Education
Minister Bill Hogan says he has repealed the gender-identity policy
implemented by Anglophone East District Education Council because it
goes against the policy he created. (Ed Hunter/CBC)
New
Brunswick's education minister has told a Moncton-area school district
that he is repealing its policy on sexual orientation and gender
identity to bring the district in line with the province's approach.
Hogan
had given the Anglophone East district education council until March 29
to repeal its Policy 1.7, which set out how it would implement the
province's Policy 713.
The DEC didn't comply, and on April 22
Hogan wrote telling chair Harry Doyle that he was repealing the district
policy and ordered Doyle to have it removed from the district website.
"You
have not complied with my demand for corrective action and the time for
doing so has expired," Hogan wrote in the letter to Doyle, obtained by
CBC News.
"Your defiance in the face of clear direction has left
me no choice" but to repeal the policies and order them taken offline,
he said.
Two
days after Hogan's letter, the district adopted a new policy, Policy
1.8, that replaces the Policy 1.7 that Hogan repealed, but is identical
to it.
It includes the phrasing that "school personnel shall
respect the direction of the student in regard to the name and pronouns
they wish to be called in daily interactions."
In an April 25
letter responding to Hogan, also obtained by CBC, Doyle repeated the
district's arguments that it has the power to adopt its own policy and
that Policy 713 on its own is unconstitutional and would cause
"irreparable harm" to some district schools.
The letter included the new Policy 1.8 as an attachment.
Hogan's spokesperson did not respond to an interview request Friday afternoon.
Last
year, the Higgs government changed the provincial Policy 713, on sexual
orientation and gender identity in schools, to require teachers to get
parental consent before using the chosen name and pronoun of a child
under 16 verbally in the classroom.
Anglophone East argued it
cannot implement that without risking a violation of the Charter of
Rights and Freedoms, the Education Act and the provincial Human Rights
Act.
Instead, it adopted Policy 1.7 that said staff must respect all students' chosen names and pronouns in "daily interactions."
The
first page of the letter sent by Minister of Education Bill Hogan to
Anglophone East district education council chair Harry Doyle on April
22. (CBC)
District already filed lawsuit
The
district is now before the courts seeking an injunction to block Hogan
from quashing its policy and from dissolving the district council
— something members say he threatened to do.
The court is set to hear arguments on that June 18-19.
Earlier
this month, Hogan warned Anglophone East that it did not have the legal
authority to challenge the province in court and warned he would take
"further action."
His April 22 letter tells Doyle that while the
district may not agree with Policy 713, "it is my office that is
ultimately responsible for setting education policies in the province
and it is your obligation to ensure your policies do not conflict with
the direction that I have provided as minister."
After
the provincial changes last year, all seven councils created their own
policies, or amended an existing policy, to emphasize the Human Rights
Act and support for diversity.
All but Anglophone North added
operational language allowing teachers to use a child's chosen pronoun
verbally in the classroom if parental involvement was in the works or
not possible.
All three francophone districts meanwhile worked together to create a uniform policy.
Their
policy is modelled after the one suggested by child and youth advocate
Kelly Lamrock, in which teachers are to respect all students' pronouns
from Grade 6 and up.
For students younger than Grade 6, the decision is made on a case-by-case basis.
Last
October, Hogan told all of the councils except Anglophone North that
their policies were inconsistent with the provincial policy.
Anglophone West and Anglophone South fell in line, but Anglophone East and the three francophone districts did not.
The
Francophone South district said it would not be able respond Friday to a
question about whether Hogan had repealed its policy as well. The two
other francophone districts did not respond to CBC News.
The
provincial Policy 713 allows districts to adopt policies that "are
consistent with, or more comprehensive than, this provincial policy."
Jacques
Poitras has been CBC's provincial affairs reporter in New Brunswick
since 2000. He grew up in Moncton and covered Parliament in Ottawa for
the New Brunswick Telegraph-Journal. He has reported on every New
Brunswick election since 1995 and won awards from the Radio Television
Digital News Association, the National Newspaper Awards and Amnesty
International. He is also the author of five non-fiction books about New
Brunswick politics and history.
Methinks Harry will not be happy this weekend N'esy Pas?
Doug kirby
He's certainly not a role model...very grumpy looking man...
David Amos
Reply to Doug kirby
True
Lynette Browne
It appears children's rights to identity have become a political scapegoat with these regressive governments.
Kramer Vandelay
Is the Board now dismissed? Defiance of the Minister is a big deal.
Don Corey Reply to Kramer Vandelay
Actually, the "defiance" is clearly coming from the Moncton Anglophone East DEC. Did you not read the story?
David Amos
Reply to Don Corey
I enjoyed it
David Amos
Reply to Don Corey
"The
Francophone South district said it would not be able respond Friday to a
question about whether Hogan had repealed its policy as well. The two
other francophone districts did not respond to CBC News."
Lynette Browne
Reply to Kramer Vandelay
So, nothing yet about the school system's agenda?
Brian Robertson
If they don't follow direction from the Minister then dismiss them and appoint ones that will.
Tristis Ward
Reply to Brian Robertson
I thought school boards were elected.
Ralph Linwood
Reply to Brian Robertson
On the contrary, bravo for standing up for children and their right to identify as they choose.
G. Timothy Walton
Reply to Brian Robertson
It's too bad the subordinates have to show the boss how to treat students with respect.
Lynette Browne
Reply to Ralph Linwood
Yes,
students have rights to self-identity and no political agenda should
stop the openness to be able to explore their potential.
David Wilson
The Higgs government is a regressive nightmare. .
Don Corey
Reply to David Wilson
I say the same about the Trudeau government, and the polls certainly continue to reflect such.
David Amos
Reply to Don Corey
I agree
Lynette Browne
Reply to Don Corey
That is a dichotomy that does not match their policies.
BD Morgan
Provincial thought police, similar to Alberta.
Pastor Ron Miller
Content Deactivated
Reply to BD Morgan
Kramer Vandelay
Reply toPastor Ron Miller
Protecting the kids ultimately from the teachers and the school system interfering in their health.
Pastor Ron Miller
Content Deactivated
Tristis Ward.
Reply to Kramer Vandelay
Teachers
are not villains. They are entrusted to protect children in all other
ways. How is it suddenly this politician saving children from them in
this one area?
There's no logic there.
Tristis Ward
Reply toPastor Ron Miller
If children need protection from teachers, there should be no teachers.
Kramer Vandelay
Content Deactivated
Reply to Tristis Ward
Tristis Ward
Reply to Kramer Vandelay
I guess.
But thanks to Higgs, teachers have to intervene and report on children.
Some children are in home situations that, while okay for the moment, could become threatening to their mental or physical help.
But Higgs says that teachers must do this, anyway.
Teachers of these children often know that it's not best for the student to do this.
But the Premiere declared they must do this.
Teachers should not be put in that predicament.
BD Morgan
Reply to Kramer Vandelay
So now you admit the province's stance is a possible harmful to the children's health.
BD Morgan
Reply to Kramer Vandelay
Teachers should ignore student's health problems?
MR Cain
Reply to Kramer Vandelay
They did; it is Higgs sticking his nose in family business,
Kramer Vandelay
Reply to BD Morgan
They shouldn't be hiding information from the parents.
Lynette Browne
Reply to Kramer Vandelay
Many
children's parents are not so open-minded as the children and general
society are. The children could be facing repercussions for attempting
to discuss such concerns.
Kramer Vandelay
Reply to Lynette Browne
The parents are the people responsible. There is no room in the nuclear family for a third 'teacher parent' to be interfering.
Tristis Ward
Reply to Kramer Vandelay
They shouldn't be violating the legal rights of the students.
Lynette Browne
Reply to Kramer Vandelay
Many
parents already have an open relationship with their children.
Unfortunately, not all. Making this a close-minded political issue
instead of an open discourse between family and school is leaving
children open to vulnerability.
Kramer Vandelay.
Reply to Lynette Browne
The
school system has its own agendas that are not helpful to the families.
They must not be allowed to interfere or withhold information.
Ralph Linwood
Reply to Kramer Vandelay
There
is no such thing as a teacher parent. If students wish to be called by a
particular pronoun the teacher should be allowed to do so.
Robert Brannen
Reply to Kramer Vandelay
How about the Provincial Government interfering, is that O.K.?
Lynette Browne
Reply to Kramer Vandelay
That is disinformation. The school is there to educate but also provide a safe environment for the children.
Provide me w/ the purported "agenda" you feel the school system has, please.
Kramer Vandelay
Reply to Robert Brannen
Interfering how?
Robert Brannen
Reply to Kramer Vandelay
Interfering in the student's right to be whomever the student happens to be.
Lynette Browne
Reply to Kramer Vandelay
Can
you explain this agenda you are referring to? So far, all that has been
presented are adults outside of the classroom trying to suppress the
students.
Inger Nielsen
since
Higgs and hogan started all this mess bullying has gotten way worse in
the schools kids have the right to go to school and feel safe. sadly
that is no longer the case in New Brunswick
Ralph Skavinsky
Reply to Inger Nielsen
I do not agree.. we've always had them..
Tristis Ward
Reply to Ralph Skavinsky
Worse isn't the same as "started out of nowhere"
There have always been bullies.
Some bullies have targeted LGBTQ+ kids.
Now, they have more fodder and are emboldened.
Robert Brannen
Reply to Ralph Skavinsky
Until the changes in Policy 713, the bullies did not include most teachers and the Provincial Government.
