GATINEAU, QC, April 20, 2026 /CNW/ - Commissioner of Official Languages of Canada Kelly Burke made the following statement regarding her intervention before the Supreme Court of Canda in the St. John's International Airport Authority v Thibodeau case.

"I am intervening before the Supreme Court of Canada today to establish the scope of the language obligations of local airport authorities that are subject to the Official Languages Act through the Airport Transfer Act.

"Like all of my predecessors, I firmly believe that airport authorities must ensure that they fully uphold the language rights of the Canadian public and meet all of their language obligations under the Official Languages Act, both in their head office and in their offices and airport facilities.

"I am also of the opinion that we need to interpret the concept of "travelling public" broadly and liberally to include not only people who are travelling, but also those who use a federal institution's services of an institution with the intention of travelling.

"For example, a person who is looking for information about a trip on an airport's website or social media platforms is considered to have language rights in the same way as a person who has already purchased a ticket.

"I will be keeping a close eye on the Supreme Court's decision, which will help to clear up any ambiguity and to clarify once and for all the language obligations of airport authorities, whether at their head offices or in their airports."

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SOURCE Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages