The hundreds of public complaints sparked by the appointment of a Governor General who does not speak French are “unfounded”, concludes the preliminary investigation report of the Commissioner of Official Languages of Canada.
“The investigation establishes that the Privy Council Office [le ministère du premier ministre] took positive steps during the selection process of the candidates who have been recommended to the Prime Minister, ”reports Commissioner Raymond Théberge in a statement released on Friday.
In July, he launched an investigation after his office was inundated with complaints from citizens dissatisfied with Mary Simon’s appointment as the Queen’s Representative to Canada. She was unable to speak French, one of Canada’s two official languages. The Inuit leader from the Far North of Quebec is bilingual, but in Inuktitut and English.
However, it was Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and not his government, that ultimately chose Ms. Simon as Vice-Queen. The Prime Minister’s decisions are not subject to the Official Languages Act, and therefore cannot be reviewed by the Commissioner.
“The Prime Minister, who is not a federal institution subject to the Act, has a prerogative with regard to the appointment of the Governor General and is not bound by the recommendations issued by the Privy Council Office,” writes Raymond Théberge.
Therefore, he considers that the complaints about this appointment are unfounded. “These conclusions are not final, however, because the complainants and the federal institution will have the opportunity to provide their comments on the preliminary investigation report before I issue my final conclusions”, specifies the Commissioner.
He adds that Ms. Simon’s appointment represents “an important step towards reconciliation”, but that the country’s leaders “must set an example and must be able to represent all Canadians in both official languages. “
Mary Simon made it clear at the time of her appointment that she intended to learn French during her tenure. She hinted at the progress made when reading the Speech from the Throne on Tuesday, which included sections in French. His level of mastery of the language earned him some criticism, but also encouragement from elected Liberals satisfied with the effort.