Mr. Chairman, section 73 deals with language of instruction, and I believe that every student has the right to be taught in their traditional language. That is the point I want to raise. What is now going on is that a lot of students are losing their language, but the parents still speak the aboriginal language.

What the French have is that the French have the first right, where, if a French child doesn't speak French and the parents do, they are classified under the French language. That is the kind of provision that we should have as well in aboriginal languages.

I think this section deals with it and it's up to the district education authority, with the direction of the Minister, to determine a language to be taught as part of the education program. Let's say it is a Dene language, then the DEA and the Minister would determine if the Dene language would be part of the education program. I think it is really up to the communities to decide among themselves what kind of language should be provided in the education system.

One point that some of my colleagues and the people I have talked to have raised is that they are afraid that the Dene languages are going to die by the year 2000. What we are trying to do here is to try to keep them alive. Hopefully, with these provisions, they will not die and they will remain in place.

I would like to ask the Minister if he agrees with that position, and would this clause help Dene languages to remain intact? Thank you.