The office of the Official Language Commissioner has released a statement which cites a section of the Official Languages Act giving the Commissioner the authority to conduct and carry out investigations on his or her own initiative.
The People’s Alliance Party is calling for a review of the Official Languages Act after a commissionaire, Wayne Grant had a language complaint lodged against him while filling in at a provincial government office building in Fredericton. Grant, who’s nearing retirement, told a woman who came to the front desk he couldn’t speak french and she then spoke to him in english after which the complaint was laid. People’s Alliance leader Kris Austin says the sign-in sheet reveals that woman to be the Official Languages Commissioner Katherine d’Entremont.
The statement released by her office goes on to say, in accordance with that subsection of the legislation, the Commissioner launched an investigation which has been expanded to include security services contracted by the Department of Transportation and Infrastructure for provincial government buildings. The statement further states d’Entremont believes independent officers of the Legislative Assembly should be able to conduct investigations on their own initiative. The investigation is continuing.
After the complaint was lodged, Grant was temporarily laid off, had his hours reduced and was stationed outside in the adjacent parking lot.
Austin argues the language commissioner shouldn’t be investigating her own complaint which he calls a conflict of interest.
