Deputy Ombudsman becomes Acting Ombudsman of Ontario

(TORONTO – April 1, 2026) Barbara Finlay has assumed the role of Ombudsman of Ontario (Acting), effective today, pending the Legislative Assembly’s appointment of a permanent Ombudsman. She takes over from Paul Dubé, who completed his second five-year term yesterday.

Ms. Finlay has served as Deputy Ombudsman for the past 20 years and served as Acting Ombudsman from September 2015 to April 2016, during the historic expansion of the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction to municipalities, universities and school boards. As Deputy Ombudsman, she oversaw the Office’s operations as it took on responsibility for French language services and child protection services in 2019.

A bilingual lawyer with three decades of experience in public service, Ms. Finlay is vested with the “powers and duties” of the Ombudsman under s. 6(3) of the Ombudsman Act. She assured Ontarians that all of the operations of the Office will continue as normal while she holds the interim role.

“We will continue to respond to and resolve thousands of public complaints and inquiries as we always have, and all of our pending investigations and reports will proceed,” she said. “Ontarians can continue to have full confidence in the work of our French Language Services Unit and Commissioner Carl Bouchard, and our Children and Youth Unit will continue to ensure the rights of children and youth are protected.”

She also affirmed the Office’s commitment to implementing its Indigenous Services Plan, launched earlier this month following an engagement process with Indigenous groups and individuals across Ontario.

“I am humbled to be part of this important work to optimize Ombudsman Ontario’s services to Indigenous peoples in a manner that contributes to reconciliation,” she said.

Ms. Finlay extended a heartfelt thank you to Mr. Dubé for 10 years of exemplary leadership. As Ontario’s seventh Ombudsman, he championed the Office’s role in strengthening public services and protecting the rights of Ontarians. His term included the most significant growth in the Ombudsman’s mandate since it was established 50 years ago: Today, Ontarians can seek the Ombudsman’s help with issues related to provincial government bodies, municipalities, universities and colleges, school boards, child protection services and French language services.

Last week, Mr. Dubé released an end-of-term report, A Decade of Promoting Fairness: Expanding Access, Impact and Value, detailing highlights of a period in which his Office handled more than 245,000 cases, issued 22 investigation reports (plus another 250+ regarding municipal meetings), and made 25 submissions to government. He also highlighted improvements in governance, persistent outstanding problems, and the importance of the Ombudsman role in strengthening public services.

Read Acting Ombudsman Barbara Finlay’s bio

Read Ombudsman Dubé’s final report

For more information, contact:
Linda Williamson, Director of Communications 
[email protected]

About Ombudsman Ontario: The Ombudsman, established in 1975 to help protect the rights of all Ontarians, is an independent and impartial officer of the Legislature. In the past 50+ years, the Ombudsman’s Office has handled more than 1 million cases and made more than 1,300 recommendations to improve public services, benefiting millions of people across the province. Under the Ombudsman Act, the Ombudsman reviews and resolves complaints and inquiries from the public about provincial government organizations, French language services, child protection services, municipalities, universities and school boards.