Canadian Citizens must speak official languages

[shibuya]

Immigrants who wish to become Canadian citizens will be faced with tougher testing, Canadian officials have revealed. The Federal government are considering proposals for tighter rules on language policy, which may require Canadian citizens to speak English, French, or both languages.

“Some people, believe it or not, have been able to take translators with them into an oral test, with citizenship judges. What's the point, exactly?” Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney told the Toronto Sun. “I have met too many citizens that don't speak English or French. That never should have happened. Under this new system that's not going to happen any longer.”

Current laws state that Canadian citizens between the ages of 18 and 54 must be able to communicate in one of the official languages. However, they are never thoroughly tested by an impartial 3rd party.

NDP immigration critic Don Davies spoke to the Toronto Sun, stating, “In general, I am in favour of any measure that encourages people to become more proficient in English or French, otherwise they can become quite isolated. We have to be somewhat careful about this because there are some categories of obtaining citizenship where requiring too high a standard could present a barrier, such as sponsored parents.”

At the moment, citizenship tests only examine written language. But under new legislation, assessments will include speaking and listening tests.