Lynette Browne
Reply to Ralph Skavinsky
It
the amplification of bullying that is the problem. This has been
inadvertently condoned by adults setting examples of inappropriate
societal behaviour.
Ralph Skavinsky
While
I tend to agree with the parental rights as indicated by premier
Higgs,I find Pastor Ron's stance to be that of a trouble maker.. I do
not support his style.
Ralph Skavinsky
Reply to Ralph Skavinsky
Probably..ibelieve he is a gentleman even if some don't agree with certain pppolicies
Pastor Ron Miller
Content Deactivated
Reply to Ralph Skavinsky
Don Corey
Reply toPastor Ron Miller
I
fail to see what Outhouse has done, other than to push the PC party
further to the right and turn off a LOT of conservative supporters
(myself included) who feel very strongly that the party no longer
reflects many of my values and priorities. I sure don't call that
"progress".
Tristis Ward
Reply to Don Corey
My conservative family wants Conservatives to govern, not engage in culture wars that interfere with actual governance.
This
is bleed-over from the US social-conservative movement and their
extremism down there shows a bleak future for conservatives here.
David Amos
Content Deactivated
Reply to Ralph Skavinsky
Ditto and I believe I got just rid of the not so pious dude
Lex Roberts
We need to protect the kids and parents rights.
Tristis Ward.
Reply to Lex Roberts
There are children's rights.
They are recognized by Canada.
This changed policy 713 is in violation of those rights.
Charles Hunt
Just
another ploy by "it's my way or the highway" Higgs to get people's
attention off of the real problems our province is facing. Trying to
appeal to the almighty high moral conservatives who feel that their
personal beliefs should be forced upon everyone through politics.
Pastor Ron Miller
Content Deactivated
Reply to Charles Hunt
Don Corey
Reply to Charles Hunt
So
are you suggesting that liberals and/or greenies (and federal NDP) are
immune from the political tendency (or written objectives) of individual
parties to push legislation and policies that totally reflect their
"personal beliefs"?
In reality, we are all subject to such, whether we like it or not. Case in point - look no further than the Ottawa coalition.
We have elections to vote for parties who tend to reflect our beliefs, values and priorities.
Despite
the comments here, another Higgs government is very much a distinct
possibility, especially given the weakness of their opposition.
Benoit Boudreau
Reply toPastor Ron Miller
ok, "Pastor".
Benoit Boudreau
Reply toDon Corey
whataboutism is alive and well in NB
Charles Hunt
Reply toDon Corey
It's about inclusion. And respecting human rights of all members of society regardless of your own personal beliefs.
Don Corey
Reply to Charles Hunt
So, with your first sentence, you're the one pushing your own "personal belief".
Ralph Linwood
Reply toDon Corey
It is not a “personal belief “ that all people are equal and worthy of respect. That’s what humans believe.
David Amos
Reply to Ralph Linwood
Do you mean peoplekind?
David Amos
Reply to Benoit Boudreau
Thats an understatement
David Amos
Reply to Benoit Boudreau
He is far from ok
Marc LeBlanc
The
minister needs to keep his ideologies back in his hometown of
intoleranceville. He and his boss need to wake up to 2024. We're not
living in 1953 Bugtussle Junction anymore
Jake Newman
time to disband the school boards, and enough of this foolishness. Use the notwithstanding clause if needed.
Dan Lee
Reply to Jake Newman
yes enough.......time to boot higgs out
Jake Newman.
Reply to Dan Lee
one of the best Premiers. Higgs gonna get another majority which will be great for NB.
Marc LeBlanc
Reply to Jake Newman
The
premier would appreciate your support Jake. Make up a big poster and
parade in front of the legislature for all to see. Hopefully you'll get
on the news
Pastor Ron Miller
Content Deactivated
Reply to Jake Newman
Inger Nielsen
Reply toPastor Ron Miller
We are ALL gods children. you might want to start praying forgiveness
Don Corey
Reply toPastor Ron Miller
Nope.
You're wrong on that one. We should be tolerating all Canadians,
regardless of their personal beliefs. To say otherwise is ludicrous, and
very narrow minded.
Faytene will help take the party downward; guaranteed. How far down renains to ve seen.
Tristis Ward
Reply to Jake Newman
mmmmm…have schools run by political pary. That's how education should be done. /s
BD Morgan
Reply to Jake Newman
So you want to override the children's constitutional rights.
Don Corey
Reply to BD Morgan
Are you a constitutional lawyer?
Tristis Ward
Reply to Don Corey
A
person doesn't have to be a constitutional lawyer to understand that
children do indeed have rights that are recognized by the constitution.
A person merely has to read the constitution
(or even just pose the question on the internet)
David Amos
Reply to Don Corey
Methinks you are having fun ce soir N'esy Pas?
Tristis Ward
This is a culture war.
