 8

That Health Canada develop with its partners a long-term strategy to provide caregivers and the individuals they take care of with services and support in the official language of their choice given that language of communication is essential to the delivery of quality services.

Recommendation 9

That Citizenship and Immigration Canada and the Citizenship and Immigration Canada — Francophone Minority Communities Steering Committee inform the Standing Committee on Official Languages of their progress toward developing a future strategic plan to promote immigration within Francophone minority communities.

Recommendation 10

That the Government of Canada, in a future horizontal initiative for official languages, encourage the provinces and territories to provide concrete results and accountability mechanisms to refocus investments on the needs of official language minority communities.

Recommendation 11

That the Government of Canada’s future horizontal initiative for official languages support Anglophone and Francophone minority community organizations, institutions and networks and that it fund their capacities to deliver services of equal quality in the minority language.

Recommendation 12

That the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency (CanNor) play a leadership role within the federal government in promoting official languages and the vitality of Francophone communities in Canada’s Far North.

Recommendation 13

That the Government of Canada, in a future horizontal initiative for official languages, support initiatives for developing language technologies and the industry so as to promote official languages and fully benefit from the economic benefits derived from Canada’s linguistic duality. 42

Recommendation 14

That the Government of Canada, in a future horizontal initiative for official languages, provide the necessary support to official language minority community networks and organizations that deliver employment services and that special attention be paid to the needs of regional communities, youth and seniors.

Recommendation 15

That the Government of Canada, as part of a future horizontal initiative for official languages, incorporate the cooperative model into its  socio-economic development strategies for official language  minority communities.

Recommendation 16

That the Department of Canadian Heritage consult the official language minority communities to determine their priorities and needs with respect to community learning centres and maintain the network of coordinators of community learning centres.

Recommendation 17

That, as part of a future Government of Canada horizontal initiative for official languages, the Department of Canadian Heritage encourage provincial and territorial governments to reduce the infrastructure deficit of official language minority school boards.

Recommendation 18

That Human Resources and Skills Development Canada consider undertaking a consultation process with literacy stakeholders in official language minority communities to understand the communities’ needs and that the report on those consultations be made public.

Recommendation 19

That, in a future horizontal official languages initiative, the Department of Canadian Heritage consider supporting a bursary program for immersion school graduates and Francophile or Anglophile students wishing to pursue some or all of their studies in their second language at a postsecondary institution in Canada.

Recommendation 20

That the Department of Canadian Heritage, with a view to a future horizontal official languages initiative, consult youth organizations in official language minority communities for the purpose of evaluating their needs and implementing structural programs.

Recommendation 21

That the Government of Canada’s future horizontal initiative for official languages increase the promotion and use of new technologies for official-language learning.

Recommendation 22

That Canadian Heritage review the objectives of the National Translation Program for Book Publishing following consultations with official language minority communities to determine the needs of  the publishing companies in Francophone and Anglophone minority communities.

Recommendation 23

That the Department of Canadian Heritage, in a future horizontal official languages initiative, maintain its support for arts and culture in the official language minority communities. That it continue its interdepartmental coordination work with the federal economic institutions to develop the arts sector and cultural industries in the official language minority communities.

Recommendation 24

That the arts and culture component of the Government of Canada’s future horizontal initiative for official languages include initiatives that enable arts and culture to be better integrated into the educational projects of educational institutions of the official language minority communities.

Recommendation 25

That the Government of Canada, in accordance with its Communications Policy, ensure that federal institutions meet their commitments toward the media of the official language minority communities.

Recommendation 26

That the Government of Canada’s future horizontal initiative for official languages contain initiatives designed to help official language minority communities keep pace with technological change, particularly by making use of new media and social media.

Recommendation 27

That the Department of Canadian Heritage develop programs for community radio stations and newspapers in its support strategy for arts and culture in the official language minority communities.

Recommendation 28

That Justice Canada, in the Government of Canada’s future horizontal initiative for official languages, assist immigrants living in official language minority communities and the community organizations and institutions that provide them with services in order to improve their understanding of the Canadian legal system, to facilitate access to legal services in the official language of their choice and to promote careers in justice for the immigrant population.

Recommendation 29

That Justice Canada, in the Government of Canada’s future horizontal initiative for official languages, assist victims of violence in order to provide them with resources in the official language of their choice.

Recommendation 30

That Justice Canada, in partnership with Quebec’s Department of Justice and the principal parties involved, consult Quebec’s Anglophone communities to determine their needs in the area of access to justice in English in Quebec and identify possible federal initiatives that would not conflict with provincial jurisdiction.

Recommendation 31

That the Government of Canada, in its future horizontal initiative for official languages, fund research on issues related to official languages. This financial support must focus on three areas: funding research and communicating findings; strengthening the research capacity of organizations and institutions in official language minority communities; and coordinating the three sectors for official language research — universities, communities and government.

Recommendation 32

That the Government of Canada ask Statistics Canada to use innovative measures to meet the need for language statistics and  to support statistical research on official language minority communities.

Recommendation 33

That the Government of Canada fund a survey to be conducted by Statistics Canada on the vitality of the official language minority communities and official language developments in Canada, using 2011 Census data in particular.

Recommendation 34

That the Department of Canadian Heritage evaluate the performance of the Official Languages Secretariat (OLS) in coordinating the Roadmap and implementing the Horizontal Results-based Management and Accountability Framework; that it provide the House of Commons Standing Committee on Official Languages with the evaluation results by March 31, 2013, by providing possible improvements to the recommendations concerning the human and financial resource needs of the OLS for any future horizontal official languages initiative.

Recommendation 35

That the Government of Canada ensure that the management and accountability framework for a future horizontal initiative for official languages include a strategy for communicating with Canadians.

Recommendation 36

That the Department of Canadian Heritage, in the Government of Canada’s future horizontal initiative for official languages, develop tools and mechanisms that enable greater interdepartmental coordination so as to improve the quality of services provided to official language minority communities.

Recommendation 37

That the Department of Canadian Heritage, in collaboration with the official language minority communities (OLMC) and its federal, provincial and territorial partners, develop a tool to improve accountability practices for the Government of Canada’s future horizontal initiative for official languages and, in particular, to properly distinguish between funding provided through the Roadmap and that provided through ongoing programs.

That the Minister responsible for Official Languages ensure better intergovernmental coordination in a future horizontal initiative for official languages and that the Official Languages Secretariat have the necessary tools for this purpose.

Recommendation 38

That, as part of a future Government of Canada horizontal initiative for official languages, the Department of Canadian Heritage work with official language minority communities to develop a simple and efficient process for evaluating programs.