Quebec Premier François Legault responds to the Opposition during question period Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2023, at the legislature in Quebec City. Quebec politicians are railing against a Quebec City junior college's decision to host a weeklong event promoting English. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jacques Boissinot
Quebec politicians are railing against a Quebec City junior college’s decision to host a weeklong event promoting English.
The ongoing “English Week 2023” is a five-day event at French-language Cégep Garneau to encourage students and teachers to practise the language.
But several politicians suggest the initiative is undermining efforts to protect French.
Premier François Legault said today English Week is a bad idea, while Higher Education Minister Pascale Déry called on the school to focus instead on French.
Parti Québécois Leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon says he doesn’t understand why such an event is necessary when Quebec students are regularly exposed to English-language content through social media and streaming services.
Ruba Ghazal, language critic for leftist opposition party Québec solidaire, says the decision to host an English week was clumsy given the widespread influence of English in the province.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2023.