Higgs' Conservatives intentionally instigated it to give social conservatives a reason to vote for them despite their failings.
Even
if I was a conservative, I wouldn't reward that. It's destructive to
both sides of the political spectrum to have the right lose itself in
social mores battles.
SarahRose Werner
What's Hogan's next move? Holding his breath until he turns blue?
Margaret Flowers
Keep fighting the good fight Moncton! Anglophone West and South… obviously lightweights, scared of the bully. Sad.
MR Cain
Insanity. Just another distraction. Does he know how many are really affected?
Pastor Ron Miller
Content Deactivated
Reply to MR Cain
MR Cain
Reply toPastor Ron Miller
David Amos, n'est pas?
David Amos
Reply to MR Cain
Who are you to make fun of me?
G. Timothy Walton
Higgs must have finally told Hogan what to do.
David Amos
Content Deactivated
Reply to G. Timothy Walton
I
suspect it was Outhouse who came up with the plan. Much to my chagrin
even I agree with Higgy's take on this 713 nonsense of Cardy's creation
Round ONE
6 Comments
Al Clark
Uh oh, willy might need to get sheriff tex austin involved ;-)
Don Corey
Reply to Al Clark
Doubt
that sheriff tex will waste his valuable time on an issue that
certainly is no threat to public safety (unless the lefty radical
element gets really stirred up)
Matthew Smith
Ahhh....New Brunswick... One wonders if Danielle Smith is aware of Higgs
trying to wrest the title of 'Florida of Canada' from her populist
grasp
Don Corey
Reply to Matthew Smith
I doubt that she's losing any sleep over it
SarahRose Werner
What's Hogan's next move? Holding his breath until he turns blue?
Don Corey
Reply to SarahRose Werner
He's waiting for instructions from his boss and the outhouse.
Amanda Lightbody, president of a Woodstock-based Pride group, is speaking out about changes to the town's policy around banners. (Sam Farley/Zoom)
For many years, Pride flags have been among the banners flown on lampposts in downtown Woodstock.
But going forward, a change in the town's rules means they will no longer be allowed.
"We're
disappointed that that's the position the town has taken," said Amanda
Lightbody, founder and president of The Rainbow Crosswalk, a non-profit
Pride organization supporting the Woodstock region.
Last
October, her group appeared before town council to thank them for the
Pride banners over the years, after Lightbody said she learned the
banner policy was being reviewed.
Then on Nov. 14, the
town passed a motion saying any banners put up by the town can be for
"tourism and heritage promotion only."
Lightbody said her group was not notified and reached out in January to follow up.
"We
discovered, looking through the minutes, that they already had
proclaimed it in November, but nothing was ever said to us," she said.
Woodstock
Mayor Trina Jones was unavailable for an interview, but said in a
previous council meeting that the rule was adopted to be more fair and
cut down on a multitude of requests for different banners. (Jacques Poitras/CBC)
Scott
MacCallum, vice-president of the The Rainbow Crosswalk, sent a letter
to council asking if the Pride banners could be given an exemption to
the new policy.
Council did not respond to the letter
until its meeting on March 26, when Mayor Trina Jones read council's
response to MacCallum, which was posted to YouTube.
WATCH | 'There's been no communication':
Pride banners denied exemption from Woodstock policy
Duration 2:02
A
new banner policy put in place by the Town of Woodstock only allows for
‘tourism and heritage promotion,’ and council says the 2SLGBTQ+
community doesn’t fall into that category.
Jones
said the policy was created so the town could better handle "a
multitude" of requests that had been coming in for special banners.
"The
policy was developed in an effort to ensure requests are reviewed and
treated equitably by the town and to provide a clear and transparent
framework to ensure fairness," the letter says.
"While
the request set out in the letter does not fall within an exemption to
the policy, on behalf of council I wish to reiterate that the Town of
Woodstock is for everyone, welcomes everyone and celebrates diversity."
Similar changes elsewhere
Lightbody said she was surprised, but council's directive is similar to a change she's seen across Canada.
"There's this movement to say, 'We include everybody, so we're going to not recognize anybody,'" Lightbody said.
"And that's a dog whistle for people who are a little bit bigoted."
CBC News requested an interview with Jones, but was told by clerk Laura Gaddas that she was unavailable.
In
an emailed statement, Jones said that she has not heard any negative
feedback from The Rainbow Crosswalk or any other citizens following
council's response to the request for an exemption, so she cannot speak
to their concerns.
Jones said she would not offer any more comment at this time.
When
asked to put a number figure on the multitude of requests the town said
it has received for other banners, Gaddas did not respond.
Parent disappointed by decision
Ebony Scott has lived in Woodstock her whole life and describes herself as an ally of the 2SLGBTQ+ community.
"Ultimately, I'm really disappointed," she said.
