Quebec announces additional $10M for francization

The François Legault government announced on Thursday a $10 million one-time assistance to increase French language offerings in school service centres.

The announcement comes at a time when the government is being criticized from all sides for cutting funding to centres offering francization services.

Wednesday, Legault was reprimanded by French Language Commissioner Benoît Dubreuil, who said he was "concerned about the short-term impact of service disruptions for students."

Dubreuil emphasized "the importance of quickly finding a new place for students whose classes have been suddenly terminated."

The closure of francization classes in Quebec is continuing to make headlines, with Le Devoir reporting on Wednesday that 1,468 students in the Beauce region had their francization courses interrupted last November.

The $10 million in funding is expected to allow some 5,000 students to access French courses between now and March 31, Quebec Immigration Minister Jean-François Roberge said in a press release on Thursday.

According to Roberge, high demand for francization services led some service centres to use a significant portion of their budget in the first half of the year, resulting in the closure of several classes in recent weeks.

"In response to this situation, the Quebec government has made the decision to reinvest additional funds that will be added to the $104.4 million envelope already transferred to the school network for 2024-2025," said Roberge.

The $10 million is not new money, but it does represent the amount saved after the government abandoned the allowance given to students taking francization courses part-time.

-- This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Dec. 5, 2024.