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A Francophone man who wanted some information about renewing his licence plate contacted our Office because he was unable to obtain service in French from a ServiceOntario office in a designated area.

A woman contacted us to complain about her experience with inadequate French services from the Ministry of Colleges and Universities, both during telephone conversations and in written communications in response to her access to information request.

A mother contacted us in frustration after waiting several months for her son’s name change to be processed.

A mother complained to us about delays in obtaining long-form birth certificates for her two university-aged children, who needed the documents to apply for post-secondary education funding.

We received a complaint from a Francophone who contacted the Ministry of Finance regarding provincial property taxes in an unorganized territory in Northern Ontario.

As large numbers of Ukrainians have sought refuge in Ontario in the wake of Russia’s invasion of their country, Ontario has made efforts to help them settle. However, we recently heard of some having difficulty in obtaining driver’s licences.

A person complained that some LinkedIn accounts of the Ontario government and its agencies, including those of the Ministry of Transportation and Ontario Health, showed a unilingual English logo and title.

A man informed us that although he had chosen to receive the Metrolinx e-newsletter about the Ontario Line in French, it was still being emailed to him in English every week.

Investigation into Laurentian University’s cuts to French-language programming during restructuring and into the administration of the university’s designation by the Ministry of Francophone Affairs and the Ministry of Colleges and Universities

We were contacted by a person who requested a bilingual hearing at a courthouse in Northern Ontario.

A man contacted the provincial COVID-19 vaccine system by phone and chose the “French” option to request his proof of vaccination by mail.

We were contacted by a person living in a designated area of Eastern Ontario who requested the French version of an inspection report conducted by the Electrical Safety Authority (ESA).

A man working at a French-language school board contacted us because he wanted to obtain the French version of the Fire Code (Regulation 213/07 of the Fire Protection and Prevention Act) in order to know the provisions that apply to school facilities.

We were contacted by a person who visited the Ontario Health Data Platform website to learn more about a Ministry of Health research project – only to discover the site was only available in English.

We were contacted by a Francophone woman after she tried to call Metrolinx. Although she chose the French phone line, she said the agent who took the call could only speak English.

We were contacted by a person who watched the Trillium Awards ceremony on Facebook on June 17, 2020, which was held in English only.

In February 2021, the government launched an online consultation to get ideas and feedback on its plan to introduce a digital ID (digital identification).

Commissioner's Message - Taking Care of Ontario's Linguistic Health This is the second Annual Report of the French Language Services Commissioner presented by the Office of the Ombudsman of Ontario. As we look back on the past year, we are more motivated than ever by the opportunity we have, even amid the COVID-19 pandemic, to find effective solutions to the challenges we confront.

A woman told us that she wanted to get physiotherapy care for her father.

A Francophone woman complained to us that a dermatology clinic at an eastern Ontario hospital did not provide services in French when she booked her appointment on the phone, at reception or during the medical examination.