Flemming's rhetoric on bilingual paramedics doesn't reflect province's position, says Higgs

Premier Blaine Higgs has distanced himself from his own health minister's blustery comments on language laws, court rulings and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

Higgs says Tuesday's pointed comments by Ted Flemming needlessly inflamed the language debate and do not reflect the Progressive Conservative government's position.

Flemming vowed to implement changes to paramedic hiring practices regardless of what the Official Languages Act says and regardless of how the courts rule.

But speaking to reporters in Caraquet on Wednesday, Higgs said Flemming's comments were offside.

"We are a society based on the rule of the law, and when we get a decision, as a society we'll respect that decision," Higgs said. "That's how we have law and order here in our province in our country … We have a language law here that I respect and that we'll continue to enforce. That's not debatable."

And the premier called for a calmer discussion of language issues — while acknowledging that his cabinet colleague's provocative remarks were far from calming.

"It doesn't help to have emotions get raised and get out of hand," he said, adding he hadn't spoken to Flemming since Tuesday's announcement but "I will want to have a discussion of how this all came about and how it took this sort of turn."

Flemming announced Tuesday that the province was directing Ambulance New Brunswick to weaken its bilingual hiring requirements for temporary paramedic positions in areas of the province where there's little demand for second-language service.

It's a move that appears to violate legal and constitutional requirements for bilingual service in all areas of the province.

But Flemming repeatedly brushed off those concerns, declaring them "some academic discussion of the legal nuances."

He said he would stick with the hiring changes — proposed in a labour board arbitration ruling earlier this year — even if that ruling is struck down in a judicial review of its constitutionality.

"I have every intention of not changing anything here," he said, vowing not to budge unless a court ordered him to.

Comments cause alarm 

On Wednesday, however, Higgs repeatedly referred to the changes as "an interim step" designed to address staffing shortages until bilingual positions can be filled.

Deputy premier Robert Gauvin, the government's only francophone MLA and minister, also distanced himself from Flemming's rhetoric.

"I can understand after yesterday's press conference that there was a message that was poorly communicated," Gauvin said. "If I had known ahead of time, the message wouldn't have come out like that, because we're not above the law."

Tuesday's news conference also saw Flemming, a former attorney-general with four decades of legal experience, brush off a 2017 consent order, signed by a judge, that requires the province to provide bilingual ambulance service everywhere in the province.

Flemming referred to the order, which the previous government agreed to, as "nothing."

The health minister's combative tone and the substance of his announcement alarmed francophone groups. The Acadian Society of New Brunswick said the PC government had "crossed a red line" on language rights with the change to hiring practices.

And retired law professor Michel Doucet, the lawyer for Danny and Murielle Sonier in the case that led to the 2017 order, said the Soniers will ask a judge to force the province to comply with it.

The province settled a lawsuit by the Soniers over a lack of bilingual service by agreeing to the order, which says the province must offer service in both languages everywhere.

"The minister is telling us this order does not have any legal value," Doucet said. "We will need to have that matter clarified by the courts."

Higgs changes his mind

The labour ruling by arbitrator John McEvoy, which advocates weaker bilingualism requirements in some regions, appears to contradict the 2017 court order in the Sonier case, which says the law must apply everywhere.

The previous Liberal government asked for a judicial review of the McEvoy ruling to clarify if it goes against the Sonier order.

Higgs promised last month to cancel that review and simply "fix" the ambulance system, but acknowledged Wednesday he'd been persuaded to change his mind.

"Initially I didn't think it was necessary for the government to go and challenge the case," he said.

"When I sought further legal assistance and advice, and when I talked to our MLA in Shippagan [Gauvin], as well as the language commissioner, it seemed like we needed to get resolution."

The premier said he expected that Tuesday's announcement by Flemming would be "a good news story" of the review going ahead, coupled with an interim decision to implement the McEvoy ruling. "It's unfortunate it turned away from that."

Gauvin suggested Wednesday that he might not have remained a PC without Higgs's clarification.

"For me to stay in the party, those laws have to be respected, and we will respect them," he said.

Medavie reacts 

In a statement on Wednesday, a spokesperson for Medavie, the company that operates Ambulance New Brunswick, stopped short of saying the organization would implement Flemming's directive.

"This is a government decision," Chisholm Pothier said in an email. "We will be having discussions with government to fully understand yesterday's announcement and the letter it sent us.

"As we have always done we will fulfill our obligations under our contract, including complying with New Brunswick's Official Languages Act."