CHAPTER I - CONCLUSION
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This chapter shows that all of the major progress made in official languages has been the result of the strong and decisive leadership of the federal government. Similarly, setbacks are the result of complacency.
Even though some federal institutions have made progress during the past year, the federal government as a whole is still having difficulty solving systemic problems related to the implementation of the Official Languages Act. In the same vein, many federal institutions still do not seem clear about their obligation to take positive measures. It is for this reason that the Commissioner believes federal institutions’ performance has reached a plateau. He insists that institutions must do more to improve their performance.
The Commissioner also presented his intentions in this chapter to use a wider range of tools to intervene in his role as ombudsman and protector of Canadians’ language rights.
The Commissioner places a great deal of importance on the initiative that will replace the Action Plan for Official Languages, and calls on the federal government to show leadership in this regard. He also hopes the federal government will take advantage of the public service renewal process to enhance the value of linguistic duality in the federal government. On a related note, he emphasizes the importance of training as a way to ensure new public servants and executives better understand the foundations and requirements of the Act.
Finally, the Commissioner calls on the government to strengthen its commitment to the horizontal governance of official languages. This commitment must be expressed through both stronger political leadership and the implementation of concrete measures.
