LANG Committee Report

Meeting No. 15

The Standing Joint Committee on Official Languages met in camera at 3:35 p.m. this day, in Room 371, West Block, the Co-Chairs, The Hon. Shirley Maheu and Mauril Bélanger, presiding.

Members of the Committee present:

From the Senate: The Hon. Jean-Robert Gauthier, the Hon. Shirley Maheu and the Hon. Pierre-Claude Nolin.

From the House of Commons: Mauril Bélanger, Gérard Binet, Sarmite Bulte, Claude Drouin, Yvon Godin and Yolande Thibeault.

Acting Member present: Louis Plamondon for Benoît Sauvageau

In attendance:

From the Senate: Till Heyde, Acting Co-Clerk of the Committee. From the House of Commons: Jean-François Pagé, Co-Clerk of the Committee. From the Library of Parliament: Robert Asselin and Françoise Coulombe, Research Officers.

In accordance with Standing Order 108 (1a) and (2), the Committee resumed the study on the bilingual services offered by Air Canada.

The Committee proceeded with the consideration of a draft report.

It was agreed, —That the interim draft report entitled: "Bilingual services offered by Air Canada" as amended, be adopted as the Fifth Report of the Standing Joint Committee on Official Languages and that both Co-Chairs present it to their respective Houses.

It was agreed, —That pursuant to Standing Order 108 (1) a) the Committee authorize the printing of the dissenting or supplementary opinions by Committee members as an appendix to this report immediately after the signature of the Co-Chairs, that the dissenting or supplementary opinions be limited to not more than one (1) page and that they be sent to the Co-Clerk of the House of Commons, in both official languages, on/or before Friday June 8, 2001 at 5:00 p.m.

It was agreed, —That pursuant to Standing Order 109, the Committee request that the government table a comprehensive response to the Report within one hundred and fifty (150) days. Notwithstanding Standing Order 109, the Committee would like to receive an answer before the end of september 2001.

It was agreed, —That the Committee print 600 copies of its Fifth Report in tumble bilingual format with a standard cover.

It was agreed, —That the researchers and Co-Clerks be authorized to make such typographical and editorial changes as may be necessary without changing the substance of the report.

It was agreed, —That the Committee authorize the spending of a $20,000 budget to hire researchers and/or consultants for the summer period of 2001 to continue the Air Canada file, if necessary.

At 4:06 p.m., the Committee adjourned to the call of the Chair.

Tonu Onu
Co-Clerk of the Committee