Editorial: Time for a reality check on the 'decline of the French language'

Content of the article

The last few years have been a rollercoaster for English-speaking Quebecers, allophones and immigrants alike, as punitive laws have been passed, rights trampled on and institutions torn down, all to reverse the decline of the French language.

But the latest data suggests the French in Quebec are on firmer ground than Prime Minister Francois Legault's government has claimed to justify some of its tougher policies.

Content of the article

A study by L'Office québécois de la langue française found that over the past 15 years, the use of French in public has remained stable, while the use of English has declined. A survey of 7,200 Quebecers in 2022 found that 79 percent often spoke French outside the home, the same as in 2007 and up slightly from 78 percent in 2016. Even among English speakers, French increased from 20 percent to 25 percent. cent between 2016 and 2022.

On the island of Montreal, where downtown businesses often refer to the “Bonjour-Hi” greeting, the use of English has dropped to about 17 percent in 2022, down from 23 percent in 2016.

The OQLF barometer comes on the heels of a book published last year that questioned the prevailing narrative that the French were in free fall. Le Français en Declin? Repenser la francophonie québécoise believes that the French language will always be vulnerable in the recent Francophone redoubt in North America, but policymakers, pundits and politicians seem to focus on the wrong data when assessing the state of the French language – the mother tongue and the language most often spoken at home. .

Content of the article

The true portrait is more nuanced, some authors explained at a recent panel discussion organized by the Quebec Network of Community Groups and sponsored by The Gazette and the Notre Home Foundation. This ignores the many achievements of the French Language Charter in integrating newcomers over nearly 50 years and paints an unnecessarily grim picture.

The latest statistics are not all rosy. A recent study by Benoît Dubreuil, the French language commissioner, highlighted the enormous challenges of ensuring Quebec's French proficiency for non-permanent immigrants, as this population exceeds 500,000. The number of new arrivals unable to speak French is said to have tripled in two years among international students, temporary foreign workers and asylum seekers.

Nevertheless, new evidence and new perspectives are raising serious red flags about the Legaul government's approach to the important goal of protecting and promoting the French language.

Before implementing the drastic new measures of Bill 96 (now Bill 14), the update to Quebec's language laws, the OQLF study period requires us to ask whether there is really a warrant for giving the language watchdog extrajudicial search and seizure powers that immigrants demand. provides public services in French only six months after arrival and protects against legal disputes, to name a few examples.

Due to the OQLF's findings, the Quebec branch of the Canadian Retail Council is calling on the Legault government to review regulations on French labels on products such as appliances, which could harm merchants, the economy and consumers.

Asylum seekers from the rest of Canada, or university students from the rest of Canada, anglicize Quebec only when an inclusive strategy to protect the French language can be constructive.

This reality check on the health of the French provides an opportunity to rethink the government's linguistic policy and eliminate polarizing rhetoric.

Share this article on social media