N.B. government seeks legislation changes on impaired driving, student protection and bail hearings

The New Brunswick government hit the ground running at the legislature with several act amendments on Tuesday.

Impaired driving

According to a news release from the province, the government is looking to amend the Motor Vehicle Act to strengthen administrative penalties for impaired driving. The change would allow officers to issue immediate roadside suspensions for impaired driving violations not involving death, serious bodily harm, or passengers under the age of 16.

Under the current act, officers can only charge such drivers under the Criminal Code. An immediate roadside suspension could last for 15 months and involve a 30-day vehicle impoundment, participation in a driver re-education program, a $1,000 administrative fee, and a licence reinstatement fee of $230.

“These amendments aim to deter impaired driving and make our roads safer for everyone by removing impaired drivers from the road immediately,” said Public Safety Minister Kris Austin in the release. “This approach forces drivers who have driven after drinking to separate the activities by mandatory participation in the ignition interlock program. It forces them, for months, to choose between drinking or driving. This is our best opportunity to cut down on impaired driving long-term.”

The release says these proposed changes are based on models in Manitoba, Alberta, and British Columbia.

"You're not waiting 12 months or 18 months before you might get a sentence if you're actually convicted," said Steve Sullivan, CEO of Mothers Against Drunk Driving Canada. "Your sanction is immediate. That has a deterring effect on people's behaviour."

Student protection

Possible amendments to the Private Occupational Training Act could increase protections for students and hold private career colleges accountable.

According to a separate news release, the amendments would:

• change registration requirements for training organizations from annual to one-time
• build a formal mechanism for students to register complaints against training organizations
• allow the government to create certain service and programming standards, and set regulation in areas such as retention and sharing of student records
• introduce a compliance order system to create more options to remedy issues aside from revoking registration

“New Brunswickers need to know the graduates entering our workforce are appropriately trained and qualified, regardless of whether their training was delivered through a public or private institution, and our students depend on government to protect them from situations where they can be taken advantage of, financially or otherwise,” said Greg Turner, minister of Post-Secondary Education, Training and Labour, in the release. “Making these changes will increase transparency and accountability for those subject to the act.”

The release says the Private Occupational Training Act sets minimum requirements for the registration of private occupational training organizations. There are 51 such groups registered in New Brunswick and they serve more than 3,000 students through programs such as cosmetology, massage therapy, and business administration.

Court changes

The provincial government is hoping to speed up court system by allowing justices of the peace to oversee bail hearings.

According to a separate news release, the Justices of the Peace Act would let those officials conduct hearings in place of judges. The act would also make virtual bail hearings a centralized model for such court proceedings, allowing them to proceed without the physical need of an actual courtroom and potentially freeing up space for other matters.

“There were 8,822 bail-related matters for adults in 2023, up from 8,049 in 2022 and 7,016 in 2021,” the release says.

The government hopes to implement these changes by January 2025.

A separate court-related piece of legislation called An Act Respecting Hearing Officers seeks to consolidate the role of various court officials under the title of hearing officer and expand their authority to conduct certain child, youth and adult protection matters.

“The proposed amendments will create a more effective and less adversarial court process for child, youth and adult protection matters by ensuring timely access to justice for both,” said Justice Minister Hugh J. Flemming in the release. “The proposed model is based on the Manitoba child protection model, which has seen great success. We expect to reduce the number of child protection cases that have to go to court by 50 per cent.”

Health-care plan

The New Brunswick government is focusing on collaboration to improve health care as part of a new action plan released Tuesday.

According to a separate new release, the primary health care action plan seeks to tackle “systemic challenges,” including funding, administration, governance, accountability, and practice structures. The plan is highlighting the need for collaboration and team-based practices.

“Team-based practices are a win-win for both patients and practitioners,” said Health Minister Bruce Fitch in the release. “They provide New Brunswickers with the care they need, at the right time and in the right place, from the right provider. They also offer better work-life balance for health practitioners at a time when we are working to increase recruitment and retention.”

Some of the initiatives in the plan include:

• improving recruitment activities
• enhancing compensation and funding models for team-based care
• helping solo physicians transfer to group-based practices
• improved management of team-based practices

- With files from CTV Atlantic's Nick Moore.

For more New Brunswick news visit our dedicated provincial page.