Mr. Speaker, in politics as in life, we often experience some hard times, but there are also some really special ones like today. The Ontario Court of Appeal has just turned down the appeal by the government of Ontario and has confirmed the division court decision on Montfort Hospital.
What is particularly important is that the court's decision was based on one of the unwritten constitutional principles: respect for and protection of linguistic minorities. I will quote an excerpt from the decision.
The Constitution’s structural principle of respect for and protection of minorities is a bedrock principle that has a direct bearing on the interpretation to be accorded the French Language Services Act.
All minority communities, the anglophones of Quebec and the francophones elsewhere in the country, are thus provided with a solid basis for the respect of their rights.
Congratulations are in order for the management of the hospital, the members of SOS Montfort and the thousands of Canadians, both anglophone and francophone, who supported our cause.