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Speeches

Speech by the Honourable Madeleine Meilleur Minister Responsible for Francophone Affairs and Minister of Culture

at the 15th Annual Conference of the Association française des municipalités de l'Ontario [FRANCOPHONE ASSOCIATION OF MUNICIPALITIES OF ONTARIO]
September 17, 2004

Thank you for your introduction, Réjean.

Good morning, ladies and gentlemen.

I am thrilled to be here with you today. It's a little like coming home.

First of all, I would like to congratulate your Executive Director, Réjean Nadeau, and your President, Jacques Hétu, and their team for the wonderful work that they have done all year, and for the excellent conference that they have organised.

Not so long ago, I had the pleasure of attending AFMO events as a municipal councillor.

As a City of Ottawa councillor, I was able to see how dynamic AFMO is. I was able to see what an important role you play in Francophone communities and throughout Ontario.

Even though, as Minister Responsible for Francophone Affairs and Minister of Culture, I have a very different perspective, I am no less appreciative of AFMO.

Today, I want to honour and express my appreciation for your celebration and the extraordinary work that each of you is doing in your community.

I also want to say hello to my colleague from Ottawa-Vanier, Deputy Leader in the House of Commons, Mauril Bélanger.

I am pleased that my friend Mauril is also the Minister Responsible for Official Languages.

With Mauril at the helm, the issue of official languages can only move ahead.

Mauril and I have an ongoing dialogue and are working very closely on issues of interest to the Francophone community.

It is thanks to AFMO and to people like you that Francophones are still here in Ontario, celebrating 400 years of French presence in North America.

We have so much to celebrate!

In September 1975, the Franco-Ontarian flag was hoisted for the first time in Sudbury.

Today, the Franco-Ontarian flag also flies in Cornwall and many other cities and towns across Ontario.

Take Brampton, for example.

At the Office of Francophone Affairs, we are currently working on making Brampton the 24th designated region in Ontario.

It is thanks to people such as you that our communities are strong, that we are proud, and that we are and will always be Francophones.

And it is thanks to people such as you, who know how to work hard and pull together, that our communities are prospering.

The McGuinty Government shares your willingness to cooperate and work hard.

I know that my colleague, John Gerretsen, the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, has talked about measures that he is introducing to give more powers to urban and rural municipalities.

The theme of this conference [A fresh look at governance: a daily challenge] is a good fit with the direction in which our government is moving.

We are also taking a fresh look at governance.

As a government, we are not saying « that doesn't concern us ». Everything that concerns Ontario is part of our vision.

We are not saying « that doesn't concern you ». Because our vision for Ontario includes cooperation with the municipalities.

It is by working with you, with all of our ministries, and with other levels of government that we can ensure that Franco-Ontarians live full, happy, and prosperous lives here in our province.

Allow me to cite a few examples of cooperation that are of interest to Francophones.

With the help of the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care, the Ministry of Community and Social Services, and the Attorney General, we are going to increase the number of agencies that provide French-language services.

The Office of Francophone Affairs will work in cooperation with the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing to develop programs to help the municipalities to improve the delivery of French-language services.

The Office of Francophone Affairs is negotiating the renewal of the agreement with Canadian Heritage to help the ministries increase access to French-language services in areas other than education.

I am working very closely with my colleagues in Cabinet and other key partners to ensure that French-language services continue to be delivered when changes are made to the delivery of government services.

Last June, during the celebration of Saint-Jean Baptiste Day, I announced the creation of a provincial advisory committee on French-language services so that Francophones could be involved in planning and developing French-language services.

With this committee, we are fulfilling on our commitment to consult Franco-Ontarians about government decisions that affect them. Since last fall, many Francophones have been appointed to the boards of directors of government agencies.

It's a start. But we need to do more.

We need to encourage the members of your communities to submit their nominations to the Nominations Committee and to their Member of Parliament.

You need to meet with your Members of Parliament so that they can learn more about their Francophone community.

Input from the Advisory Committee, AFMO, and Franco-Ontarians is very important to us.

This was very clear with the issue of bilingualism and the City of Ottawa.

We are listening to what you have to say about immigration.

