Critics say Nova Scotia bill violates labour rights, threatens right to information

Critics say a new N.S. omnibus bill is an attack on labour rights and government accountability.

HALIFAX — Members of the Nova Scotia public voiced concerns on Monday about a government bill they said threatens people’s access to information and violates labour rights in the civil service.

The omnibus bill includes amendments that would allow the Progressive Conservative government to fire without cause the auditor general and non-unionized bureaucrats, and veto the release of audit reports.

Hugh Thompson of Sambro, N.S., told the public bills committee that he didn’t recall the Tories campaigning before the November election on making it easier to fire officials and blocking audits. The Progressive Conservatives won an overwhelming majority on Nov. 26, picking up 43 of the legislature’s 55 seats.

“In what election did you get a mandate for this?” Thompson asked Tory members of the committee. “The ruling party has won a super majority in the legislature and has no impediment to passing whatever legislation it desires and sees fit. I just do not understand what would motivate some of the provisions in this bill.”

Under mounting public pressure, Premier Tim Houston has said his government will withdraw the amendments concerning the powers of the auditor general, but so far hasn’t taken any official steps to do so. Modifications are expected to be included when the bill returns to the legislature for further debate.

Houston has also told the legislature that there will likely be changes to provisions that the province’s freedom of information commissioner said would weaken the public’s right to access government records and documents, although he has not yet provided specifics.

Other contentious elements of the bill include permitting departments to refuse access requests on the grounds that they are trivial, frivolous or vexatious.

Thompson told the committee that the government must protect the public’s right to access documents and records. “This is our information, we own it and the government holds it for us, not the other way around,” he said. “I deserve to know what’s going on.”

Catherine Harrop of Halifax called the proposal to fire the auditor general without cause a “Trumpian move” -- in reference to U.S. President Donald Trump -- aimed at silencing an official who holds the government accountable.

“When I get a whiff of something like that from right here in the province, it makes me feel like I have to say something,” Harrop said.

Many of the measures in the bill, she said, suggest the Tories want to remove what they see as impediments to quickly implementing their agenda.

“Getting rid of speed limits certainly makes it faster to get where you are going if you don’t kill yourself and somebody else,” she told the committee. “Walk in the light. Push back against colleagues who think taking off the guardrails makes things a little bit better.”

Sandra Mullen, president of the Nova Scotia Government and General Employees Union, which represents civil servants, said giving government the ability to fire non-unionized employees without cause would be a violation of the province’s labour standards code.

“The change is not merely a minor adjustment, it’s a seismic shift,” Mullen said. “Employees could now face the threat of termination without any explanation or recourse, creating a climate of fear, uncertainty and the potential for arbitrary decision-making.”

Former Liberal cabinet minister Kelly Regan, who recently retired from politics, warned the committee that any such move against the civil service would erode the confidence of employees to stop government from doing “stupid things.”

“We need to know that (non-unionized) civil servants can say what they need to say to you about fiscal health and any other matter without fear that they will be summarily dismissed without cause,” Regan said.

Committee members were scheduled to sit into the evening on Monday to hear comments on six bills. After changes introduced by the government during the current sitting, members are no longer able to propose amendments to legislation at the committee stage.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 17, 2025.

Keith Doucette, The Canadian Press