Prime Minister Justin Trudeau admits he may have been a little “cheeky” when he made a comment on bilingualism last week.



When questioned if he supported the idea of Ottawa being designated a bilingual city by a Radio-Canada journalist, Trudeau asked if Gatineau was ready to do the same.



Trudeau said Monday he was fully aware the comment would get him in trouble.



“I knew it,” he said in an end-of-year-interview with The Canadian Press. “I was being cheeky, I admit it.”



Trudeau said, however, he was not questioning or criticizing Quebec’s law making French the sole official language in the province.



“Not at all, not at all,” insisted Trudeau, who said he is an ardent defender of linguistic duality. “Quebec has to be French in order for Canada to be bilingual.”



“I taught French in Vancouver,” he said. “I know how important bilingualism is.”



Any decision about whether Ottawa should become officially bilingual needs to be made by municipal leaders and not by the federal government, said Trudeau.



In a statement, Kim McConnell, the president of Canadians for Language Fairness, said she was pleased with Trudeau’s responses in the Radio Canada interview.



“The City of Ottawa is part of the NCC, and as such, the request for the City of Ottawa to become officially bilingual should also be made to Gatineau,” she said. “Whoever is advising PM Trudeau to take such a wise decision should be heartily congratulated.”



The bilingualism debate resurfaces periodically and was rekindled this year due to the focus on plans to celebrate Canada’s 150th birthday in 2017.



This summer, a francophone group called the Movement for an Officially Bilingual Capital of Canada launched a campaign to change the provincial City of Ottawa Act to recognize the city’s bilingual character and status as the capital of Canada. The group also urged the the city to amend the current bilingualism bylaw to recognize the change in the provincial act.



Members of the group said they didn’t want the federal version of official bilingualism in Ottawa because the existing municipal policy works well. The changes they are promoting would make bilingualism in Ottawa “official,” the group said.



Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson opposed the idea. The city’s level of bilingualism is already “exceptional,” he said.



“I don’t believe it’s necessary to have another level of government come and dictate and tell us what to do.”



Coun. Mathieu Fleury, who supports the campaign, said on Tuesday that Gatineau is part of the national capital region, but it’s not the capital city.



He is still behind the Movement for an Officially Bilingual Capital of Canada campaign, arguing that the changes the group wants would ensure that the city’s policy, which already works well, is not at risk of being rolled back.



Claims that jobs for unilingual anglophones would be lost if Ottawa were to make these changes are a myth, said Fleury.



“It’s not meant to be a divisive issue. It’s more to showcase our inclusivity and diversity.”



Fleury doesn’t want to take the matter to city council unless he has the support of a strong majority. Right now, that stands at between nine and 13 councillors, and he’s looking for the support of 17 members of council.



Meanwhile, the federal government has announced a series of consultations and hearings on updating the Official Language Regulations, which outline where the government provides services in both official languages. The consultations will take place over the next two years, with revisions to be released early in 2019.