Liberal MP calls witnesses 'full of s---' in committee on protecting French in Quebec

Liberal MP Francis Drouin rise during question period in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill, in Ottawa, Friday, April 19, 2024. (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press)

OTTAWA — Exasperated by comments made by two witnesses campaigning for the protection of French in Quebec, Franco-Ontarian Liberal MP Francis Drouin made it clear what he thought of them, saying they're "full of s---."

"Your comments are quite extremist," he began, addressing the Standing Committee on Official Languages late Monday afternoon during a study on funding English-language post-secondary institutions in Quebec and French-language institutions elsewhere in the country.

Frédéric Lacroix, an independent researcher, and Nicolas Bourdon, a professor with the coalition group Regroupement pour le cégep français, explained to the committee that attending an English-language university or CEGEP significantly increases the likelihood of leading one's life in English.

Lacroix's response to Drouin's question as to whether "extremist" constituted "parliamentary language" got him more worked up.

"Mr. Lacroix, if you're going to bulls--- me here, I have no patience with your discourse," said Drouin.

That led the Bloc's official languages critic to intervene.

"It's unacceptable," said Mario Beaulieu. "To start by calling them extremists. We could call you an extremist. That's not the kind of language that leads to logical, rational discussion."

Drouin, who describes himself as a "staunch Ontario defender" of Quebec's Charter of the French Language, then explained that, as president of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Francophonie, he sees that even France is becoming anglicized.

"Do you really think that the big problem of anglicization in Quebec is McGill and Dawson College?" he then asked. "What we're seeing is that Statistics Canada, an organization that is probably extremist in your eyes, has proven that bilingual institutions have a very, very strong impact on the anglicization of francophones and allophones in Quebec," replied the researcher.

"All the data points in that direction."

That discourse is "insulting," and it "lacks intellectual respect for reality, for what's going on internationally," replied Drouin, who was visibly trying to restrain himself.

"Excuse me, but you're full of s---. I'll take it back, but you're way off base," he continued, before being interrupted by the committee chair, who tried to call him to order.

'Quebec bashing'

"This is witness intimidation," Beaulieu protested. "Raising his voice, calling guests full of s---: that's 'Quebec bashing,' what he's doing. And that's exactly what we often see from the Liberals. If you want fair funding, you attack or you're an extremist."

The committee's vice-chair explained that his party was not calling for funding to be withdrawn from English-language universities, but rather for equitable funding.

Lacroix had pointed out that a study he conducted found that the share of federal funding received by Quebec's English-language universities -- McGill, Concordia and Bishop's -- was about four times greater than their demographic weight, and that conversely, French-language institutions received "substantially" less.

Stung by Drouin's comments, the other witness, Bourdon, noted that English is taught "from the first year of elementary school to CEGEP" as a second language in all French-language institutions in Quebec.

"That's not to say that we're saying something extremist: no, it's not true," he said.

Both Conservative official languages critic Joël Godin and his NDP counterpart, Niki Ashton, criticized Drouin's questioning and stressed the importance of parliamentarians listening to all points of view, even when they disagree.

In an attempt to calm tempers, Liberal MP René Arseneault, who chairs the committee, asked elected officials to adopt "a slightly more civilized approach." He said he had "never seen anything like it" since he started sitting on the committee in 2016.

Drouin quickly left the room after his outburst. His Liberal colleague, Annie Koutrakis, while deeming this no way to express himself, explained that sometimes "the temperature rises."

Although Drouin did not apologize, he withdrew his remarks, she noted in a brief exchange with The Canadian Press.

- This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on May 7, 2024.