HALIFAX — The chief clerk of the Nova Scotia legislature says it has temporarily banned 36 people from setting foot in the building for allegedly causing a disruption during the last session.

James Charlton says the legislature issued letters informing people they were banned following an extensive review of security footage of a late-night protest that began during a budget-related vote on March 24.

The protest ended around midnight with some demonstrators blocking exits and preventing vehicles from leaving.

The disruption prompted the Speaker to close the legislature to the public for a week.

The bans take effect on Sept. 1 and range in length from three to 12 months.

Charlton says those who did not protest but failed to exit the galleries when the Speaker ordered they be closed that night are banned for three months, and those who interrupted the vote by demonstrating are banned for six months.

Christine Saulnier, the director of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives Nova Scotia, says she was among those affected by the ban.

She says she hummed along to the protest song and left the legislature that night about 15 minutes after the singing started. She also says she left without being asked to by legislature staff or security.

She received a registered letter informing her of the ban at her home on Friday.

Those who interrupted by protesting and “verbally abused” members of the legislature are banned for a full year, Charlton says.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 10, 2026.

Lyndsay Armstrong, The Canadian Press