New census data showing a decline in French in Canada is “extremely concerning”, the prime minister said on Friday, but added that Ottawa still has a responsibility to protect linguistic minorities across the country, including in Quebec.
During a visit to Les Îles-de-la-Madeleine, Qué., Trudeau reacted to data released this week indicating that the proportion of Canadians who speak primarily French at home has fallen in nearly all provinces and territories. In Quebec, the percentage of people who speak mainly French at home fell to 77.5% in 2021 from 82.3% 20 years earlier.
Trudeau said that while the data is shocking, “we could see this in the last couple of years.”
