Quebec anglophones voice concerns as Ottawa picks francophone language commissioner

“We want to be reassured that the new commissioner truly understands the situation that Canada’s largest official language minority community is going through here in Quebec.”

A Quebec anglophone-rights group says it’s disappointed Ottawa has nominated a francophone to be Canada’s next language watchdog. Since the 1980s, the role of Official Languages Commissioner has alternated between anglophones and francophones. This week, Kelly Burke, a Franco-Ontarian, was nominated to succeed Raymond Théberge, a Franco-Manitoban whose term ended this week. Sylvia Martin-Laforge, director general of TALQ, a coalition of anglophone groups, said the move has raised concerns among English-speaking Quebecers.