City of Dieppe disappointed with proposed changes to Official Languages Act
DIEPPE, NB - The City of Dieppe is disappointed with the minimal changes being proposed to New Brunswick’s Official Languages Act, particularly the removal of the requirement to review the Act every 10 years.
“One of the review’s objectives is to improve the Act by considering the recommendations of various groups in our society, and by working to achieve a substantive equality of both official languages. Without the review, that opportunity will no longer exist. In addition, opening the door to not reviewing the Act at all allows changes to be made behind the scenes without public debate,” said Mayor Lapierre.
In its submission during the review of the province’s Official Languages Act, the City expressed the importance of official languages, with a view to protecting and promoting the French language, which continues to decline.
“At a time when the most recent statistics show that the use of French is dropping across the country, our provincial government chooses not to bolster the Act. I doubt that the proposed changes are the solution to achieving equality between both linguistic communities in Canada’s only officially bilingual province,” added Mayor Lapierre.
“It’s also disappointing that nothing is being suggested to maintain the linguistic balance of the province, and that no measures are being put forward to uphold the proportion of francophones, which is constantly decreasing. The proposed Act definitely does not live up to our expectations and unfortunately does not reflect today’s realities,” said Mayor Lapierre.