OTTAWA — True to his word, Prime Minister Mark Carney has chosen a francophone to be Canada's next vice-regal, as former Supreme Court justice Louise Arbour will become the country's next governor general.
According to numerous reports published by Quebec media, Mary Simon's replacement at Rideau Hall will be Arbour, who served on the Supreme Court of Canada and has held prominent international roles.
While Simon was indeed bilingual and born in Quebec, she was raised in Kuujjuaq in the Quebec Arctic — the daughter of an English-speaking Canadian and an Inuk mother — and came to Rideau Hall fluent in English and Inuktitut, but not French. She is set to step down this month.
Carney will make a formal announcement at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday.
Arbour's distinguished career
Born in Montreal, Arbour earned her law degree from Universite de Montreal in 1970. In 1990 she became the first francophone appointed to the Ontario Court of Appeal, where she led an eye-opening Arbour Report into the condition of women prisoners at the now-shuttered Kingston Prison for Women — uncovering a pattern of “cruel, inhumane, and degrading treatment” that led to numerous resignations and important policy changes in Canada's correctional system.
She also served as UN High Commissioner for Human Rights from 2004 to 2008, and the UN's Special Representative for International Migration from 2017 to 2018. She also led the 2022 review into sexual misconduct in the Canadian Armed Forces and Canadian military colleges.
Simon dogged by language woes
While Simon said she was committed to learning French upon being named governor general by former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, she never became fluent — causing much consternation in Quebec.
Following Simon's appointment, the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages received more than 1,300 complaints over her lack of French skills, but former Commissioner Raymond Théberge ruled Simon's appointment didn't violate the Official Languages Act as the role wasn't covered under the legislation.
Despite her assurances, and hundreds of hours of lessons costing taxpayers $52,000, she never became fluent in French. A 2024 tour of Quebec City saw her speaking almost no French during her visit, causing controversy in the French-language press.
These controversies prompted the PM to explicitly state that Canada's next vice-regal will be fluent in both of Canada's official languages.
This is a breaking news story and will be updated.
