A conservative Member of Parliament from Alberta was accused of undermining bilingualism and insulting French-speaking Canadians after she asked a Quebec government minister to speak English during her appearance before a parliamentary committee.

Meanwhile, NDP MP Peter Julian told the committee that the Conservatives questioning official bilingualism is completely condemnable.

The incident occurred during a meeting of the Heritage Committee in the House of Commons on Thursday morning, where Rachel Thomas, the Conservative MP for Lethbridge, asked Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge, a French speaker representing the Brome-Missisquoi area in Quebec, to respond to her questions in English.

This request sparked a wave of protests from NDP and Liberal Bloc MPs on the committee, who accused Thomas of insulting French speakers and Quebec residents.