Dieppe Makes Its Voice Heard at OLA Hearings

During its presentation to the Standing Committee on Official Languages on June 23, the City of Dieppe reiterated its desire to see further amendments to New Brunswick’s Official Languages Act.

“Like many others, the City of Dieppe would have liked to see more changes to the Act during its most recent review,” said Mayor Hélène Boudreau during the public consultations. “The 2021 Census data on language clearly show that the demographic weight of francophones in Dieppe, as elsewhere in Canada, is declining.”

The City continues to foster the conditions needed for the francophone community to thrive. This priority, reflected in “Dieppe, Proud of Its Identity,” is at the heart of its most recent strategic plan. To support it, the municipality has implemented key initiatives that promote the presence of both official languages throughout Dieppe.

In 2010, the City adopted a by-law on outdoor commercial signage that completely transformed the city’s linguistic landscape, reflecting the reality of a majority-francophone community within a bilingual province.

“At the time, the Municipalities Act explicitly provided that a local government could adopt municipal by-laws requiring commercial signage in both official languages,” said the mayor. “However, this provision was not carried over when the Local Governance Act, which replaced the Municipalities Act, was enacted in 2017.”

This legislative gap deprives local governments of an important tool for protecting and strengthening the place of French in public life, while visibly and sustainably supporting communities’ linguistic identity and the province’s particular sociolinguistic balance.

The City of Dieppe believes, however, that this power can be conferred on local governments by amending the Official Languages Act.

Three recommendations

In light of the above, the City presented three recommendations to the Standing Committee on Official Languages:

Recommendation 1: That the government amend the Official Languages Act to provide that local governments may, under section 15 of the Local Governance Act, adopt a by-law requiring commercial signage in both official languages.

Recommendation 2: That the government amend the Official Languages Act to require cities and municipalities in which the official-language minority represents at least 20% of the population to adopt, under section 15 of the Local Governance Act, a by-law requiring commercial signage in both official languages.

Recommendation 3: That the government amend the Official Languages Act to establish a permanent financial support program, based on criteria set by regulation, to help local governments meet their language obligations and implement structural measures that promote the substantive equality of the two official languages.

Restoring a former power

According to Émilie Haché, the City of Dieppe’s director of immigration and lead on francophone affairs, these recommendations would clearly restore a power that municipalities once had, while providing structured financial support for local efforts.

“These recommendations could strengthen the role that local governments can play in supporting the francophone landscape and ensure respect for official languages in Canada’s only officially bilingual province,” she said.

About Dieppe

Dieppe is the largest francophone city in Canada outside Quebec and the largest Acadian city in the world. Having officially declared itself a francophone city in 2002, the municipality provides services in both official languages. Its mission is to shine as an inclusive and modern francophone city.