Scott
said she and her husband "try really, really hard to teach our children
that there are people all around us who lead very different lives than
we do, and that is what makes life so beautiful."
Ebony
Scott has lived in Woodstock her whole life and says she's disappointed
because she and her husband have raised their children to be accepting
of others. (Submitted by Ebony Scott)
"It feels like it was not that long ago that they brought out the Pride flags and were openly welcoming to that group."
Scott
said she understands the town can't have banners for everything, but
Pride flags were an important way to show support for a marginalized
community.
"It's just like a little nod of recognition that may not have been there before," she said.
"I have a lot of hope for our community going forward, but I think we have a little ways to go."
Pride crosswalk vandalized in 2017
The Pride banners are not the first time New Brunswick has seen pushback over 2SLGBTQ+ support.
In 2018, a Chipman man had a straight pride flag flown at town hall for a day after a Pride flag had flown.
Last summer, during a "1 Million March 4 Children" event in Saint John, a Pride flag was ripped away from counter-protesters.
It has even happened in Woodstock before, when a rainbow crosswalk was vandalized in 2017.
Lightbody
said it was Woodstock's previous mayor, Arthur Slipp, who had the Pride
banners put up as a response to the crosswalk vandalism.
In 2017, a rainbow crosswalk was vandalized. The Pride banners were put up not long after by a previous mayor. (Kristen Stephens/Supplied)
She said seeing Pride flags downtown or in a business is a small step to show that everyone is welcome.
"That's
what we're trying to promote around here. And when you don't see them,
when you don't see yourself represented, you hide."
Lightbody
said there are lots of allies around Woodstock, but added that it's
challenging when the province's Education Minister, Bill Hogan, whose
riding includes Woodstock, is in favour of Policy 713, revised to
require parental consent before teachers can use a chosen pronoun
requested by a child under 16.
Lightbody
said one positive aspect of it all is that the council did give her
group several of the Pride banners back so they could be used elsewhere.
She
said her group is working on getting them hung up in other towns across
western New Brunswick and is planning ways to support pride events in
town this spring and summer.
"We are going to attempt to paint the western valley as rainbow as we can."
Sam
Farley is a Fredericton-based reporter at CBC New Brunswick. Originally
from Boston, he is a journalism graduate of the University of King's
College in Halifax. He can be reached at sam.farley@cbc.ca
Dr.
Jennifer Russell. New Brunswick's former chief medical officer of
health, served as the face of the province's response to the COVID-19
pandemic. (Government of New Brunswick)
It's
been more than six months since Dr. Jennifer Russell announced her
resignation as New Brunswick's chief medical officer of health, but the
Department of Health has no update on the search for her replacement.
The recruitment process is ongoing, said department spokesperson Sean Hatchard.
He
did not respond to numerous questions, such as who is conducting the
search or how, what kind of interest they're seeing, or how Public
Health is coping with being short-staffed while Dr. Yves Léger, the
acting deputy chief medical officer of health, fills in as acting chief.
A
former Nova Scotia deputy chief medical officer of health says these
types of positions can be difficult to fill for a variety of reasons,
including concerns of political interference.
But Dr.
Gaynor Watson-Creed, who served for 16 years until 2021, says it's
important to fill them as soon as possible to be fully staffed and able
to respond quickly to whatever outbreak or emergency could pop up next.
'No taking your foot off the gas'
"There's
no taking your foot off the gas," said Watson-Creed, who is now an
associate dean in the faculty of medicine at Dalhousie University and an
assistant professor in community health and epidemiology.
While
the urgency of the COVID-19 pandemic has passed, there are other
emergencies unfolding around the world, which must be watched closely,
she said, citing measles and the opioid crisis as examples.
Dr.
Gaynor Watson-Creed is an associate dean in the faculty of medicine at
Dalhousie University and an assistant professor in community health and
epidemiology. (Submitted by Dr. Gaynor Watson-Creed)
"That state of readiness is part of what we rely on the public health system for," said Watson-Creed.
Most
emergencies tend to evolve rapidly, she said, and if public health
officials don't get ahead of a situation, it can destabilize not just
the public health system, but the entire health-care system and the
population at large.
Vacancies 'destabilizing'
Vacancies can also have a cascading destabilizing impact, said Watson-Creed.
When
someone is serving in an acting capacity, they're unlikely to get too
comfortable in the position and "really dig into some of the issues,"
she said. It's more about making sure there are no "major fires" and
that if any do emerge, they're snuffed out swiftly, "just kind of
keeping the system afloat" until the position can be filled permanently.
In
addition, other officials within the system may not engage with the
temporary person fulsomely, "because what's the point? They're kind of
here today, gone tomorrow."
As a result, it can be
difficult to move anything constructive forward while there's that
instability in the system, said Watson-Creed.
