A month ago, the chief justice of the Privy Council ruled that a person appointed to this position must be able to perform his or her duties in the two official languages.
It decided that the federal government had violated the Charter of Rights and Freedoms by appointing Brenda Murphy because she did not speak French well.
It was the Société de l’Acadie du Nouveau-Brunswick that challenged Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s decision to appoint Brenda Murphy to the position in court.
A position without language requirements, says Ottawa
In the notice of appeal, Canada’s attorney general said the chief justice of the Queen’s Court had erred in law.
He argues that the power of appointment to the Deputy Governor of New Brunswick grants Queen A full discretion and that this authority does not contain any bilingual requirement
. He adds that neither the Constitution nor the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms It cannot be subject to such a condition.
The ball is now in the court of the New Brunswick Court of Appeals, the highest court in the county. The judges must decide whether or not they agree to hear the appeal.
Next appointment will be bilingual
To explain the appeal decision, Federal Minister for Intergovernmental Affairs Dominique LeBlanc noted that Trudeau’s government wants the court to review the ruling in order to highlight some constitutional elements.
It is a matter of principles and interpretation of the Canadian Constitution
according to him.
” There are constitutional aspects that we would like to see a court ruling on, but we are aware of the importance of the Acadian and Francophone community. »
However, he maintains that the federal government will appoint a bilingual person next time.
We are committed to ensuring that Mrs. Murphy’s successor is a truly bilingual person
Minister said. It’s an obligation I can make on behalf of the government. We accept this principle.
Brenda Murphy’s appointment as an individual was not the subject of the Queen’s Court decision last month, but rather the appointment process that was the problem, according to the judge.
The role of the Deputy Governor is to approve all bills and sign all territorial documents that require state approval.
If Brenda Murphy’s candidacy had been judged unconstitutional, all of this work would have had to be reviewed.
With information from Pascal Reich-Nogg and Margod Castader-Ekobery
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