Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston is criticizing what he is calling an “order” issued by judges forbidding employees from donning poppies while working in certain court facilities and has vowed to enact legislation, if necessary, to protect the rights of workers who want to wear the Remembrance Day symbol.
Houston said the so-called directive was issued by Nova Scotia judges who consider the poppy to be a political statement. He called it “disgusting” in a lengthy social media post, adding that the “judges who issued this order are wrong.”
“The poppy is not a political statement,” he said in the Nov. 6 post. “It is a symbol of remembrance and respect for the fallen and those who served and continue to serve our country.”
He said he will “stand firmly behind anyone who wants to wear a poppy in their workplace” and, if deemed necessary, will implement the Nova Scotia Remembrance Observance Act to give all workers the right to wear a poppy in their place of employment from Nov. 1 to Nov. 11.
Houston has not made public the identities of the judges he was referring to or the total number of poppy bans enforced, but social media and news reports suggest at least two judges have asked employees not to wear poppies.
A spokesperson for the executive office of the Nova Scotia Judiciary told The Epoch Times that there have been no official orders or directives given to employees.
“Staff who wished to wear poppies in the courtroom were advised to speak with the presiding judge and conversations, as needed, have occurred around that specific topic,” the spokesperson said in an email. “It is within the discretion of the presiding judge.”
The spokesperson did not verify the identities of the judges who requested that staff refrain from wearing poppies or disclose how many judges have made such requests.
He noted that members of the public are welcome to wear poppies in the courthouse and courtroom but said the courts must appear to be neutral at all times “to ensure the fair administration of justice.”
“Everyone appearing in court must feel that their case will be heard fairly and without bias,” the email said. “As a result, all judges and staff are expected not to wear any symbols of support in the courtroom.”
The statement from the Nova Scotia Judiciary referenced the Canadian Judicial Council’s Ethical Principles for Judges which says that “the wearing or display of symbols of support, even if they seem innocuous […] may be interpreted as reflecting a lack of impartiality or the use of the position of the judge to make a political or other statement.”
The publication goes on to say that judges should avoid “visible symbols of support,” especially during court proceedings.
The judiciary spokesperson said court staff are asked not to wear any symbols of support in the courtroom to “respect these ethical principles and ensure a neutral hearing.”
The poppy has been the official symbol of remembrance in Canada since 1921. It is generally worn beginning on the last Friday of October leading up to Remembrance Day on Nov. 11.
“It is not lost on me that our veterans fought so we can enjoy the freedoms the courts uphold,” Houston said. “That’s why I find it impossible to believe any judge would ban a symbol of respect for the fallen, our veterans and their families.”
Poppy Support
Former Conservative cabinet minister and Nova Scotia MP Peter MacKay also weighed in on the issue and commended Houston for his stance.“Say it isn’t so. Hearing that 2 NS Judges have ordered court staff, some of whom are Vets to remove poppies in the courtroom,” MacKay said in a Nov. 6 X post. “What an outrage. A previous ‘ban’ on CAF/Vets wearing uniforms in schools when mtg students was broadly repudiated. Bravo Tim Houston who again spoke out & may legislate protection for PS’ right to wear the poppy.”
MacKay’s post references Houston’s reaction last year after a Halifax-area school requested armed forces members attend its Remembrance Day ceremony dressed in civilian attire.
The Halifax Regional Centre for Education, the public school district in the city, said in a statement at the time that the decision was made to accommodate students who come from “countries in conflict” who might be traumatized by military uniforms.
Houston said in a 2024 social media post that the leaders at the school were “disgracing themselves while demeaning the people who protect our country.”
“If the people behind this decision had a shred of the courage that our veterans have, this cowardly and insulting idea would have been rejected immediately,” he wrote. “In the Nova Scotia and Canada I know, our veterans will never be asked to hide who they are.”
The school subsequently issued an apology and reversed the decision.