On May 7, the federal Minister of Citizenship and Immigration and the Ontario Minister of Citizenship and Immigration signed a letter of intent to enable municipalities to take part in the negotiations on the establishment of an agreement between Canada and Ontario on immigration.

Our two governments made a commitment to create a municipal committee to develop protocols setting out the terms and conditions for municipal participation in the immigration process.

We are listening to what you have to say about the agreement between Ontario and Quebec on improving quality of life in our two provinces.

Initially, the Ontario-Quebec agreement will focus on health care, transportation, the environment, natural resources, tourism, public safety, and Francophone affairs.

We lent our support to your study to identify the tools and supports that would be needed to ensure the management and delivery of municipal services. And we can't wait to read the findings of this study in the fall.

As we celebrate 400 years of French presence in North America, we also recognise the importance of our place within the international Francophone community.

Ontario is determined to become a member of the Organisation internationale de la francophonie. And I know that I can count on my colleague, Mauril Bélanger, for his support on this issue.

As a member of this organisation, Ontario will be in a position to facilitate the penetration of new markets in, and partnerships with, the 56 countries and governments that use the French language and share our values. Another action on the part of our government will enable us to work together to preserve our heritage.

Indeed, there is another reason why I am so pleased to be here with you today. I am also the Minister of Culture and it is my pleasure to tell you about Bill 60 to amend the Ontario Heritage Act.

I said earlier that the McGuinty Government is listening to the municipalities. We have also listened to municipalities that have been unable to prevent the demolition of historical buildings and sites.

We have been told of example after example of architectural heritage sites and buildings that have been demolished in spite of their importance to our history and our heritage – indeed in spite of their economic potential for cultural tourism.

One of the most important changes to the Act – granting new powers that make it possible for municipalities to prevent the demolition of heritage properties – will give the municipalities the tools they need to not only delay, but stop, the demolition of heritage sites.

Another important change will enable the province to identify and designate sites of provincial heritage significance and to prohibit their demolition.

We need strong, effective legislation to protect our heritage. I greatly appreciate AFMO's support for the amendments to the Act that we are proposing.

Language, culture, and heritage have shaped – and continue to shape – the Franco-Ontarian community. Our heritage enables us to understand who we are and gives us confidence in what we can accomplish.

The proposed changes to the Heritage Act will enable us to build strong communities and to improve quality of life for all Ontarians. As the representatives of my ministry explained yesterday in their presentation, Ontario and other provinces and territories have signed the federal government's initiative on Canadian Heritage Sites.

Through on-line tools such as the Canadian Register of Heritage Properties, this partnership between the federal government and the provinces and territories will support the creation of a culture of conservation in Canada.

Thus far, 34 historical sites have been identified for inclusion in the Canadian Register. Thirty-seven other properties are being considered for inclusion.

And I want to stay open to your suggestions so that the Ministry of Culture can more adequately take into account the needs of Ontario's Francophone communities.

In 2003, AFMO indicated that there was a need for workshops on museum-related standards in French. Since then, officials from my Ministry have worked together with the Ontario Museum Association to organise several workshops on French-language standards for museums. Others have been planned for this fiscal year.

Furthermore, the McGuinty Government is committed to creating an open forum for discussion and for listening to the cultural community. The Minister's Advisory Council for Arts and Culture will give us an opportunity to hear the views of, and seek advice from, the arts and cultural community.

It took time to ensure that the changes to the Heritage Act would work. We are in the process of conducting consultations on the delivery of French-language services.

We need to proceed with caution, to take our time to ensure that these plans are built on a solid foundation. Otherwise, these plans will surely collapse like a building thrown together in haste.

We have succeeded in saving our historical buildings because they were built on solid foundations and remain sound. Ensuring that we pass our language, culture, and heritage on to our grandchildren will require the same effort.

What we mainly need to pass on is our pride in being Francophones in Ontario.

You often hear the expression, "If these walls could talk." Well, as you can see, our government is a government that listens.

We know the value of our heritage, our culture. We know that the walls of the Francophone community are speaking to us.

They are speaking of our past – of our heritage.

Thanks to you, to the people from here, they are speaking to us now – and will always speak to us – in French. Thank you.