Trudeau says decline of French in Canada is 'extremely worrying'

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau reacted to data showing a decline in use of the French language in Canada, something he called "extremely troubling" on Friday. Trudeau added that the government has a responsibility to protect linguistic minorities, including in Quebec.

Trudeau reacted to data that was released earlier this week which revealed that the percentage of Canadians who speak French at home had fallen in all provinces and territories, besides the Yukon. The percentage of French speakers who speak the language at home fell from 82.3 percent twenty years ago to 77.5 percent.

"The numbers that recently came out are extremely troubling and worrisome but not entirely a surprise," said Trudeau.

"We could see this coming over the past number of years. That's why a number of years ago, this government stepped up as we look at the modernization of the Official languages law, not just to say yes, we need to continue to protect language minorities across the country wherever they are, but we have to specifically make sure we're protecting French, and specifically protecting French even in Quebec.

"That step-up of this government and the tools that we're using to take that means yes, we will work with the provincial government in Quebec to make sure we're doing what we can, but we also have a specific responsibility that goes beyond just what the Quebec government can do in Quebec to ensure that francophone communities right across the country are properly protected, supported, invested in and their rights are stood up for," said Trudeau.

Trudeau said that the federal government has tabled a bill that aims to increase the use of French in private businesses, and said that the government has looked into modernizing the Official Languages Act. He noted that it's Ottawa's responsibility to protect French across the country.