Order Fixing January 1, 2024 as the Day on Which Section 23 of An Act for the Substantive Equality of Canada’s Official Languages Comes into Force: SI/2024-2
Canada Gazette, Part II, Volume 158, Number 1
Registration
SI/2024-2 January 3, 2024
AN ACT FOR THE SUBSTANTIVE EQUALITY OF CANADA’S OFFICIAL LANGUAGES
Order Fixing January 1, 2024 as the Day on Which Section 23 of An Act for the Substantive Equality of Canada’s Official Languages Comes into Force
P.C. 2023-1301 December 15, 2023
Her Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, under subsection 71(2) of An Act for the Substantive Equality of Canada’s Official Languages, chapter 15 of the Statutes of Canada, 2023, fixes January 1, 2024 as the day on which section 23 of that Act comes into force.
EXPLANATORY NOTE
(This note is not part of the Order.)
Proposal
Pursuant to subsection 71(2) of An Act for the Substantive Equality of Canada’s Official Languages (the Act), the present Order in Council fixes January 1, 2024, as the day on which section 23 of the Act comes into force.
Objective
The Order in Council fixes the day on which the legislative provision requiring the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration to adopt a policy on francophone immigration comes into force.
Background
The Act, which received royal assent on June 20, 2023, helps modernize and strengthen Canada’s language regime toward achieving substantive equality of English and French and entails a number of changes to the Official Languages Act (OLA).
Section 23 of the Act sets out the obligation to implement a federal francophone immigration policy, contributing to stronger and more prosperous francophone minority communities for generations to come and to make progress toward the Government’s commitment of re-establishing their demographic weight to what it was in 1971 (6.1%).
Implications
Upon coming into force of section 23 of the Act on January 1, 2024, the OLA will be amended by adding the following:
Policy on francophone immigration
44.1 (1) The Minister of Citizenship and Immigration shall adopt a policy on francophone immigration to enhance the vitality of French linguistic minority communities in Canada, including by restoring and increasing their demographic weight.
Contents
(2) The policy shall include, among other things,
- (a) objectives, targets and indicators;
- (a.1) mechanisms for information sharing and for reporting;
- (b) a statement that the Government of Canada recognizes that immigration is one of the factors that contributes to maintaining or increasing the demographic weight of French linguistic minority communities in Canada; and
- (c) a statement that the Government of Canada recognizes the importance of francophone immigration to economic development.
Gender-based analysis plus
Although there are no gender-based analysis plus (GBA+) implications from the Order in Council itself, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) will ensure that an intersectional approach is applied to the development of policies, programs, and services that aim to enhance francophone immigration. Through a GBA+ analysis, IRCC will ensure that appropriate mitigation strategies are put in place to minimize differential outcomes to diverse francophone clients. This will be crucial considering the criticism of current immigration programs that disproportionately affect students from French-speaking Africa.
Consultation
In anticipation of the coming into force of the provision, IRCC consulted provincial and territorial ministries responsible for immigration matters and francophone minority community stakeholders to inform the development of the policy on francophone immigration.
Contact
Yves Saint-Germain
Director
Francophone Immigration Strategies and Plans
Francophone Immigration Branch
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada
Telephone: 613‑858‑7136
Email: yves.saint-germain@cic.gc.ca