Official Languages committee  Thank you. In my mind, funding is really the key. The important thing is not to break the education continuum of students who, after high school, decide to pursue their university education in English. In those cases, they would end up working in English and becoming detached from their sector.

Official Languages committee  I am not saying the provinces should stop investing. What I am saying is that the federal government should be able to invest directly in minority-language institutions if necessary.

Official Languages committee  That is indeed the problem, and it is a challenge. On the other hand, I do not think the federal government would be unable to find a way to get the provinces to shoulder their responsibilities, for example, by designating people in good faith to negotiate.

Official Languages committee  It is exhausting for people who have to constantly fight to prove that the Earth is round in this regard.

Official Languages committee  Let me be clear. I have been the president and vice-chancellor of the University of Ottawa for eight years and we never opposed the creation of the Université de l'Ontario français. On the contrary, we have offered our assistance. The “by and for” movement is entirely legitimate and necessary in Ontario.

Official Languages committee  We conducted an audit to see whether that was indeed the case and whether the University of Ottawa was in compliance with the French Language Services Act. We found that we were 98% in compliance. It was just in certain programs that the course sequence was off and an English course was needed to finish on time.

Official Languages committee  As part of the francophonie, we receive a special subsidy of $3,000 per student.

Official Languages committee  The comparable data we have suggest $6,000 to $7,000 per student.

Official Languages committee  We have a problem though. No one can explain the formula to us, or why things have ended up that way. The Wynne government was already aware of it. Since then, we have appealed to the government, but there has been no movement. Some years, our budget is balanced, but others it is not.

Official Languages committee  Officially, yes. The real figure is closer to $80 million, but regardless.

Official Languages committee  Our operating budget is more than $900 million, not including research funding.

Official Languages committee  As a former professor of constitutional law, I can tell you that this is not an issue for Quebec since they have a law preventing institutions from receiving funding directly from the federal government, with the exception of funding bodies. That is good and it is clear that universities fall under provincial jurisdiction.

Official Languages committee  Right now we have a deficit.

Official Languages committee  Yes. We are one of the Ontario universities with a large deficit. We are working very hard to reduce it, but right now in Ontario, 12 of the 18 universities recognized by the government have a deficit.

Official Languages committee  Thank you for the question. It’s clear that’s the most important point for the University of Ottawa and the Canadian francophonie. We have to find a way to make the provinces accountable and ensure that the work is really being done and is going in the right direction to support not only special projects, but infrastructure as well.