Region can be a 'hard sell'
She's "not entirely surprised" the top doctor position in New Brunswick hasn't been filled yet.
There are a number of challenges recruiting medical officers, she said.
It's
a specialized field so there's only a small pool of people to draw
from, even though she believes medical students are keen, particularly
after the COVID-19 pandemic experience, and salaries are competitive — Russell made between $325,000 and $349,000 — especially without office overhead to worry about.
Another
problem is that there's no residency training program in public health
in Atlantic Canada, so if potential candidates have never been here
before, "it's just a harder sell."
"As beautiful as we
are and as welcoming as we are, it's still a lot to ask of somebody to
come from [a larger centre] to be here."
Scientific integrity key
Perhaps
the biggest factor though, according to Watson-Creed, is what kind of
relationship potential candidates can expect to have with government.
The
changes give the minister of health more power in pandemics and other
infectious disease outbreaks than the province's top doctor, former New
Brunswick chief medical officer of health Dr. Wayne MacDonald warned at
the time. That includes issuing orders to groups or provincewide that
could close a public place, restrict public gatherings,
or restrict travel to and from health regions, he said.
Dorothy
Shephard, who was health minister at the time, had argued that when
such sweeping measures are required, elected officials are more
appropriate and constitutionally accountable to the public for
restrictions which may violate Charter rights.
What type of autonomy will they have to make the decisions that they need to make?
- Gaynor Watson-Creed, former N.S. deputy chief medical officer of health
"As
a public health physician, I would be alarmed by that as the approach
because when an emergency is unfolding, you do not have the time for a
debate at cabinet," said Watson-Creed, who worked through three
pandemics — the SARS outbreak in Ontario during her residency in 2003, H1N1 or swine flu in Nova Scotia in 2009, and COVID.
"And
quite frankly, I would wonder what is the expertise of cabinet to be
able to weigh in with what we know is science- and evidence-based
practice around how you manage public health emergencies as they are
unfolding."
That,
said Watson-Creed, "will all be part of what will factor into the
decision-making for candidates who are looking at that position and
wondering ... how will their medical expertise be treated in that
environment, what type of autonomy will they have to make the decisions
that they need to make?"
"Those considerations around scientific integrity are big ones," when population health is at stake, she said.
Most
public health and preventive medicine residency programs offer a senior
management rotation that includes discussions of how to navigate the
political environment and maintain your scientific integrity, said
Watson-Creed.
"It's not easy," she said, but
with willing premiers, ministers, government departments and government
partners, "beautiful work can happen and great outcomes for the
population as a result of that work."
"Perhaps the biggest factor though, according to
Watson-Creed, is what kind of relationship potential candidates can
expect to have with government.
She pointed to amendments to New Brunswick's Public
Health Act in 2022, which one critic described as "the official
politicalization of public health."
The changes give the minister of health more power in
pandemics and other infectious disease outbreaks than the province's top
doctor, former New Brunswick chief medical officer of health Dr. Wayne
MacDonald warned at the time. That includes issuing orders to groups or
provincewide that could close a public place, restrict public
gatherings, or restrict travel to and from health regions, he said.
Dorothy Shephard, who was health minister at the time,
had argued that when such sweeping measures are required, elected
officials are more appropriate and constitutionally accountable to the
public for restrictions which may violate Charter rights."
IMHO Enough was said
Eddy Geek
Reply toDavid Amos
Elected officials are ALWAYS going to do what the base
wants - NOT necessarily what is good for the general public.
Dorothy Shephard is flat out wrong and in a pandemic
setting the measures she mentioned are NOT in violation of any Charter
rights or freedoms
David Amos
Reply toEddy Geek
Are you a lawyer?
Eddy Geek
Reply toDavid Amos
Nope
Retired scientist
But
Courts of law have repeatedly ruled on our rights and freedoms during the pandemic - they were NOT violated
David Amos
Reply toEddy Geek
I beg to differ Bigtime Higgy et al cannot ignore court orders My grandchild proved that many times
David Amos
Content Deactivated
Reply toEddy Geek
You really should check my blog
David Amos
Content Deactivated
Welcome to the circus
David Amos
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It appears that I should welcome some other dudes to the mute club eh?
David Amos
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Methinks Higgy's key words today were "seem to be" Nesy Pas?
"The premier said the government must communicate on
issues that "seem to be rather straightforward issues to some and very
controversial issues to others."
Pastor Ron Miller
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It saves the province money by keeping this job vacant. That savings was used to pay on the debt.
David Amos
Reply toPastor Ron Miller
Say Hey to Mr Woodman for me will ya?
Dan Lee
a chicken hasnt been safe since..
David Amos
Reply toDan Lee
They never were around me
William Murdoch
The PM called the shots and the provinces
determined that Science respected borders. And after all that
vaccination scenarios were set back 50 years.
