Quebec Premier François Legault blasted federal culture minister Marc Miller on Tuesday, accusing him of downplaying the decline of French in Quebec and calling his comments an embarrassment to the province.
“Marc Miller is a disgrace for all Quebecers,” Legault told reporters. “I don’t know how he’s going to show up at a cultural event in Quebec after saying nonsense like that.”
Earlier Tuesday, Miller said he was “fed up” with the politicization of the language debate. He was named federal culture minister responsible for Official Languages on Monday, replacing Steven Guilbeault, who resigned from Prime Minister Mark Carney’s cabinet last week.
“As a Quebecer, I’m pretty fed up with this debate that is identity-based,” Miller said in French during a scrum in Ottawa. “I refuse the catechism that some political parties want, insisting that French is in complete decline.”
He added that “the reality in all this is that there is good news, notably the gains made over several decades thanks to Bill 101 and thanks to the Canada–Quebec agreement,” which granted the province several immigration powers, including the ability to prioritize French-speaking newcomers.
“The French language is, I’ll say it again, immensely fragile in North America and must be protected,” he said.
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Legault told reporters that over the last two years, from 2022 to 2024, the percentage of francophones in Montreal dropped by five points, from 48 per cent to 43 per cent.
“And now Marc Miller, the new federal culture minister, says he’s tired of the debate about the decline of French. What a shame,” Legault said, appearing visibly upset.
Poilievre, Blanchet criticize Miller’s appointment
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre opened Question Period by attacking the Liberals over Miller’s comments.
“We Conservatives are not tired. We will defend the French language. (…) Of all the Liberal MPs he could have appointed, why did he choose someone who is tired of defending the French language and Quebec culture?” the opposition leader said.
Carney rose to respond but did not comment directly on his minister’s remarks.
“I support my new minister. I oppose the opposition leader, who is against the French-language action plan — four billion dollars. He is against investments in Quebec’s cultural sector,” Carney shot back, referring to the 2025 budget.
Bloc Québécois leader Yves-François Blanchet argued that “there is no better revelation” than Miller’s appointment to demonstrate “how this government has no understanding of Quebec reality.”
Miller responded that he completed elementary school, high school, CEGEP, and both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in French.
“I raised my children in three languages, including French. I love French and I will defend our beautiful language until the end of my days.”
In 2023, Miller initially refused to acknowledge the decline of French in Quebec, calling it a “threatened” language before reversing course.
“I absolutely do not deny it when we talk about the decline of French as a mother tongue,” he said.
However, he noted his issue with the Bloc’s “overuse” of that particular statistical indicator, arguing it implies that those who learn French later in life are somehow less Quebecer than others.
–With files from The Canadian Press