David Amos
Reply toWilliam Murdoch
Yup
Eddy Geek
Reply toWilliam Murdoch
Nope
The PM had little to do with it and neither did borders
The Chief public health officer did.
If you think the public health measures taken during the
pandemic set vaccination scenarios "back 50 years" you clearly weren't
around 50 years ago or worse, during polio
William Murdoch
Reply toEddy Geek
I disagree with all you say.
Eddy Geek
Reply toWilliam Murdoch
Of course you do
But then again you get all of your information from FB, Reddit or X
Aka not credible
Eddy Geek
Reply toWilliam Murdoch
Curious if all of the “stuff” social media claimed was in the Covid vaccines was right??
Oh right, they weren’t
As for polio, obv you weren’t alive yet
David Amos
Reply toWilliam Murdoch
Me Too
David Amos
Reply toEddy Geek
FYI Two uncles of mine had polio 1 died young
and the other suffered from its effect his whole life I should know
because I was his best buddy as soon as I could walk and talk after
coming out of a 30 day coma
Stuart Udovitch
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Perhaps Premier Danielle Smith could recommend someone?
David Amos
Reply toStuart Udovitch
Of that I have no doubt
Stuart Udovitch
Why pay someone to be not listened too?
David Amos
Reply toStuart Udovitch
Good question
G. Timothy Walton
It's as if qualified people don't want to work for Higgs.
How does an employer get such a bad reputation?
David Amos
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Reply to G. Timothy Walton
Have you read the news lately?
Garry Mackay
and all this time I thought Dr. Higgs had replaced her with himself. /S
David Amos
Now thats funny
Jos Allaire
Higgs doesn't care. The less he has to pay so he can give more to his rich friends and patronage appointments.
David Amos
Reply to Jos Allaire
True
Lou Bell
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Reply to Jos Allaire
Lou Bell
Reply to Lou Bell
Family and Friends
.
Pastor Ron Miller
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Reply to Lou Bell
You are a logical thinker much like the premier
Jim Lake
Our Health Minister and the Higgs government
have little idea or understanding of what their priorities should be in
order to serve all New Brunswickers they were elected to represent.
They are more concerned with politicizing what should be arms-length,
independent positions, making sure they control everything and now, with
the addition of far right-wing ideologists to the premier’s office,
pushing Higgs’ personal far-right (COR) agenda. New Brunswick
desperately needs a new government that is actually interested in
governing for all New Brunswickers.
Kyle Woodman
Reply to Jim Lake
Actually they do . Liberals think there are
hundreds of family physicians laying around , just waiting to be hired .
There has been a shortage of Healthcare workers here in NB for decades ,
and the liberals hired virtually none their last 4 years in office .
They paid for many , we just didn't get any .
William Peters
Reply to Jim Lake
Ideologues work to make ideologies wins. High
fives will flow when, and only when, they secure reelection. No one is
keeping score with social outcomes. If you spend and get desirable
outcomes that is considered inferior to not spending and inheriting a
mess of outcomes resulting from institutional failure. The only possible
outcome from this is that the people will get on board with
transferring the public services to the private sector where it will
work for those who can pay at any price.
William Murdoch
Reply to Kyle Woodman
Top Comment.
David Amos
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Reply to Kyle Woodman
Which Woodman are you?
Lou Bell
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Reply to Jim Lake
Lou Bell
Reply to Lou Bell
All for 1/3 of the NB population !
David Amos
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Reply to William Peters
Lots of crickets for a response, as expected
Pastor Ron Miller
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Reply to Jim Lake
Higgs is the smartest premier we have ever had.
Kyle Woodman
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Jim Lake
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Reply to Kyle Woodman
Nice impersonation Ronald … easy to identify based on your name calling and spinning tales.
David Amos
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Reply to Jim Lake
Just click on his ID and you will know for sure
Jimmy Cochrane
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Jim Lake
Reply to Jimmy Cochrane
And that’s one of the problems.
David Amos
Reply to Jim Lake
What is our biggest problem?
Pastor Ron Miller
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Reply toDavid Amos
That people don’t understand authority and don’t listen to the boss. Which is Higgs.
Jim Lake
Reply toDavid Amos
Our premier … and people who don’t care about others is a close second.
David Amos
Reply to Jim Lake
I agree
David Amos
Reply to Jim Lake
Did you notice how fast the not so good Pastor came and went?
Art McCarthy
We surely could have used a CMOH in the summer of 2021 instead of Charlie McCarthy.
The last real CMOH in NB was Eilish Cleary
David Amos
Reply to Art McCarthy
This is a test
Fred indie
& we are building museums... what a tragedy!
David Amos
Reply to Fred indieIMHO Museums are important
.
David Will
I will do it. I have no credentials in the healthcare field but that's not needed for government bureaucracy positions anyway.
Jim Lake
Reply to David Will
The Chief Medical Officer is not (or should
not) be a government bureaucracy position … it needs to be an
arms-length, independent position. But under the Higgs regime, he
changed that because he wants to control everything. And New
Brunswickers pay the price, like we seem to do with all his decisions.
David Amos
Reply to David Will
What do you want in wages and benefits?
MR Cain
I remember when Cardy and Russell had a problem
deciding who gets the blame for masking in schools. As if politics is
not involved...and then there was the chicken dance, which pretty much
decided who the boss was.
.
Kyle Woodman
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Reply to MR Cain
MR Cain
Reply to Kyle Woodman
Thank you for your response. I now know who to mute...again. Quite a list for Ron or Sam or...
Art McCarthy Reply to Kyle Woodman
Convenient to omit that the one-time federal funding was
not used to improve ventilation/filtration in public buildings (and
yes, we knew by then that the virus was airborne) but instead dumped
into general revenue and a surplus declared.
That was spring of 2021, shortly before Higgs opened up
the province and cases took off in NB. The only good news is that they
then changed the criteria for case counts and ignored wastewater
testing.
And with woefully inadequate ventilation/filtration
still in place, for some reason ppl continue to get sick. Whoda thunk
it?
Kyle Woodman
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Reply to Art McCarthy
Jim Lake
Reply to Kyle Woodman
Yeah, sure Ronald, keep spinning your tales.
David Amos
Reply to Jim Lake
You and Higgy et al know as well as I that he is not the only one who keeps spinning tales.
David Amos
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Reply to MR Cain
Should I welcome the other dudes to your mute club?
David Amos
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Reply to Art McCarthy
It appears that I should welcome the other dudes to Cain's mute club eh?
David Amos
Reply to Art McCarthy
Hmmm
Lou Bell
Reply to Art McCarthy
Most schools were done in the summer of 2021 .
And anyone paying attention at all would know that we just reached the
1,000 mark foir deaths from COVID a month or two ago ! You need to keep
up with teh times Art .
Eugene Peabody
How convenient that there is another high paying job for Higgs to fill with more campaign workers.
Kyle Woodman
Reply to Eugene Peabody
I know, I think he planned all this out in
2018, I would not put it past him. The fact the PO's office has
employees connected to the premier is unheard of, we need to stop this
type behaviour. I'm still trying to get over the fact that there is an
EV charging station that is for GNB use only. Another failure of the
Higgs government.
David Amos
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Reply to Kyle Woodman
Methinks you give Higgy too much credit
Everybody knows he is not that clever Hence the need for so many
consultants etc N'esy Pas?
William Peters
Don't ask too hard, because Higgs will hire a
PR man from Alberta and place him in that position to snag that 350K
citing his valuable political opinions from elsewhere as a selling
point.
David Amos
Reply to William Peters
IMHO That has already been done but whereas Mr Outhouse is not from Alberta Perhaps you have someone else in mind?
Doug kirby
As long as the current government is in power
that position will not be filled....everyone knows how they work it's
not a desirable position right now maybe someday but not now
David Amos
Reply to Doug kirby
I concur
JOhn D Bond
Correction, the moment the current provincial
government is out of office will provide more benefit to the populace in
the province.
The
first page of the letter sent by Minister of Education Bill Hogan to
Anglophone East district education council chair Harry Doyle on April
22. (CBC)
Woodstock
Mayor Trina Jones was unavailable for an interview, but said in a
previous council meeting that the rule was adopted to be more fair and
cut down on a multitude of requests for different banners. (Jacques Poitras/CBC)
Ebony
Scott has lived in Woodstock her whole life and says she's disappointed
because she and her husband have raised their children to be accepting
of others. (Submitted by Ebony Scott)
In 2017, a rainbow crosswalk was vandalized. The Pride banners were put up not long after by a previous mayor. (Kristen Stephens/Supplied)
Dr.
Gaynor Watson-Creed is an associate dean in the faculty of medicine at
Dalhousie University and an assistant professor in community health and
epidemiology. (Submitted by Dr. Gaynor Watson-Creed)
"Perhaps the biggest factor though, according to Watson-Creed, is what kind of relationship potential candidates can expect to have with government.
She pointed to amendments to New Brunswick's Public Health Act in 2022, which one critic described as "the official politicalization of public health."
The changes give the minister of health more power in pandemics and other infectious disease outbreaks than the province's top doctor, former New Brunswick chief medical officer of health Dr. Wayne MacDonald warned at the time. That includes issuing orders to groups or provincewide that could close a public place, restrict public gatherings, or restrict travel to and from health regions, he said.
Dorothy Shephard, who was health minister at the time, had argued that when such sweeping measures are required, elected officials are more appropriate and constitutionally accountable to the public for restrictions which may violate Charter rights."
IMHO Enough was said